1.1 million students sit NAPLAN this week

Around 1.1 million students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are participating in NAPLAN this week.

As NAPLAN enters its tenth year of testing, the tests continue to be an important tool for parents, educators and the public to see if Australia’s children are meeting essential literacy and numeracy standards.

ACARA CEO, Robert Randall said that NAPLAN is not a test that could be studied for, and excessive cramming and drilling was unnecessary.

“NAPLAN questions are directly linked to the Australian Curriculum: English and Mathematics,” he said. “As such, the best preparation is just learning what is taught in the classroom every day.

“There is no need for excessive preparation. It is up to the adults in these children’s lives to put the test in perspective – it is one test, four times in their schooling career, that tests their everyday learning.”

NAPLAN will be completed by 11 May 2017.

All students will be completing NAPLAN in its paper-based format in 2017. In 2018, schools will commence the transition to NAPLAN Online.

“Moving NAPLAN online by 2019 has been a goal of all states and territories for several years now,” Randall said. “It will result in better assessment, more precise results and faster turnaround of information.

“In August and September this year, schools will be able to participate in a practice of the technology, or a ‘readiness test’, in preparation for the move online in 2018.”