NAPLAN is a nationwide government assessment program that tests literacy and numeracy skills across primary and secondary schools in Australia. Students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are tested every year. There are two main functions for the NAPLAN.
- To provide parents and schools with an understanding of how individual students are performing in comparison to national averages.
- To give the government a census of how students are learning across Australia, helping them flag areas of concern and judge the effectiveness of their implemented education system.
So what were the learning trends found in 2024?
According to the Grattan Institute's education director Jordana Hunter NAPLAN 2024 results found "One third of Australia's children are not on track with their learning."
The first thing you can notice is that in 2024’s results, Years 5 and 7 have around 70% of students at or above the ‘Strong’ proficiency level, which is considered as the new national standard. Years 3 and 9 have around 65% of students at or above the ‘Strong’ level. In the past, all NAPLAN areas and year levels generally had 90% of students or above meeting the old national standard. This means that the number of students at or above the national standard has dropped by 20-25%. However, the national standard has become higher, which has contributed to this drop.
The weakest area was grammar and punctuation, with less than 60% of Year 3 and 9 students meeting the ‘Strong’ level in 2024 (53.9% of Year 3s and 54.9% of Year 9s). It was also the weakest performing area out of the five tested areas for all year levels. In past results, grammar and punctuation was the 2nd lowest scoring area for Years 7 and 9. Strengths varied across all year levels. The strongest areas in general were Year 3 writing, Year 5 reading and Year 7 and 9 spelling, with over 70% of students meeting the strong proficiency level. The percentage of students with a ‘Strong’ writing proficiency or above decreased as Year level increased, ranging from 76.8% in Year 3, to 61% in Year 9.
Experts say the scores demonstrate the urgent need for classroom reforms, otherwise a significant part of a generation looks set to miss out on crucial foundational learning. ABC News.
JAnalysis by John LyonsWhat areas do Aussie children struggle with the most and how can you help your child improve?
Grammar & Punctuation
This was undoubtedly the weakest area in 2024 NAPLAN. This may be because lots of popular online content uses colloquial and informal language and doesn't provide children with good examples of what correctly written grammar and punctuation look like. Thus, it becomes more difficult for your child to strengthen their knowledge about clear and correct verbal expression.
How can you help?
Stopping or prohibiting this type of media consumption is not the solution. Instead, exposure to different types of online content, like documentaries, informative articles and scientific content, can help greatly. To help your child with this, try finding out what your child is interested in. Topics such as science and technology generally have content in more formal language, which shows good examples of written grammar and punctuation. Then, try showing or sending them some online clips, or articles, that have more formal language, and are related to what they like. If your child enjoys what you show them, then they’ll naturally read or watch more content similar to what you sent, which will help build their grammar and punctuation knowledge through exposure to different texts.
Writing
This part of the examination was also found to be a generally weak area in 2024. A reduction in reading and an increase in short-burst style media (for example TikTok and YouTube) were presumed to be the cause. Many students are now not used to handwriting their work anymore and are instead used to typing on their computers or iPhones. It is important that students get a chance to practise and refine their writing skills outside of school through the form of journal entries, feature articles or imaginative stories otherwise the skills taught in schools aren't strengthened enough to become permanent.
How can you help?
Get your child engaged in books, feature articles and films! Having them engage with a variety of different text types will provide them with different ways to express their ideas and allow them to be more creative. You should also be discussing the text or film with them afterwards, encouraging them to articulate their opinions on it and analyse its meaning and how it was portrayed. This will help them understand and value the way literature is used to convey and communicate important concepts. Finally, you should be allowing them to practice their writing skills outside of skills. Encourage them to write their own feature articles, blogs or short stories that they can share with you!
I hope this article has provided some valuable insight into what the 2024 NAPLAN reports have found and what the current learning trends are in Australian students. If you want more personalised study support for your child, be sure to check out our fantastic line up of expert tutors who help develop your child's skills in numeracy and literacy to ensure they reach their academic potential!
FAQs
How do I know if my child is ‘behind’?
There’s no definite answer to this, but monitoring your child’s progress, and asking your child’s teacher will probably give you the best indication. Standardised tests like NAPLAN aren’t perfect, and they aren’t going to definitively tell you whether your child is behind or not.
Does NAPLAN get harder every year?
No. Even though the questions will be different, NAPLAN each year is designed to be roughly the same difficulty. The difficulty of an individual test is determined by a 'tailored test’ system, which is outlined by NAPLAN at https://www.nap.edu.au/naplan/understanding-online-assessment/tailored-tests
What score should we aim for in NAPLAN?
There isn’t a particular score that you need to aim for, since it’s not a pass/fail test, and doesn’t count towards school grades. Simply giving it your best shot will give you the best idea of what your level of achievement is.
Written by KIS Academics Tutor for VCE Psychology, Samuel Lo. Samuel is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Science at Monash University. You can view Samuel's profile here and request him as a tutor.
