Primary and Secondary Education
From The Kodiak Republic Wiki
Chapter Definitions
The following definitions apply for all sections within this Chapter - Primary and Secondary Education.
State School(s): Primary and secondary schools that are publicly funded by the Kodiak Government. State Schools may also be referred to as Public Schools [1].
Private School(s): Primary and secondary schools that are privately funded, and funded by school fees. Private schools include but are not limited to privately owned and run schools, religious schools or private schools sponsored by an established religious entity, and privately owned/run specialty schools [1].
Section 1 - Public School Catchments [1]
- 1.1 - All state schools will service catchment areas defined by the Kodiak Education Board.
- 1.2 - Catchments determine priority placements for students at their local state school. Therefore, all state schools must prioritise enrollment for their local catchment area and enroll all eligible students who request enrollment.
- 1.3 - Typically a residence will be within a catchment for their nearest state primary and/or secondary school.
- 1.4 - State schools may approve applications for students outside their intended catchment if capacity allows.
Section 2 - Public and Private Education[1]
- 2.1 - All students are eligible for enrollment in a state school, fully funded by the Ministry of Education, and therefore all state schools shall not charge school fees.
- 2.1.1 - The following pools of funds will be managed by the Kodiak Education Board:
- General school funding (50%), allocated to all state schools equally to support maintenance, staff, education, facilities, and support for disabilities and social & mental health.
- State school improvement accelerator (20%), allocated based on needs assessed on: poor academic outcomes, social and economic indicators in the school’s catchment, and poor performance relating to minimal facility standards.
- State school projects fund (20%), allocated by application from schools in order to fund projects relating to a school’s 5-year plan.
- General fund allocations (10%), general fund allocations to provincial administration, operational expenses, and other expenses.
- 2.1.2 - All fund allocations, alongside performance metrics will be published by the Ministry of Education.
- 2.1.1 - The following pools of funds will be managed by the Kodiak Education Board:
- 2.2 - Private schools may be granted an education license to operate by the Kodiak Education Board. Therefore, no private schools may operate without a license.
- 2.3 - Private schools may charge school fees, but are not funded by the Ministry of Education.
- 2.4 - The Kodiak Education Board reserves the right to rescind an education license should minimum education standards not be met by a private school.
- 2.5 - In the event a license is rescinded, a school may reapply for licensing along with formal documentation on plans to address the shortcomings that led to the loss of license.
Section 3 - Education Standards[1]
- 3.1 - The Kodiak Education Board shall dictate requirements for all schools relating to minimum standards of facilities and education; which shall be publicly available for citizen viewing.
- 3.2 - This act establishes minimum standards that must be established and maintained by the Kodiak Education Board. However, the board may elect to introduce higher standards, or more detailed requirements to meet minimum standards.
- 3.3 - Minimum facility standards must adhere to:
- 3.3.1 - Having enough teaching facilities, and staff facilities to ensure a reasonable ratio of teachers to students as determined by the Kodiak Education Board.
- 3.3.2 - Schools providing adequate recreation, food, and school health care facilities.
- 3.3.3 - Schools providing space and facilities for physical education, and sports.
- 3.3.4 - All facilities must meet health and safety requirements, and appropriate air quality and climate control.
- 3.3.5 - All facilities must be accessible for disabled staff, students, and visitors.
- 3.4 - Education standards must meet requirements laid out for educational pathways, core curriculum, and national assessment.
- 3.5 - The Kodiak Education Board is required to publish requirements for meeting all key minimum education standards.
- 3.6 - Private schools, must adhere to minimum standards dictated by this act and requirements established by the Kodiak Education Board to retain their education licenses.
- 3.7 - All state and private schools will be inspected annually by the Kodiak Education Board to ensure adherence to school education and facility standards.
- 3.7.1 - All inspection results shall be published for public viewing.
- 3.8 - All state schools will publish 5-year plans for the improvement and maintenance of standards, in consultation with the Kodiak Education Board for public viewing. These may be updated as often as practically needed and on recommendations from the Kodiak Education Board annual inspections.
