NAPLAN: Top performing Coffs Coast primary and high schools revealed

Bishop Druitt College and Coffs Harbour Christian Community School are the Coffs Coast’s top performing NAPLAN schools. Check out how your school performed.

Chris Knight

2 min read

February 22, 2023 - 1:00AM

Bishop Druitt College Year 10 students Molly Williams, Tom Couper, Jaxon Donoghue and Ruby Smith with principal Nick Johnstone (centre). Picture: Chris Knight

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A leading Coffs Harbour school principal has urged parents to find the time to read with their children at home when they are in their younger years.

Bishop Druitt College principal Nick Johnstone said Year 3 was a key time in a child’s development, and the “willingness” of parents to supplement at-school learning was significant.

An independent analysis of newly-released 2022 NAPLAN results has revealed the schools which performed the best in the Year 5 and Year 9 tests.

The top performing secondary school was Bishop Druitt College, with a score of 596.0 as an average.

Coffs Harbour Christian Community School in Bonville was the second best for the region with an average score of 587.6, while St John Paul College in Coffs Harbour was the third best with an average score of 576.6.

Mr Johnstone said literacy was the “gateway” to high achieving NAPLAN results.

He was pleased to see the college come out top in the region, but said “it’s just a snapshot of that cohort in that particular week”.

Of the primary schools, Coffs Harbour Christian Community School in Bonville had the best results on the coast, scoring an average of 522.8 across the five test subjects.

Bishop Druitt College ranked second highest with an average score of 510.2, while St Augustine’s Primary School in Coffs Harbour was the third best with an average score of 506.8.

Bishop Druitt College principal Nick Johnstone: “About 85 per cent of our students go on to university.” Picture: Chris Knight

Mr Johnstone said NAPLAN was one of many spot checks used to track student development at Bishop Druitt.

“We are interested in their (students) growth rate as a school, while NAPLAN just measures performance,” he said.

“About 85 per cent of our students go on to university whereas in the Coffs region it’s about 20 per cent.”

Bishop Druitt College Year 10 student Jaxon Donoghue. Picture: Chris Knight

Jaxon Donoghue is in Year 10 at Bishop Druitt, and was among the Year 9 cohort who sat the NAPLAN test last year.

“It’s neither here nor there. It was just another test and you get in and get it done,” Jaxon said.

“But in Year 5 it was bigger, it was like ‘this is it – here’s NAPLAN’.”

Jaxon and fellow students Ruby Smith, Molly Williams and Tom Couper are taking school life in their stride, at a time of transition at Bishop Druitt.

Bishop Druitt College principal Nick Johnstone and Year 10 students Tom Couper, Molly Williams, Jaxon Donoghue and Ruby Smith. Picture: Chris Knight

“For Years 9 and 10 we timetable them together for our elective courses, which are often their favourites as they are selected by choice,” Mr Johnstone said.

To determine how each school performed in 2022, the NAPLAN scores for all five test subjects for the student cohort (Year 5 or Year 9) were combined and the average found.

Special schools, schools with fewer than 20 students enrolled, and schools which did not report any results for NAPLAN subjects were excluded from the analysis.

The figures were independently compiled from the federal government’s MySchool website.

Coffs Coast’s best performing Year 5 schools for 2022

Coffs Harbour Christian Community School: 522.8

Bishop Druitt College: 510.2

St Augustine’s Primary School: 506.8

Mullaway Public School: 502.0

St Francis Xavier Primary School: 499.8

Boambee Public School: 497.6

Casuarina Steiner School: 495.2

Bonville Public School: 494.8

Kororo Public School: 494.6

Mary Help of Christians Primary School Sawtell: 493.8