By Alex Crowe
At Pascoe Vale Primary School, they want to get a little better every day – an approach that has helped propel this school in Melbourne’s north-west onto the official list of standout performers in this year’s NAPLAN testing.
There are 30 cultural groups represented among the school’s 500-plus students, many of whom come from non-English-speaking backgrounds, but the literacy program is so strong that other schools are seeking to learn from its success.
Pascoe Vale Primary School principal Anne Naughton with (from left): Oliver Josef, Leo Tippett, Joshua Hogan, Isabella Gellatly, Zara Atyah, Violet Gleeson and Mahith Fernando.Credit: Jason South
“Our reading data is very strong, and we’ve focused on maintaining that high level,” principal Anne Naughton said.
Naughton said the school had been identified by the Education Department four years ago as high performing, but the school’s leaders continue to scour pupils’ results for improvement opportunities.
“It’s continuously looking at what our kids are doing, and where we can add value to progress them to achieve their highest possible potential,” she said.
The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority’s list of 2024 high performers in Victoria, which is not ranked, includes 15 government schools and five independent schools.
No Catholic schools made this year’s list, which features schools that have consistently scored NAPLAN test results in reading, writing, spelling, grammar and numeracy that are above or well above schools with similar socioeconomic profiles.
Schools that performed well compared with others in their area were also singled out by the assessment authority to ensure remote areas were represented.
NAPLAN results for 2024 were published on the My School website on Wednesday, along with information on each school’s profile, population and attendance levels.
Students sit the NAPLAN (National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy) in years 3, 5, 7 and 9, and their results and progress in the standardised tests are compared against similar students around the country.
This year’s tests included higher benchmarks in line with international testing for the second time, meaning results are not comparable to before 2023.
All Victorian government schools will be required to use a phonics approach to teaching reading from 2025, but Pascoe Vale, which has been teaching phonics for years, should be able to take the change in its stride.
“We’ve actually had a very strong comprehensive phonics or word work program running for years,” Naughton said.
Another factor in Pascoe Vale’s success has been a staff mentoring program that helps teachers continue learning on the job.
As a result, the school has been able to retain and attract new staff while the government system across the state battles a chronic teacher shortage.
At the Knox School, which has also made this year’s list of “schools making a difference”, teachers have turned the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic to students’ advantage.
Students from year 4 onwards at the private Wantirna South school have flexible learning sessions, allowing them to decide what they work on for several periods each week.
“We’ve been committed for the last couple of years to our approach of personalised learning,” principal Nikki Kirkup said.
The Knox School principal Nikki Kirkup with students.Credit: Eddie Jim
“That means really knowing our students and knowing how they learn, but giving them really engaging learning experiences.”
The school’s learning model has three components: academics; skills-based learning (including critical thinking, collaboration, communication and creativity; and the “character journey”.
“When we talk about a focus on great academic results, it’s not to the detriment of the other two, it’s both,” Kirkup said.
The approach involves inquiry-based learning in the junior school and project-based learning in the senior school, underpinned by the foundations of literacy and numeracy.
Students experience real-world learning through “Knox-peditions”, in which they identify a problem in the community and an individual who could benefit from a solution.
This year, year 9 students worked with experts to produce portraits for patients at a nearby residential care home. The students have maintained their connections with the residents and are continuing to visit them weeks after the project was completed.
“What we see is a heightened level of engagement and motivation because their outcomes are real and tangible,” Kirkup said.
“You then see that transfer across into things like NAPLAN results, because we see improved numeracy and literacy as a result of that immersive learning experience.”
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