Section 4 - Education Pathways[1]
- 4.1 - The primary and secondary education pathways are divided into stages, with each stage ending with national assessment to determine students knowledge and skills, as well as assess preparedness for advancement which may identify students that require support.
- 4.2 - The key stages of education are defined as follows:
- 4.2.1 - Early Years (Ages 4 to 5), covering Reception/Preschool, for the purposes of preparing children for the school environment, learning and social development.
- 4.2.2 - Primary Stage 1 (Ages 5 to 8), covering Years 1 to 3, aka. Primary 1 to 3 (P1-3).
- 4.2.3 - Primary Stage 2 (Ages 8 to 11), covering Years 4 to 6, aka. Primary 4 to 6 (P4-6).
- 4.2.4 - Secondary Stage 1 (Ages 11 to 14), covering Years 7 to 9, aka Secondary 1 to 3 (S1-3).
- 4.2.5 - Secondary Stage 2 (Ages 14 to 16), covering Years 10 to 11, aka Secondary 4 to 5 (S4-5)
- 4.3 - The key stages identified in clause 6.2 are considered compulsory education, and all students must be enrolled as such according to their ages. Excepting special circumstances as negotiated with the student's school.
- 4.4 - Upon successful completion of Year 11 (approximately the age of 16), and final examinations, students are considered to have graduated from schooling with the Kodiak Secondary School Certificate (KSSC).
- 4.5 - For the purpose of preparation for tertiary education, advanced learning, and assessment for university enrollment, students may be optionally enrolled in the Upper Secondary education stage for an additional 2 years (Ages 16 to 18), known as Years 12 and 13, or Secondary Lower 6, and Upper 6.
- 4.5.1 - Students will be assessed in both years, although summative the Lower 6 assessment should additionally act as an indicator for student preparedness, and knowledge, as well as to identify any skills gaps for their chosen pathways.
- 4.5.2 - Lower and Upper 6 years of schooling shall allow flexibility for the student to specialise from amongst core and elective study areas related to their intentions for tertiary education.
- 4.5.3 - Upon completion of the Upper 6 stage of schooling, students graduate with the Kodiak Higher School Certificate (KHSC) and have considered to have met accreditation requirements for entry into tertiary education should they also meet the entry requirements of their chosen institution.
Section 5 - Core Curriculum
- 5.1 - The core curriculum for primary and secondary education must cover[1]:
- 5.1.1 - English
- 5.1.2 - Mathematics
- 5.1.3 - Science
- 5.1.4 - Humanities and Social Sciences
- 5.1.5 - Technology and Computing
- 5.1.6 - Arts, Music, and Design
- 5.1.7 - Health and Physical Education
- 5.1.8 - Foreign and Other Languages
- 5.1.9 - Civic Education [2]
- 5.2 - Schools are authorised to provide both required and elective courses to cover the core curriculum areas in consultation with the Kodiak Education Board to meet both educational and assessment standards[1].
- 5.2.1 - Schools are authorised to select and choose which foreign language courses available to students with consultation with the Kodiak Education Board with due consideration to curriculum, needs, and availability of teaching staff.
- 5.2.2 - All high schools must offer Kodiak Sign Language (KSL) as a language option to students.
- 5.3 - Schools are authorised to deliver advanced placement courses in consultation with The Kodiak Education Board and Kodiak universities for Lower and Upper 6 students[1].
Section 6 - Selective Schooling[3]
- 6.1 - Students identified as performing exceptionally well academically shall be entitled to a separate and accelerated curriculum.
Section 7 - School Secularity[3]
- 7.1 - Kodiak State Schools are by policy secular.
- 7.2 - Religion shall be taught in an academic fashion only.
- 7.3 - Students are entitled to accommodation for their familial religious belief, in-so-far as they do not interfere with the education of another student.
