NAPLAN results aren’t all doom and gloom

While there’s no doubt NAPLAN has driven some undesirable practices in schools, this year’s results aren’t all bad. In fact, there are major wins that we ought to be looking at, writes Glenn Savage.

Despite all the doom and gloom we hear about NAPLAN, the truth is that the recent 2019 results signal a number of positive shifts for our nation’s schools.

While there’s no doubt this year was a rough ride for the test, with complex issues as it moved from paper to online format, the results show important improvements and promising signs.

When we look at how results have tracked since the test was introduced in 2008, it’s clear there has been more overall progress than decline, with a number of year levels showing significant improvements in the areas of numeracy, reading, spelling and grammar.

RELATED: What NAPLAN results really reveal about your child

While writing results in Years 7 and 9 continue to be areas of concern, there are positive signs of a turnaround in the younger years, with Year 3 writing results improving since last year.

This may reflect significant efforts across the nation to focus on literacy in early years settings in response to concerns about writing performance in previous assessments.

It’s also clear some states are doing an especially good job at driving performance forward.

Some states are doing an especially good job at driving performance forward. Picture: supplied

Queensland is a standout with improvements significantly above average in several year levels and assessment areas. This raises interesting questions about what the state might be doing that’s having a positive impact and whether there are lessons from which other systems might learn.

If we look beyond the results, it’s also clear NAPLAN is continuing to drive important conversations across the country about how to improve Australian schools.

RELATED: NAPLAN results worse than a decade ago despite increased spending per student

At a recent meeting of educational leaders, I was taken aback by the depth and sophistication of dialogue and sharing focused on improving literacy and numeracy across the country.

These are conversations that wouldn’t have happened this way two decades ago and are important regardless of whether we agree with the merits of standardised testing or not.

While there’s no doubt NAPLAN has driven some undesirable practices in schools and many areas of performance have plateaued rather than improved, the positives this year need to be acknowledged and should form part of the rich national debate about testing in our schools.

Glenn C. Savage is a senior lecturer at the University of Western Australia.