Start for NAPLAN online trials

During August and September, schools around the country will be able to assess their readiness to move to NAPLAN Online in 2018.

ACARA aims to ensure each school is prepared and has sufficient bandwidth and wireless connectivity. It is hoped the test will provide state and territory education authorities feedback about the extent of school readiness to undertake NAPLAN Online.

Teachers will be able to practise managing the classroom logistics for an online assessment as well as the processes for administering the test.

Schools can opt in to go online from next year. State and territory education authorities are responsible for determining when their state/territory moves to NAPLAN Online. These authorities are preparing schools for the move from the current paper-based NAPLAN tests to online-based assessments.

“States and territories have previously undertaken trialling in preparation for the move to NAPLAN Online,” ACARA CEO Robert Randall said. “During August 2016, students from more than 1000 selected schools across the country took part in a trial of the assessment platform for NAPLAN Online. Feedback received from the 2016 trial was generally positive and will be used together with this year’s readiness testing to ensure schools have a smooth transition.”

NAPLAN Online allows for a wider range of question types and a broader range of skills to be assessed. It will also feature tailored testing, where the test automatically responds to student performance. This means that NAPLAN Online will provide more precise results and a more engaging test experience for students.

Test results will be available within weeks instead of several months to enable teachers to adjust learning priorities for individual studens.

ACARA has been developing and researching NAPLAN Online since 2012 and has established a demonstration site to help students and teachers familiarise themselves with NAPLAN Online, as well as the types of items to be included in the online tests.