South Australia abandons plan for online NAPLAN tests this year because of bugs in platform

SOUTH Australia has abandoned plans to begin online NAPLAN tests this year because of bugs in the computer platform making it unreliable.

• Schools that were listed to take the online test
• Trials ‘confirm Year 3 students lack required typing skills’

SOUTH Australia has abandoned plans to begin online NAPLAN tests this year because of bugs in the computer platform making it unreliable.

The state Education Department does not want children to get part way through the literacy and numeracy tests, only to have the system crash.

SA has followed Queensland, which withdrew last week, and it is understood other states and territories are considering withdrawing or scaling back their participation.

All schools across the country are expected to move online by 2019, in a three-year transition period starting this year.

South Australia was initially the keenest of all states, wanting as many schools as possible to go online this year.

But principals raised concerns about international experience showing children performed poorly when they first do online tests, so feared greater participation by SA could make the states’s results — already the lowest of the mainland states — appear even worse.

South Australia has abandoned plans to begin online NAPLAN tests this year because of bugs in the computer platform. Picture: Thinkstock

That concern, along with technical problems in large scale trials last year, led the State Government to scale back planned participation to about 50 public schools, or 10 per cent — in line with the expected national average.

But the SA Education Department now says even that scaled back approach would be too risky.

“Additional testing of the Commonwealth’s NAPLAN online platform has confirmed there are still technical issues to be resolved,” a department spokeswoman said.

“For this reason, we are withdrawing South Australian public schools from online testing for 2017. Schools will instead participate in NAPLAN using the paper and pencil method.

“The department will continue supporting schools in their preparations for NAPLAN testing in May.

“The department will work with the Commonwealth and other jurisdictions to address any issues, with a view to transitioning to online testing from 2018”.

SA Primary Principals Association president Pam Kent said “it’s probably a wise decision”.

“Queensland has pulled out, other states are considering it,” she said.

“There’s not 100 per cent confidence that it’s going to be ready and infallible.

“Rather than do it and hope that it works, it will be better to do it when we know it will work.”

Ms Kent said schools had also raised concerns about their own “connectivity and hardware capacity” to deliver the tests online.

When Queensland announced it was pulling out of NAPLAN online last week, federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham expressed hope that others would not follow suit and technical problems would not be insurmountable.

Yesterday his office referred inquiries to the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, which runs NAPLAN.

ACARA chief executive Rob Randall said the three-year transition timetable ensured “flexibility for when the transition is made”.

“We respect the decision that has been taken on behalf of South Australian schools, acknowledge all of the work that has been undertaken to date and look forward to building on this work,” he said.

“We want NAPLAN online to be successful for everyone and will continue to work with all states and territories, the Australian Government and Education Services Australia to meet our shared commitment for all schools in all states and territories to be undertaking NAPLAN online by 2019.

“NAPLAN Online will result in better assessment, more precise results and faster turnaround of information.”