Suitable high schools in Melbourne

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Hi there,
I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions for a good high school in Melbourne's south east.
DS10 is currently doing distance education, but I am keen to find him a good school for his secondary school.
He has Aspergers, anxiety and dyspraxia.
Many thanks for any suggestions.
Verticalmum.

I'm in the Northern suburbs of Melbourne, I know a lot of people from that area through uni.

Before I go any further, if your son has never attended school before, then there needs to be some way of gradually getting him accustomed to a school environment in which he is surrounded by hormonal teenagers and bossy teachers, possibly starting with just two days a week and gradually increasing, for example. Going in 'cold turkey' would be disastrous, I would think. There will be a lot of things he will need to get used to, and this will take time. For example he will need to get used to wearing a uniform, which in that area usually involves a jacket and tie. He will need to be able to concentrate on his schoolwork amongst the myriad of distractions present in a chaotic classroom. He will need to be able to deal with being ranked academically in comparison to his peers on a regular basis.

As far as the kind of school you should consider, I can't come up with any specific names in that specific area, but as you mentioned anxiety and dyspraxia, I would avoid any really high-end schools with a strong culture of high achievement (which appear to be the norm in that area), at least at first, as this will put too much pressure on him to succeed. Even if he is very smart now, I can almost guarantee you that such a high-pressure environment would be counter-productive. Such schools are concerned only about their school's rankings, and will simply tell him that he isn't trying hard enough rather than actually support him. I am speaking from personal experience at this point. I attended school normally, but by the time I got to VCE I'd had enough of it, it started getting really stressful trying to live up to the school's and the teachers' expectations, and by the time I got to year 12 I had full-blown depression and was on meds for it. I went from being my school's highest-scoring male in year 10 to getting an mediocre ATAR of 77.

So I guess what I'm saying is, you need to find a school that genuinely cares about your son's wellbeing as opposed to their own agenda, and has proper supports in place such as integration aides, understanding teachers who are willing to make some compromises regarding group work, P.E class (which is a social nightmare for aspies due to how useless we are at sports), allowing him to leave the room when he feels socially overwhelmed, etc.

Hopefully at least some of my ramblings have been helpful.

Hi I am a Newbie to this forum and only recently living back in Melbourne. Did you get any help re good high schools in Melbourne? Have 9 year old aspie with anxiety mainstreamed in public school at present, but considering all options, and need help in getting my head around what available and whats best Can we talk?

Hi there judyorchid , sorry, just saw your post. Yes you can email me. I have a 10yr old, and have been forced to do distance education with him due to no schools in our area being suitable. What area are you from?

And a big thank you to SaxNerd , I appreciated your input. I did read it at the time, but flat out forgot to respond with all the changes we had to make.

Pulled DS 10 out of school , middle of last year, and enrolled him in distance education.
We are doing distance education again this year. His physical anxiety problems like excema, upset stomach,migraines, all disappeared within two weeks of starting distance education.
I'm not sure what to do about high school though......
Thanks again.

I don't really see a problem with continuing the distance education. I did one subject by distance in year 12 (it was a specialized music subject my school didn't offer) and I was pleasantly surprised by how well it was organized and how much easier it was for me to work at my own pace, it made me wonder why I hadn't thought of that before!

I guess some would be concerned about a lack of socialisation, but in my experience it is better (and more likely) that aspies will make friends through extra-curricular activities related to their special interests, for me this was playing in concert bands.

Hi SaxNerd,
Yes, distance education is very well organised, and when my son had a difficult time late in the year, they adjusted the curriculum for him. Very accomodating.
I guess it will depend on how I cope with it too, I am a sole parent, and aspie too.
So far so good.
Yes, he has karate 3 times a week, and computer lab once a week, and we also have a school friend from his old school over once a week. So plenty of socialising.
Wow, you play in a concert bands, I played in concert bands back when I was younger. I loved it.