With today being the start of the new school year, the Ministry of Education has announced that the shift system is to be abolished in 16 schools this year.

These include 12 primary and junior high schools, along with Vauxhall, Islington, Paul Bogle and Eltham high schools.

As a result, the Education Ministry says the school day will begin at 7:30 a.m. and end at 2:30 p.m. for these institutions.

school spaces

The shift system was introduced in the 1970s as part of an attempt to increase the number of school spaces and reduce class size.

However, the Education Ministry says over time the system has outlived those objectives and has instead contributed to low teaching and learning outcomes.

Seven schools were removed from the shift system last year, and the ministry has indicated that more will be removed incrementally in the coming years.