All students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 will be undertaking NAPLAN online by 2021 after Australia’s Education Ministers extended the deadline by a year.
All schools were originally required to undertake the annual literacy and numeracy tests online in 2020, however Australia’s Education Ministers agreed to extend the timeframe after some schools experienced technical disruptions this year.
2019 Test Results
Based on previous years, parents should expect to receive their child’s 2019 NAPLAN test results between mid-August and mid-September.
Schools will let parents know when the reports are available. Every student’s results are reported in the same format | SEE EXAMPLE
NAPLAN is now under the microscope with three separate reviews scrutinising different elements of the 11-year-old testing program.
Review 1 – 2019 Testing Disruptions
In a media statement Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan said an independent review was underway to determine the cause of this year’s testing problems and ensure they are not repeated. Ministers will consider the findings once the review is completed.
“Just over one million students sat NAPLAN online this year and while 97 percent of online tests were unaffected it is not good enough that some students and schools were impacted,” Mr Tehan said.
Review 2 – Three States Lead Break-Away Review of Entire Testing Program
The Queensland Government has joined New South Wales and Victoria in a break-away review of the entire NAPLAN testing program.
In a media statement Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace said after more than 10 years of testing, NAPLAN needed a re-think.
“We will always need a standardised test to examine how we’re tracking as an education system, but we need to consider what form that takes to get the best results for our students,” Ms Grace said.
Queensland undertook its own review of NAPLAN in 2018. It found almost 7 out of 10 parents believed schools spent too much time preparing for NAPLAN and 1 in 2 said the test made their children anxious.
The review also found “parents were not generally familiar with the content of the tests” and were unclear about the purpose of NAPLAN.
Review 3 – Presentation of NAPLAN data on My School Website
The way NAPLAN data is presented on the My School website has also been dissected.
A review ordered by the nation’s Education Ministers has recommended evaluating the quantity and focus of NAPLAN data displayed on My School.
It has also recommended clear guidance be provided to schools, the public and students about the purposes and proper uses of NAPLAN and My School to minimise misuse of the data.
Australia’s peak curriculum body, the Australian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (ACARA), and states and territories are working on practical options to respond to the recommendations.
These will be presented to the nation’s Education Ministers at their next meeting in September 2019.
NAPLAN Resources
Information and test examples
A wide range of information is available on NAPLAN and NAPLAN Online.
General information for parents on NAPLAN | READ MORE
NAPLAN Online example questions | READ MORE
Monthly parent e-newsletter
ACARA publishes a monthly e-newsletter for parents to update them on major education news. READ the June edition, which includes information on NAPLAN | SUBSCRIBE
