The release of this year's NAPLAN results occasioned reports in most papers. In response to them, letters were submitted to The Australian and The Courier-Mail.
NAPLAN is not an indicator of schools' effectiveness
Perhaps the prompt (question) used for the writing component of this year’s NAPLAN tests could have been better chosen (“Marked down: how one tough question skewed the NAPLAN results”, 18/8).
It will always be difficult for ACARA (the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority) to select a topic that will be equally engaging for students in Year 3 and those in Year 9.
However, the main problem with NAPLAN results is that some people invest them with more meaning than is warranted and erroneously misuse them as an indicator of the effectiveness of whole schools and/or individual teachers. The tests have not been designed to measure these features and are incapable of doing so.
In addition, the Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE), the national English teacher professional body, does not consider that performance in a single “on demand” writing task that has to be completed in just 40 minutes in response to an arbitrarily imposed writing prompt is capable of comprehensively measuring students’ overall writing competence.
NAPLAN results are just one piece of evidence available to teachers and other educational stakeholders. Given the narrowness of NAPLAN data and its persistent misuse by some people, AATE considers (thinks) that the cost of the testing program and the associated My School website would be better spent on improvements in teaching and learning resources, school infrastructure and teacher professional learning.
Garry Collins
President, Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE)
Smarter uses for NAPLAN funding
You report that this year’s NAPLAN results show “the worst-ever student performance nationwide on the persuasive writing task” (“Writing is on the wall”, 18/8).
Is this a matter for serious concern? Not really.
The Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE), the national English teacher professional body, does not consider that performance in a single “on demand” writing task that has to be completed in just 40 minutes in response to an arbitrarily imposed writing prompt is capable of comprehensively measuring students’ overall writing competence.
NAPLAN results are just one piece of evidence available to teachers and other educational stakeholders.
In addition, ACARA (the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority) concedes that the results may be partly attributable to the topic set for the task. However, the main problem with NAPLAN results is that some people invest them with more meaning than is warranted and erroneously misuse them as an indicator of the effectiveness of whole schools and/or individual teachers. The tests have not been designed to measure these features and are incapable of doing so.
Given the narrowness of NAPLAN data and its persistent misuse by some people, AATE considers that the (The) cost of the testing program and the associated My School website would be better spent on improvements in teaching and learning resources, school infrastructure and teacher professional learning.
Garry Collins
President, Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE)
Tags: Assessment |
May Masterclass 2021THE CHALLENGE OF TEACHING ANALYSIS: DO WE NEED TO CHANGE OUR PRACTICES? Teaching the process of analysing texts in order for students to produce a spoken or written response remains amongst the most exciting and difficult challenges we face as a community of English teachers. Most recently, the high-stakes nature of unseen examinations fo... |
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JCU SpectacularJoin Dr Claire Hansen for a two-hour session on teaching Macbeth. We'll dive into an exploration of the language of Macbeth and teaching strategies to engage students with Shakespeare's Scottish play. The workshop will also explore learning activities for Macbeth created by the Shakespeare Reloaded project. This session will... |
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Grammar DayA grammar workshop will be held at Elanora State High School on Saturday 29 May 2021 to assist attendees to develop their understandings of grammar in order to fully comprehend and to effectively teach the Australia Curriculum: English (AC:E). Also highly relevant to Years 11 & 12. This will be an updated re-run of the activity ... |
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Teacher event - external assessmentThe second series of pre-external examination events will be held for teachers on Saturday 31 July as a face-to-face event and online. Recorded materials will remain available to all participants online until the examination week in October. Date Claimer giving further information is available for download ... |
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Student event - external assessmentFlexible modes of delivery will allow you and your students to engage with the materials at a time that suits you. Once again this event will be fully online to cater for all members and their students. This year the materials will come to you live in the afternoon of Wednesday 8 September and again in the morning of Saturda... |
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This is the first time I have been to an ETAQ conference and it was really sensational to get so much at all of the sessions.
ETAQ conferences always have sessions that make me excited to be a teacher.
I know that ETAQ conferences in the past have never disappointed - valuable, relevant, practical, inspiring so I came again.
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