Choosing the Right Secondary School for Your Child
Choosing a Secondary School for your child can be a daunting experience. You could just go local, the closest one to your house. But is this the best option for your child’s future? To ease those am I making the right choice nerves, we’ve created an easy checklist to help you make an informed decision for a Secondary School for your son or daughter.
- What kind of person do you want your child to become as they grow? With this in mind, you can begin understanding what’s important when researching schools and their offerings.
- Is the school conveniently located, or is there a bus service offered?
- Do the schools you’ve shortlisted promote the values that you teach at home, and will they support you and your child’s aspirations?
- Is the school able to meet the special needs or interests your child may have?
- Is the school’s curriculum a good fit for your child?
- Determine your child’s learning style. Are they a visual learner or someone who works better individually or in groups?
- How big are the class sizes? Look at the years above too.
- Co-ed or single sex? You may want to consider siblings. Do you want to be delivering children to different schools in rush hour?
- Does the school have results and alumni success stories to openly share with you?
- What academic programs do they offer that will match and nurture your child’s skills and talents?
- What learning pathways are available for further study once students have completed year 10?
- Are there extra-curricular opportunities such as drama, sports or arts clubs that will help to inspire your child to find their passions and strengths?
- Is being part of a wider school community important to your family? If so, does the school organise social events or encourage parent interactions with classes?
- Does the school offer a strong pastoral care program?
- Take a tour of the school and get a ‘feel’ for the staff, students, and the environment your child will be learning and exploring in. First impressions count!
- Talk to your child. High school is a big change, especially for your child, and allowing them to feel involved in the decision making will make the process easier to understand and digest.
- Remember you can always change your mind, as can your child. It’s good practise to remind yourself of this to help you and your son or daughter to relax. Some schools even offer trial days or weeks to get a better understanding of whether the high school will be suitable.At Living Waters Lutheran College, we’re a K-12 co-ed school offering academic and specialist programs to help nurture, challenge and inspire every child.If you are interested in finding out how our College builds bright futures, please download our Prospectus or book a tour which are happening every Wednesday in November 2021.
