Why is Sixth Form called Sixth Form? (The Actual Reason)

There are many students who often have much confusion about how years 12 and 13 have given the name of the sixth-form college. Having a name for a certain group is kept by thinking about the history and also to show the importance of the group. You may also be curious to know why is Sixth Form called Sixth Form.

Quick Takeaways

• The sixth form was given the name of the sixth form to differentiate the students studying in years 12 and 13 from the students studying in other parts.
• The two years of sixth form are given two names, that is the 12-year (the lower) and the 13-year (upper).
• There are different forms in the schools. Year 7 is to be considered the third form, years 8 and 9 were considered lower and upper fourth, years 10 and 11 were considered the lower and upper fifths and years 12 and 13 are part of lower and upper sixth forms.

However, you must read till the end as we have discussed in detail why the sixth form is known as the sixth form.

Why is Sixth Form called Sixth Form?

The students who are between the age of 16 to 18 and studying for their A-level exams are the students who describe the sixth form. The sixth form is being named the sixth form because around 1920 the secondary school system was split into sixth forms in which 2 years 12 and 13 are called the sixth form and is classified as further education. The sixth form shows the students who are studying in the A-level year groups that years 12 and 13.

Further, also the 6th form year was divided into two names, that is the 12-year (the lower) and the 13-year (upper). Also, students studying in 6th form can easily be differentiated from other students as the sixth-form college students have separate clothes and do have free periods.

Also, the student gets many other privileges than the younger students. And also it shows the separation from other parts of the school like the primary school represents the student until 6 Secondary School represents the years 7 to 11. The sixth form represents the years 12 and 13 and a level student is not counted in any of the years. You must remember that sixth-form colleges are different from sixth forms.

How were the Forms Split between Different Age Groups?

There was confusion about the separation of groups according to the different ages as some have the perspective that the student in year 7 is the first form year 8 is the second form and year 9 is the third form. This was changed further and now year 7 is to be considered the third form, years 8 and 9 were considered lower and upper fourth, years 10 and 11 were considered the lower and upper fifths and years 12 and 13 are the part of lower and upper sixth forms. However, you must remember that you can accept more than a single sixth form at the same time. If you find them hard, you may be missing your exams.

Is the old Form System still used today?

Almost in every school in the UK, the term 6th form is being used for the student. There are only a few Academics in which the old form system is being used for referring to the student groups. According to the government order, the system has to use one year, two years, three years, etc for differentiating the student group and making it easier for the other schools to understand while communicating with each other. But there are many private institutes that follow their own rule and use the term for differentiating schools and colleges around the UK sixth form, the lower and upper division for different years.

Will the Sixth Form System Last Much Longer in Schools Today?

There is a lot of conflict between the independent schools which run according to the form system and there are many School groups that do follow the year group division according to the government and continue throughout the school in the UK. So it does give rise for people to much confusion between the public and private Institutions as a result it is possible that these sixth-form names can be removed in future years. However, when you are applying in the sixth form you must remember the deadline for applying to the course. It is because if you were not able to attend the sixth form, you may not get a lot of content for it.

Conclusion

There are many schools that use the term 6th form to easily differentiate between the student who is studying in years 12 and 13. But there are many schools that use the old system according to the government guideline for different sitting the student group such as year one year to year 3 and so on so that it is easy to understand by others without creating any complication.

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