Section 8 - School Meals Subsidy[4]
- 8.1 - All state schools shall be provided with free breakfast and lunches should students or families wish to partake, free of charge.
- 8.2 - Meals shall be distributed by schools to pupils as per their own internal policy.
- 8.3 - In consultation with the Ministry of Health, nutritional standards will be presented and adhered to by all school meal catering services.
- 8.4 - Nutrition guidelines will be published by the Ministry of Education for student and family information, as well as to provide guidance on meals for students should families wish to provide their own.
Section 9 - Future Leaders of Kodiak Program (FLKP)[5]
- 9.1 - Future Leaders of Kodiak Program is a government-funded program to allow high school and college students to sign up and participate in monthly mock governments and leadership conferences in Rykkburg.
- 9.2 - During the program, students will run for the offices of Chancellor and General Assembly President.
- 9.2.1 - The student who wins the Office of Chancellor can have a full cabinet selected from the students in the program
- 9.3 - Students will propose bills, they craft themselves during their mock government sessions.
- 9.4 - During Leadership Conferences, students will learn vital leadership skills from college level professors and guest speakers.
- 9.5 - A registration website called "Country-States.com" will be created in collaboration with Bax Marry, a local computer programmer.
- 9.5.1 - Students will be able to submit their bills to this website for docket organizing.
Section 10 - Civic Education[2]
- 10.1 - Civic education shall be incorporated into the core curriculum.
- 10.2 - The goals of civic education are:
- 10.2.1 - Develop students' awareness of their rights and responsibilities as citizens.
- 10.2.2 - Instill values of patriotism, respect for national traditions, and understanding of Kodiaker culture.
- 10.2.3 - Encourage active participation in community and social activities.
- 10.3 - Funding will be allocated to cover up teacher’s wage, yearly field trips and community service campaigns.
School Curriculum
- 10.4 - Students across all grades about the important of courtesy in their speech and mannerism.
- 10.4.1 - Lessons on etiquette will be offered, covering topics like greetings and respectful conversation.
- 10.4.2 - Interactive workshops will be organized, allowing participants to practice social skills in real-life scenarios.
- 10.4.3 - Create a lesson on hygienic table manner such as washing their hands with soap before eating, speaking softly when they have swallowed the food in the mouth, sneezing or coughing into a napkin or handkerchief, respecting the food and efforts made by the cook.
- 10.5 - Students will be taught about morality by providing them with guidelines to follow and encourages the youths to build trust in their social relationships through honesty, loyalty, compassion and cooperation. Encourage awareness of local communities, government structures, and civic engagement. And inspire students to take part in community activities and service projects.
- 10.6 - Promote cultures and traditions through compulsory lessons about famous artists, novelists, writers, national heroes and musicians from Kodiak’s past and present.
- 10.7 - The program aims to enlighten the youths about the detrimental effects of racism, sexism, homophobia and religious belief discrimination. It will also aim to destigmatize mental illnesses, homelessness and ethnic groups's stereotypes.
- 10.8 - The Civic Education Act will also educate our youths about important values such as selflessness, camaraderie, family value, humanity and patriotism. All citizens of the Kodiak Republic must be taught critical thinking skill and responsibility to preserve civic unity.
- 10.9 - Ecosystem preservation, pollutions and climate change are three of the biggest issues that we are currently facing today. For that, every school must educate students about the important of preserving the ecosystem, recycling, promote anti-littering campaign, while educating students about climate change and equipping them with sufficient knowledge to combat climate change denialism.
Extra Curricular Activities
- 10.10 - Once a year, every school will organize a field trip to a museum or cultural heritage site to teach students about the place’s significance in Kodiak's history and cultural heritage.
- 10.11 - On July 1st of every year, schools will organize a trip for students to voluntarily participate in remembrance ceremonies and the like to pay tributes to all veterans and tombs of the unknown soldiers.
- 10.12 - Every school will organize a book drive and clothes drive to donate used books and used clothes to the less fortunates.