# Finding out about primary schools in wellington district



## waynejenny

Hi all

We finally will be arriving in NZ middle of January for a reunion with our beloved pet dog Arthur.

We would like to do a bit of home work on primary schools and how do we go about finding more out about them. we have been on several very impressive websites and looked at decile ratings (though we have been told not to rely on this as a standard of education indicator) true or false?


If true then how do you figure out which are the good performing schools. are we looking at this from to much of a brits perspective, should we just go around all the schools when we get there and go on gut instinct. 

The areas we are most intrested in are masterton down to martinbourgh including greytown et al. Rural areas with up to a two hour drive to wellington ferry terminal/train ride are the limits at the moment.

we would like to find school then house (maybe to british a way of thinking)  we have two school children age 5 and 6.


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## jenswaters

waynejenny said:


> Hi all
> 
> We finally will be arriving in NZ middle of January for a reunion with our beloved pet dog Arthur.
> 
> We would like to do a bit of home work on primary schools and how do we go about finding more out about them. we have been on several very impressive websites and looked at decile ratings (though we have been told not to rely on this as a standard of education indicator) true or false?
> 
> 
> If true then how do you figure out which are the good performing schools. are we looking at this from to much of a brits perspective, should we just go around all the schools when we get there and go on gut instinct.
> 
> The areas we are most intrested in are masterton down to martinbourgh including greytown et al. Rural areas with up to a two hour drive to wellington ferry terminal/train ride are the limits at the moment.
> 
> we would like to find school then house (maybe to british a way of thinking)  we have two school children age 5 and 6.


Hi Wayne and Jenny

Congrats on making the move....so close now!!!!

I cannot comment on the schools within the Wellington area (I'm Tauranga-based), but I can honestly say that the best thing to do is to visit the schools once here. Trying to pick schools without visiting them is like playing the lottery...you just don't know if your numbers will come up!!!

In NZ, the schools have guidelines on what they need to teach and how it is taught, but there is a lot more independence, and schools tend to create an individual ethos and teaching perspective. It really is down to personal perspective and choice for YOUR child(ren), as opposed to decile rating (which is generally just an indicator of wealth).

For example, my son is currently enrolled in a school which is generally considered to be one of the best in the area (this is purely due to where we live, rather than it being "the best"). However, after 6 months there I am feeling that, while it is good for some things, the things that matter for my son are not necessarily being met. It is a great school for kids at the top and bottom end of the spectrum, but not so much for the ones inbetween (I feel). But they are great for sport, which is important to him. Other schools may provide more individual learning plans for kids (for example, if they are a smaller school), but may no be able to provide the variety of sport.

My advice??? Put a pin in it and start looking when you get here. Hard to do, especially as us Brits like to get everything "boxed off" before we move, but a better outcome.

Good luck

Jen


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## waynejenny

we kind of feel we need to live wellington city to get best of both worlds regarding schools but that would defeat our reason for moving to nz. we want rural so stuck a pin in masterton and will work on that.


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