Types of school starting with H

Half-time School (1867-1950)

An elementary school which emerged in 1867 to cater for children in areas of scattered population. The 1866 Act provided for the appointment of itinerant teachers, and during 1867 and 1868 teachers were in charge of up to seven 'stations'. From 1869 each teacher visited only two stations, and the schools became truly Half-Time. The attendance of at least 20 children was required, in two groups of 10 or more. In 1898 the required attendance was reduced to 16, and by 1908 no fixed number was required.

High School (1883-)

A secondary school, first established in 1883 but  a very small part of the education system until the reorganisation of secondary education after 1910. Secondary education was then officially sub-divided into a variety of types of courses and schools, with the High Schools offering an academic course to a selected intake of pupils, but from the 1920s the distinctions between the various schools grew increasingly blurred. The long-term trend was towards comprehensive High Schools, and by the 1950s many of the other types of secondary schools were either being transformed into or closing in favour of comprehensive High Schools. The introduction of the Wyndham Scheme from 1962 almost completed the process, with the exception of High Schools with selective intakes and in some cases with special courses. Since the late 1960s all new High Schools have been co-educational, and many older schools have been converted into co-educational schools. It should be noted that while many High Schools have directly replaced a secondary department in a nearby school, they cannot be regarded as having continuity with that school.
In this database High School includes specialist secondary schools whose title might be, for example, Girls High, Boys High, Technology High, Agricultural High, Conservatorium High, Performing Arts High, Community High. Also categorised as High Schools are schools which currently have an emphasis on a particular area of study, eg. technology, performing arts, sport, although this emphasis is not included in the title of the school.

Home Science School (1913-1962)

A school department or a separate school combining a general post-primary education with home science and commercial training for girls. The home science course (known as domestic science until 1942) included subjects like cookery, home management and household hygiene, but girls could also take a commercial course with subjects like economics, shorthand and typing.  Home science courses were taught in Superior Public Schools from 1913, in other super-primary schools and in Evening Continuation Schools. From 1923 separate schools, generally known as Central Domestic Science Schools were established ; they provided a three-year course for girls who had completed their primary education at schools in the surrounding district.  During the 1930s two of these schools offered a five-year course, and these and others were given the title Home Science High and changing attitudes to the education of girls in the late 1950s resulted in the rapid abandonment of home science courses in super primary schools and the conversion of Home Science High Schools and Central Home Science Schools into comprehensive Girls High Schools and Junior High Schools. The introduction of the Wyndham Scheme in 1962 completed this process.

The photogallery section includes a photoalbum with photos of different home science classes.

House to House School (1881-1923)

An elementary school which emerged in 1881 to cater for sparsely populated areas unable to be reached by other types of schools.  The typical House to House School was composed of two or more teaching stations several miles apart, where children were gathered and visited by the itinerant teacher. Despite the name, a significant minority of House to House Schools with only one teaching station operated up to 1900. The teachers were on the whole untrained or of the lowest classification, instruction was confined to basic subjects and no school buildings had to be erected. The last so-called House to House School closed in 1923, but Ivanhoe Travelling School operated until 1949 in the same manner as the old House to House schools.