NAPLAN scores reveal Victoria’s top schools

Victoria is the second smartest state in the country when it comes to the nation’s best schools, new analysis of NAPLAN scores has revealed. See the full list of the state’s top performers.

This Wheelers Hill Primary class scored highest on the Schools Naplan results. Picture: Jason Edwards

Victoria is the second smartest state in the country when it comes to the nation’s best schools, a new analysis of NAPLAN scores has revealed.

The Herald Sun can reveal for the first time how the states and territories compare, with two exclusive leagues tables featuring Australia’s top 100 primary schools and top 100 secondary schools, based on average NAPLAN scores.

NSW took the top spot, claiming 50 primary schools in the league table and 48 in the secondary school table, but Victoria had 36 primary schools in the top 100, and 31 secondary schools.

Private school Presbyterian Ladies’ College ranked first in the state for primary schools, while the best performing government school was Wheelers Hill Primary School, achieving a NAPLAN average score of 580.2.

The school’s principal Michael Ramsey said he was extremely proud of its students.

“Their results are exceptional. We are also very proud of our teachers for providing our students with engaging learning activities and opportunities for success,” Mr Ramsey said.

“We are also proud of our parents and community for the support they give us.

“We regularly use data to understand where our students are placed against the curriculum, and then teach to their next learning point of need.”

Standout secondary schools in the top 100 include selective government school Melbourne High School, Presbyterian Ladies’ College, Ballarat Clarendon College and Glen Waverley Secondary College.

Glen Waverley Secondary College acting principal Suzanne Plant said the school was exceptionally proud of its students’ performance.

“Our students have worked diligently with the support of our great teachers to develop the skills and knowledge required to achieve these outstanding results,” Ms Plant said.

“The college has a long history of achieving outstanding NAPLAN results and 2023 was no exception,” she added.

Wheeler Hill Primary School students Rithvika, Lohitha, Shreya, Mason, Stanley, Yaash, Jake, all aged 9, celebrate being the best performing government school. Picture: Jason Edwards

Queensland and WA tied for third place, with six primary schools each in the top 100 primary schools table.

In the secondary schools league table, the Sunshine State scored 12 in the top 100, compared with eight in WA.

South Australia limped behind in fifth with two primary schools and one secondary school in the respective tables.

Embarrassingly, Tasmania, Northern Territory and the ACT received dunce caps after none of their schools made either league table.

Not surprisingly, the majority of top performers featured in the top 100 were selective schools.

The Grattan Institute’s Dr Jordana Hunter said Victoria had some exceptional teaching, but it needed to step up its investment in quality assured development for teachers.

Dr Hunter added that NSW and Victoria had the highest concentration of wealthy families, and elite schools, which explained why they dominated, and parents should look more towards the “value add” – a measure which shows a student’s improvement – when seeking a school for their child.

Looking at the percentage of schools per state or territory that made the league table, NSW and Victoria were on a par, with NSW just ahead with 3.1 per of primary and secondary schools making one of the two top 100 league tables, while three per cent of Victoria’s schools featured; 1.3 per cent of WA’s, one per cent of Queensland’s and just 0.4 per cent of South Australia’s.

Glenn Fahey, from The Centre for independent Studies, said selective schools attracted the brightest and the most enthusiastic students and often they received tutoring outside of school hours.

Mr Fahey said one way to improve educational standards across the country would be for teachers to spend less time on making sure children were “well” and more time on their academic success.

No Geelong schools made the list.