Schoolies Week

[Aliantha]

Traditionally in Australia, at the end of year 12, high school graduates head off to the coast for a week of celebrations. This is all fine, except that large amounts of alcohol are involved along with drugs and violence which sometimes leads to arrests for kids as young as 16 and 17. If these kids are looking at a career in some professions, an arrest can be disasterous of course, but possibly less disasterous than leaving them out on the street to get involved in fights which in the past have led to deaths and permanent disablement of schoolies.

Add to the mix, a bunch of slightly older kids (mostly male) known as 'toolies' who travel to the hot spots to either join the party, or do the business of buying alcohol for underage drinkers and/or supplying drugs.

So far on the Gold Coast, which is a mecca for schoolies celebrations, there have been almost 50 school leavers arrested, and the celebrations only started formally on Saturday. Today is Monday.

I intend to try and persuade my kids not to join in these particular celebrations when they finish high school, although considering the fact that we live in the Gold Coast shire, it might be difficult. After watching a news cast this morning, Aden said he wouldn't be interested in going to schoolies week, but that could change between now and then. Personally, I think I'd be willing to fund just about any other holiday for that week just to get him away from the danger.

Do all high school leavers have these sorts of celebrations at the end of their schooling? As a parent or citizen, what are your thoughts?

[classicman]

Well I don't know about anywhere else, but yes they have the same type of things here. They call it "senior week."
I think it used to be a right of passage, but things seem to go too far nowadays (or I'm too old) Either way .... No was my answer.

[ZenGum]

Adelaide's schoolies go to Victor Harbor, I guess for want of anywhere better. So far there have been six arrests ... all of them toolies. This quiet time is probably partly due to the unusually cold windy weather we've had this weekend, though.
Wealthy families sometimes pack groups of kids off to an expensive resort like Hamilton island, gives them a post-exam reward while keeping them away from the trouble on the Gold Coast.

[Aliantha]

Did you go on schoolies Zen?

I didn't go. Partly because my father wouldn't allow it, but also because I preferred to go help family with a muster they had at that time of the year. I reckon I had more fun and made myself more useful that way than getting drunk and disorderly with the rest of my year.

[smoothmoniker]

Sounds similar to our Spring Break.

[ZenGum]

I can't remember ...

No, actually, although I can't say for sure why. It wasn't really big in Adelaide back then.

Muck-up day (the last day in school) was a bit wild though, with four or five police cars attending our school. Egging, burnouts, public drunkenness...
And then, a few years later, muck-up day involved ambulances at my (old) school, after some bright spark combined hydrochloric acid from the chemistry labs with galena (lead sulphide) from the geology lab in a tray in front of the air intake for the staff room at the start of morning recess.... hydrogen sulphide! Rotten egg gas!
Five teachers treated at the scene, three taken to hospital.
Good to see someone was listening in class.

[Aliantha]

Well that'd be a funny story except for the hospital stuff. lol

Obviously I don't condone that sort of behaviour though. *chuckle*