SA year 4 students well behind ACT and Victoria in literacy, but ahead of other states

A new study shows just where SA’s year 4 students are trailing behind at school – and which states are beating us. And it has disturbing trends on teachers.

Pulteney Year 4 students Ava Mabikafola and Tom Karagiannis getting into their reading. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Naomi Jellicoe

South Australian year 4 students are trailing their peers when it comes to literacy, according to a newly-released global study.

The 2021 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), released worldwide Tuesday evening, has measured global trends in Year 4 students’ reading literacy achievement every five years since 2001.

The study, implemented by the Australian Council for Educational Research., revealed SA students are well behind their peers in the ACT and Victoria, but statistically close to pupils in the other states and ahead of the NT.

When measuring the number of students reaching the advanced benchmark South Australia performed badly, with only 12 per cent of SA kids landing in the top category, on par with the Northern Territory. Nineteen per cent of ACT students hit the top category, while in New South Wales it was 15 per cent.

Around 24 per cent of South Australian Year 4s are failing to meet international reading benchmarks, compared with 11 per cent in the ACT and 16 per cent in Victoria.

The study also shows teachers are less satisfied with their jobs overall.

The latest survey, which was delayed by the pandemic, marks the third time Australia has taken part in PIRLS, following participation in 2011 and 2016. Australia’s average score of 540 points in PIRLS 2021 was statistically similar to the average score in PIRLS 2016 (544 points) and remains higher than the global average score for 2011 (527 points).

Achievement since 2016 was stable in every Australian state and territory except lockdown-hit Victoria, where the average score fell 14 points.

In South Australia, the survey showed that female Year 4 students scored higher, on average, than male Year 4 students. Similar results were also recorded in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia.

PIRLS National Project Manager for Australia, ACER Senior Research Fellow Kylie Hillman, said large achievement gaps based on First Nations background, school location or socio-economic status observed in 2011 and 2016 have not closed.

“Every child deserves the chance to become a competent reader,” Ms Hillman said.

“Students in year 4 are at a key transition point in their schooling, moving from ‘learning to read’ to ‘reading to learn’. Support for students who find reading challenging is essential to prevent them falling behind in other learning areas, as more of their schooling draws on their reading skills.”

Ms Hillman said while ACER was yet to “cut the data at this point to go down and look at what’s influencing things within jurisdictions”, it was well known that economic disadvantage was often reflected in literacy rates.

“We’ve reported on the number of books in a home, as that’s often a reliable indicator of what a household’s level of advantage is,” she said.

A spokesperson for the state government said the study’s results showed while South Australia continues to make improvements in student results, the state must do more.

“The Malinauskas Labor Government took a comprehensive plan to the last election to improve our education system for future generations and to give students the education they deserve,” the spokesperson said.

“This includes a significant $50 million investment in mental health and wellbeing in schools – we can’t expect children to perform well academically if they have poor mental health.

It also includes significant improvements to the quality of education – including banning mobile phones at school, ensuring specialist teachers teach specialist subjects, improving teacher permanency by at least 10 per cent, providing 400 teaching scholarships, and making it easier for principals to address underperformance.”

Results from the PIRLS teacher questionnaires show a decline in Australian teachers’ job satisfaction.

Almost half (49 per cent) of the Australian students in PIRLS 2021 were taught by teachers who were very satisfied with their profession, down from 58 per cent in 2016, while 10 per cent of students were taught by teachers who were less than satisfied with their profession – an 8 percentage point increase since 2016.

“Many of the Australian teachers who participated in PIRLS 2021 had just lived through weeks and weeks of remote learning, perhaps fulfilling the roles of teacher and parent at the same time,” Ms Hillman said in response to the results.

“For Australian students’ average reading achievement to have held ground in such difficult circumstances is a testament to our teachers’ dedication and professionalism.”

For Adelaide school Pulteney Grammar, which consistently scores above the national NAPLAN average for reading and writing, Year 4 is a crucial year to lock in a love for the written word.

“The significance of fostering a strong and positive attitude towards learning, especially in regard to reading, cannot be overstated, particularly during the pivotal year of 4th grade,” Pulteney’s head of junior school Denise O’Loughlin said.

“Reading serves as the foundation for a multitude of educational endeavours, permeating every aspect of a student’s learning journey. By nurturing a love for reading, we equip young minds with the tools to unlock knowledge, ignite curiosity, and embrace the wonders of the world.”