State Education
State education is the main focus of this guide. State education is provided by Education Queensland (EQ), as a publicly-funded service available to all children in Queensland.
There are a range of facilities:
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primary schools, secondary schools, and P-10/12 schools
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Queensland Academies
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special schools
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hospital schools
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schools of distance education
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centres for continuing secondary education
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outdoor and environmental education centres.
All students with disabilities are entitled to enrol at any state school in Queensland under the same conditions as students without a disability. The majority of students with a disability attend the same education facilities as their peers. Many schools offer special education programs and services for students with a disability.
To find out further information on enrolling in a state school see the Enrolment in State Primary, Secondary and Special Schools policy.
For more information about state education, see the brochure Shaping the Smart State: A Guide to State Schools.
Special Schools
Special schools are schools that only provide education to students with disabilities. Students with intellectual impairment or multiple impairments that need highly specialised and individualised programs may attend special schools.
There are detailed procedures for eligibility for enrolment in a special school. Before a child can enrol at a special school:
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The student must be diagnosed with a disability or a suspected disability which requires significant educational support. The diagnosis must include
intellectual impairment.
- The disability must be verified, or be likely to be verified, as meeting the EQ criteria for one of the six disability categories.
- The special school must agree that the adjustments made at the school will meet the educational needs of the student.
The enrolment process and the eligibility requirements are more complex than the summary written here. If you are considering that a special school might be the best education option for your child, talk first to the principal, or your district's Principal Education Officer, Student Services (PEO,SS).
Special school principals are unable to enrol students directly without the approval of the district Principal Advisor, Education Services. This follows a detailed exploration of your child's needs to determine that these can best be met by attending a special school. This exploration will usually be conducted in collaboration with the PEO, SS or their delegate.
Schools of distance education
Schools of distance education provide educational programs for students from Prep to Year 12 who are unable to attend a traditional school setting due to geographic isolation, illness, other special circumstances or by choice. All schools of distance education provide support using a range of information and communication technologies. Some schools of distance education provide special education support to enrolled students with disabilities.
For more information:
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