K–12 (education)

For other uses, see K12 (disambiguation).

K–12 (pronounced "k twelve", "k through twelve", or "k to twelve") is a designation for the sum of primary and secondary education. It is used in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand where P–12 is also commonly used.^[1] The expression is a shortening of Kindergarten (K) for 4–6-year-olds through twelfth grade (12) for 16–19-year-olds, the first and last grades of free education in these countries.

Usage

The term is often used in school website URLs, generally appearing before the country code top-level domain (or in the United States, the state top-level domain). The term "PK–12" is sometimes used to add pre-kindergarten.

It is also used by American multinationals selling into the educational sector. Such as Dell where UK customers are presented with this as a market segment choice.^[2]

P–12

In Australia, P–12 is sometimes used in place of K–12. P–12 schools serve children for the thirteen years from prep until Year 12,^[3] without including the separate kindergarten component.

K–14 and K–16

K–14 education also includes community colleges (the first two years of university). K–16 education adds a four-year undergraduate university degree.

See also

Education portal

• Education in the United States
• Education in Canada
• Education in Australia
• Education in South Korea

References

1. ^ Heritage College Cooranbong, NSW, Australia
2. ^ http://www.dell.com/uk/k-12/p/.aspx
3. ^ "Why is P - 12 career education important?". Department of Education and Training (Queensland). 2004. Archived from the original on 2010-01-01. http://www.webcitation.org/5mS3DpcUU. Retrieved 2010-01-01.