Canada/Australia Explained: Schools years and seasons

Canadian and Australian school years are very different, so I've put together a guide for understanding how it all works. (Sorry for the weirdness of the table. Blogger does not appreciate me trying to put a table in.)



* Our school year is broken into four terms and two semesters (two terms per semester), and each term is about ten weeks. We'll have ten weeks of school, then two weeks off.

Comments

  1. Huh, it's interesting to see how different countries address the school year in different years. Of course, there are always the arguments to see what system is based, but I actually just find it interesting as to how the school year mostly depends on the weather. Thanks for sharing, Victoria!

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    1. Yeah, before I moved I didn't even consider that school years would be different. I personally think the Oz system is better, but that's just my experience. It is great though that the school system has recognized that we need summer off, not another season. I adore summer too much. Thanks for commenting!

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  3. Interesting! In the U.S. it has more to do with what state/level of schooling you're in. Colleges typically have longer breaks, but fewer of them. Some states even have laws about when schools can start--I think the idea was originally that kids could go help on the farm (at least in the Midwest/ Plains states), but now it's more about whether or not the schools have Air Conditioning. There's always talk about going to more of an all-year schedule, similar to what you have in Australia, but we'll see if anything ever comes of it.

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    1. Yeah, universities here have a different school year to high school, but I'm not in uni so I'm not sure what that's like. That's pretty cool, I would have never thought of it. Especially that air con thing :) Technically, we don't have school all-year round, we still get two months off for summer. I think it might be more intense during school so we get more breaks? I'm not really sure. I personally think we shouldn't work through summer; being from northern Alberta you want to get as much sunlight as possible. What's your opinion on that one?

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  4. Thank youuu! I'm always so confused with the different countries (namely Australia) and this helps me understand. xD

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    1. You're welcome! Yeah, it always confuses me too, especially when I'm talking to someone back home and I'm having to explain the different seasons and school year things. I'm glad it helped clear some things up. Thanks for commenting!

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  5. Oooh, thanks for sharing this, because I've always wondered what the school schedule for the southern hemisphere might look like. It makes sense that it wouldn't be the same as in the northern, because then you would have summer break in the winter, and that would stink because you'd actually miss summer. (I sincerely hope that sentence made sense.) So anyway, this is great--thanks for clearing up my confusion. :)

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    1. You're welcome :) I'm glad it helped to clear some things up. Yep, I love how the school system recognized how awesome summer is. (Besides, I don't think the school could afford to have school in the summer because of the electricity bills from the air-conditioners.) Yeah, it would be awful to have vacation in winter, especially in Canada. You couldn't do anything, it'd be so cold.

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  6. This is so interesting! I had no idea that Australia was that different from Canada. I mean I knew about the reverse seasons, but I didn't know about the school year. Wow, that's crazy. It just goes to show how something so basic to me, is completely different for someone else.

    Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Hahaha, that's why I'm here :) I think it's crazy how something so grounded and normal is completely different somewhere else. Thanks for commenting!

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  7. Batman All The Way15 September 2015 at 18:43

    I wouldn't quote me on it, but I read somewhere that school starts in June in the Philippines. I just thought that was interesting.
    Also, just as a side note, school in Australia starts at the end of January :)
    But cool post, btw.

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    1. Huh, you learn something new everyday.

      End of January, beginning of February, it's a difference of like two days. But thanks for pointing out my mistakes, as usual :)

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