Year 9 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including
England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...
, Australia and New Zealand. It is the tenth or eleventh year of compulsory education. Children in this year are generally between 13, 14 and 15, with it being mostly equivalent to
eighth grade or
freshman
A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...
year in the United States.
Australia
In
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, Year 9 is usually the tenth year of compulsory education. Although there are slight variations between the states, most children in Year 9 are aged between fourteen and fifteen.
In Australia, Year 9 is seen by many educators as the "lost year", a period where thousands of students become unengaged with learning, are expelled, suspended, or
drop out. In recent decades, many Australian schools have implemented Year 9 specialist programs to combat the issue. Most are private schools which send students to outside campuses, whether in a city (such as Melbourne's City Cite), camp, alpine areas or even overseas. Such programs aim to "foster self-management and personal-development skills".
A
NAPLAN test is held for Year 9 students.
New Zealand
In
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, Year 9 is the ninth year of compulsory education, and the first year of secondary education. Children entering Year Nine are generally aged between 13 and 14.
Year 9 pupils are educated in
secondary school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
s or
area schools.
United Kingdom
In
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
and
Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, Year 9 is the ninth year after
Reception. It is the ninth full year of compulsory education, with children being aged between thirteen and fourteen.
It is also the year in which pupils are formally assessed against
National Curriculum levels.
With effect from 2009, National Curriculum Tests are no longer compulsory in this year group.
Year 9 is usually the third year of
Secondary school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
and was previously known as the 'third year' or 'third form'. Some schools in the UK (especially
grammar schools and
private schools
A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their financial endowme ...
) still refer to 'year 9' as 'third year'. In most schools in England and Wales, it is also the final year of
Key Stage 3. Pupils usually either choose or start their options for their
GCSE
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...
qualifications in Year 9.
In
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, Year 9 is the equivalent to
Second year
The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of ...
(S2) where pupils start at the age of 12 or 13 and end at the age of 13 or 14. In Second year pupils pick subjects for
Third year
Third or 3rd may refer to:
Numbers
* 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3
* , a fraction of one third
* 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system
Places
* 3rd Street (di ...
.
In
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, Year 9 is the second year of Secondary education. Children in Year 9 are aged between 12 and 13. It is the second year of
Key Stage 3.
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References
{{UK Education
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