Patrick and I have been here for almost two months now. We have started to feel comfortable driving without a street guide. It is on a grid system which definitely helps. We can easily get to the grocery store and find friend's houses with limited difficulties. The traffic signs are wonderful, especially the koala, wombat, and kangaroo crossing. You know for sure you are in Australia when you see those driving.
Patrick had a go at lawn bowling this week, and is now a member of a team. Lawn bowling is similar to boccie ball, but the balls are weighted differently and slightly larger. It is relaxing and good fun. Of course it reminds me of playing horseshoes in the Midwest as you can play while drinking beer and many people do this. I do wish we had lawn bowling in the states as I think many people would like it.
We spent the weekend in the mountains at Clealand Conservation Park. The park has a large amount of acreage and an area where you can walk among the emus, kangaroos, wallabies, and koalas. There is an admission fee to the park plus two dollars for a bag of feed for the animals. This was fun for a while as the animals will eat right out of your hand. It was interesting to see all these amazing native Australian animals up close. The emus were very uninterested in humans in general and not very good looking. There are different types of kangaroos the western red kangaroo can be as big as a human. Wallabies look like kangaroos, but smaller. We also able to pet a koala and view a bottle nose echidna, wombat. Australia has many deadly animals, including eight of the ten most poisonous snakes. They were also on display, but thankfully in cages.
The school system of South Australia is different compared to the other states in Australia. South Australia requires teachers to change schools every ten years. The government assigns teachers to a school after they have completed ten years at a school. There are restrictions of about 45 minutes drive time from the home in which they can place a teacher. The theory behind the move was to open up spots for teachers at good schools. Teachers at good schools traditionally would never leave. The ten year rotation forces them to move around. It has merits in that all teachers can appreciate what it is like to be new and understand how various schools function.
South Australia schools are governed by standards. There isn't a common curriculum between all schools and grade levels. The state government has set standards and essential learnings. What teachers choose to do in their classroom to meet those standards is up to the teacher.There is only a 12th grade state mandated test. The union is currently in negotiations about releasing scores to the public. The rhetoric on television about releasing scores is very similar to the standards movement in the United States, school accountability, parents need to be able to compare schools, teachers and schools are doing their job. Little is said as to the student being accountable to their learning.
Kim and Patrick's Travel Adventures
