The annual test, formerly known as the The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy testing, will be run between Wednesday, March 15 and Monday, March 27 this year.
Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 get tested on their literacy and numeracy skills and the test is used to measure both an individual student’s knowledge as well as to see where the educational sector as a whole needs improvement.
However, over recent years, NAPLAN has gotten a lot of flak from teacher’s unions and some parents.
Some of this criticism is warranted.
I’m no educator, but NAPLAN probably has some flaws as an educational test as no test is perfect.
Whether these flaws are as big as what some critics say, I can’t tell.
It’s also clear that despite best intentions, NAPLAN has turned into an unofficial metric for parents choosing their child’s school.
But NAPLAN is still useful in many ways.
Firstly it provides an interesting snapshot of how individual schools are progressing, where students are struggling and which educational sectors are improving.
For instance, recent data has shown some male students are struggling compared to their female counterparts, and that some public schools are beating private schools.
NAPLAN data also shows the divide between metropolitan and regional schools.
This data helps inform governments where improvements are needed.
Another common argument is NAPLAN puts too much pressure on students.
Though I don’t deny NAPLAN can be stressful for some, the fact that this argument is used by some to advocate abolishing NAPLAN is ridiculous.
Kids will face pressure all the time and NAPLAN is arguably the best place to teach dealing with pressure.
NAPLAN is a helpful tool to inform government policy and individual results for students means very little to nothing in terms of their future.
Whether they score highly or not doesn’t matter in the bigger scheme of things.
In fact, NAPLAN can be an eye-opener for parents to see where their child is struggling and needs improvement.
Yes, some schools may look at NAPLAN testing results as part of their enrolment process but they do so as part of a broader picture of an individual.
NAPLAN is not the make-or-break testing that some people think it is, not even close.
It is not like a secondary school exam, driving test or job interview, all of which obviously matter.
The argument that NAPLAN is putting unnecessary stress on students is, in my opinion, what I’d call just ‘cotton-wooling’ them.
Pressure is a part of life, kids need to learn to deal with it.
When NAPLAN testing begins this month students should try their hardest and embrace the challenge.
And I can tell you from someone who did abysmally in NAPLAN, the results definitely don’t define your future.
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