Key education ministers call for NAPLAN overhaul and rebranding
November 10, 2020
Original Article: https://www.smh.com.au/national/key-education-ministers-call-for-naplan-overhaul-and-rebranding-20200828-p55qci.html
Australia's three biggest states are calling for major changes to NAPLAN tests, including moving it from year 9 to year 10, holding it at the beginning of the school year and adding a test of critical and creative thinking in STEM subjects.
They also want to rebrand the tests, and overhaul the often-criticised writing component in which student performance has decreased almost every year since the test began. But they stopped short of calling for an end to standardised testing.
Education ministers from NSW, Queensland, Victoria and the ACT commissioned the report last year, saying the test needed improving. But the review and its recommendations are not supported by the federal government, which mandates NAPLAN as a condition of its school funding.
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said the disruption caused by COVID-19 and the cancellation of this year’s NAPLAN provided an opportunity for reform.
“What students and their teachers need is a diagnostic tool that captures the breadth of a student’s ability, measures student growth and provides systemic and individual results back quickly,” she said.
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