Moving overseas
Moving overseas and need school reports authenticated for DFAT?
Email document.authentication@det.nsw.edu.au to arrange to bring original documents to 105 Phillip Street, Parramatta 2150.
Who Can Enrol in SOTA?
- Pre-School
- Isolated Students
- Travelling Students
- Isolated Overseas
- Medical Students
Pre-school full-time students
The Pre-school Unit is part of Broken Hill School of the Air.
Enrolment will be limited to children above the age of 3.5 years who meet all the School of the Air criteria and who plan to continue their primary education with a School of the Air centre. Enrolments will be subject to the availability of places at the Pre-school Unit at Broken Hill School of the Air. A child with a disability may be enrolled in the School of the Air Support Unit from the age of 4.0 years.(In exceptional circumstances, special consideration may be given to enrolment from 3.5 years).
Isolated Home Students
In applying the following guidelines the intention is to ensure that students enrolling under this category are genuinely geographically isolated.
Students who are isolated from a government school and who make an application under this category will need to provide a Distance Certificate signed by the principal of the nearest public school. A distance of three (3) kilometres from the student's home to the nearest bus route is the minimum prerequisite distance but may not be sufficient reason to justify enrolment. The principal of the enrolling school/centre will determine isolation in this context.
While enrolled at the Distance Education Centre, students cannot be enrolled at another school. Visits to your local school are encouraged, however. We recommend that you contact the Distance Education Centre and let the manager negotiate this integration on your behalf. One day per fortnight is the maximum amount of time that we suggest is profitable to spend in this way.
Travelling Students
Students who are unable to attend regular school hours (due to travel within Australia) may submit an enrolment application. The minimum absentee period required is between six (6) to twelve (12) consecutive months.
A comprehensive itinerary must be submitted with the application. Addresses for a minimum of six (6) weeks in advance are required to enable the enrolment to function.
Travellers who take up residence in one place for six (6) weeks or more may be required to enrol at the local school, at the discretion of the principal of the Distance Education Centre.
If exceptional circumstances should extend the period of absence an application for an extension of the enrolment may be submitted to the principal of the School of the Air Centre.
Students Isolated Overseas
This type of enrolment is available to children of N.S.W. citizens who are temporarily resident overseas.
Students are only enrolled when a suitable English-speaking school is not available.
Sometimes a bulk set of lessons (up to 10 weeks) is sent to overseas students. This initial dispatch can be either taken overseas personally or posted.As much notice as possible is required to ensure lessons arrive in time.
Student's work and relevant lesson resource material is returned weekly by airmail. The cost of this postage is to be met by the family.
Overseas enrolments are reviewed 6 monthly.
Students who are travelling from place to place overseas will need to make special arrangements with the school regarding posting.
Lessons will not be provided unless the fee of $100.00 per child is received in advance of the commencement of EACH SCHOOL TERM ($400.00 per child per year). Fees are not refundable.
Medical Students
Students with medical conditions, which prevent them from attending school, including a special school, may be eligible for enrolment at their local School of the Air centre. Students with a medical condition deemed by the specialist medical practitioner to be long term will be required to provide a medical certificate at the beginning of each academic year.
Specialist medical documentation must accompany the application and:
(a)clearly identify the medical condition
(b)explicitly state the condition preventing the student from attending a school, including a special school, on a regular basis
(c)specify the length of time the medical certificate covers.
Where school phobia is cited, enrolment will be contingent on a specialist medical certificate and evidence of ongoing counselling.
This category does not provide enrolment for students with behaviour disorders including students diagnosed as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).