Since when did we say Year 12 and Year 13 rather than lower sixth and upper sixth?

[PuppyMonkey]

Have only just noticed people saying this (inc recent thread, which is probably just below mine in the education section sorry!!!!)... what happened to the sixth form?

I don't like it, I tell you.

since Y7 became Y7 and not first year!

I think it was the year before I started Secondary school, so I would guess 1993.

Presumably about the time we started saying Year 7 instead of first-formers.

Takes a bit of getting used to but I guess the current system is more logical, as it covers all combos of infant, junior, middle and seniors.

Certainly better than the anachronistic labels DHs school had - I can't remember what they all were but one was 'Shell' - it took him a long time to realise what he called the third form (I think) was not the same as what I was calling the 3rd form (ie Yr 9).

Yes, it is definitely Y12 and Y13 but schools still have Sixth Forms and students still go to Sixth Form colleges.
(I preferred it when the 1st year at secondary was Upper 3!)

Oh no, I get the Yr 7 thing - just. I even have a dd in Year 8, so I know she is really in the second year.

But until this year, I've only heard the sixth form being called the sixth form. I liked that. Now it's all Year 12 this and Year 13 that. It's not right I tell you.

Upper 6th became y13 the year I went into it - so 1990. We refused to be known as y13 though

My DS is in U6. I don't think they say 12/13 at all at his school. It's still fairly logical to have L6 and U6, given that a sixth form is quite discrete from the rest of the school.

They never said it round here at all either wicked. I'm sure. Until this year. Or then again, maybe I am 20 years behind the times as usual.

It's part of a campaign to sort out the old gimmers like us from the young set

I still talk about O Levels, University (NOT 'College' or worse still 'Uni') and Playgroup not preschool. I belong to another, antediluvian era really

I'm with you, Grunge.

I've got a dd at secondary too puppy, and I find myself doing this sort of equation in my head "Y9 = 3rd year" al the time - tis annoying

I'm totally with you- I'm always trying to work out mentally which year it is based on the good old days.
And, in the interests of simplicity, shouldn't they do away with Reception year and start with Year 1?
Do private schools use this system or the old one?

y13 would be good. My son is in 'remove'. God knows where that comes from. I suppose at the end of the year they are 'removed' from school. His school also has lower and upper shell. There are others using this. Does anyone know the origins of it.

This is from a page about Westminster School: "The original shell-shaped apse at the North end of School gave its name to the Shell forms taught there and the corresponding classes at many other public schools."

Who knew?

woops! I obviously paid no attention at all when being shown around school

All the private schools we've come across oop north use 7-11 and then L/U 6th.

I believe its the public schools (or wannabes) that use the archaic shell/remove gobbledegook.
I found a partial translation:
Year 9 = Shell
Year 10 = Remove
Year 11 = Fifth
Year 12 = Lower Sixth
Year 13 = Upper Sixth

I think DHs had a 3rd form somewhere below this, no fourth form bonkers!

Remove? Shell? OMG, it's all so complicated!!!!

Here we have 11-16 secondaries and then a "sixth form college". I've never heard yr12 or yr13 used in this town.

Ours are Yr12 and Yr13 on their own, but collectively known as 6th Form or Post 16.

I left '6th form' 12 years ago and it was year 12 and 13 then

I wonder if it's an issue of where you live in the country... I'm in East Midlands and I swear before this year, no-one had ever mentioned Year 12 and 13. Always upper and lower sixth form. I had to explain to dd why it was actually called the sixth form too.

Education is so complicated.

We have year 12 and 13 but refer to them as the sixth form, I think th students call it the sixth form as well.