How John Paul College topped NAPLAN for five years
It takes more than just strong teaching to post five years of top NAPLAN results. But these Logan schools have found the secret to success and one principal tells how it was done.
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THERE are many lessons to learn from the state’s top year 5 NAPLAN performer.
After a dismal week of news about the nation’s plummeting ranking in the Program for International Student Assessment results, Logan’s John Paul College has shared its secrets to success.
The Daisy Hill college topped the year 5 NAPLAN results, posting results higher than any other school in the state and scoring an average of 2616.4 each year.
In Logan, it was followed closely by Saint Philomena School with an average of 2544.8 over the five years for year 5 and Canterbury College with 2538.
The top ranking was revealed after an independent analysis of NAPLAN results for year 5 and year 9 between 2015 and 2019.
TOP NAPLAN SCHOOLS ACROSS SEQ
Brisbane North | Brisbane South | Logan | Moreton | Redlands
John Paul College Principal Karen Spiller slated some of the NAPLAN success to the college’s academic strengthening program and personalised teaching over the past two years.
“It is our focus on intentional teaching and the quality of teaching practice that is making a difference to our students achieving so well in the vital areas of literacy and numeracy,” she said.
“Our commitment to each student is demonstrated by our dedicated teachers who ensure the quality of teaching and learning in every class, in every subject, every day.
“Our teachers use student diagnostics and data to inform teaching and to personalise student learning.”
Ms Spiller said in year 5, students were continually engaged in a process of feedback and improvement but were also exposed to authentic learning experiences.
In year 9, the college, which posted the third highest results, focused on ensuring programs were engaging and rigorous so students would be prepared for higher-level literacy and numeracy demands in new senior courses.
Ms Spiller said that paid off and in some cases, after personalised teaching, students achieved 100 per cent in numeracy and spelling tests.
Saint Philomena School, in Park Ridge, topped the NAPLAN results for year 9 in Logan with an average yearly result of 3104.2 over the five years.
The second-best performing year 9 results in Logan came from Canterbury College, in Waterford, where yearly results were 2993.2 and John Paul College in third.
Average scores for each year were combined and the yearly average found to give a school’s overall five-year performance result for the 2015 to 2019 period.
Special schools, schools with fewer than 20 students enrolled in either year, and schools that did not report any results for NAPLAN subjects in either year were excluded.
The figures were independently compiled from the federal government’s MySchool website.
These are the Logan schools that consistently top the state’s NAPLAN results.
Logan’s 10 best performing Year 5 schools between 2015 and 2019
John Paul College: 2616.4
Saint Philomena School: 2544.8
Canterbury College: 2538.0
St Edward the Confessor School: 2526.6
Rivermount College: 2524.4
Emmaus College: 2495.8
St Matthew’s School: 2489.6
Parklands Christian College: 2472.8
St Joseph’s Tobruk Memorial School: 2464.8
Hills International College: 2456.6
Logan’s 10 best performing Year 9 schools between 2015 and 2019
Saint Philomena School: 3104.2
Canterbury College: 2993.2
John Paul College: 2933.6
Rivermount College: 2902.6
Parklands Christian College: 2815.8
Chisholm Catholic College: 2814.8
Emmaus College: 2800.6
Trinity College: 2790.4
Shailer Park State High School: 2776.0
Hills International College: 2768.2
TOP NAPLAN SCHOOLS ACROSS SEQ
Brisbane North | Brisbane South | Logan | Moreton | Redlands
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