Ensuring Student SuccessDo NAPLAN test results show a fair and accurate assessment of a students

learning ability?

Shannon Knight

S0216572

EDED11405 Ensuring Student Success

FLEX

Assessment Task 1

Do NAPLAN test results show a fair and accurate assessment of a students learning ability?

For the purpose of this assignment I will be utilizing the complex reasoning

process, investigation, from the Dimensions of Learning 4. The concept

looked at falls under the type of „definitional investigation.‟ This

investigation process will be used to meaningfully examine the known and

agreed upon, research confusions and contradictions and come to a

resolution for the question/concept – Do NAPLAN test results show a fair

and accurate assessment of a students learning ability?

As a side note I personally don‟t agree with NAPLAN. By stating this readers

have an understanding of where my view of the question is being

answered from.

Shannon Knight - s0216572

Shannon Knight - s0216572

Dimension 4 – Graphic Organiser For Investigation

Known or Agreed Upon

NAPLAN stands for National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy. The program

commenced in Australia in 2008 and assesses students in grades 3, 5, 7 and 9.

The test assesses the students in the five domains of Reading, Writing, Spelling, Grammar

and Punctuation and Numeracy. The test was developed collaboratively by ACARA

(Australian Curriculum Assessment & Reporting Authority), the states, territories and the

Australian Government in order to monitor student‟s literacy and numeracy

achievements, and compare these to other states. The NAPLAN test is not compulsory in

private schools.

Questions on the test are now “student-centred” meaning they use a real name such as

Jake, Sarah etc, instead of just saying „the boy‟ or „the girl‟. This strategy makes the

questions more meaningful and relatable for the students as its putting it into a real life

context.

Confusions or Contradictions

NAPLAN results seem to have become an assessment for accountability of schools and teachers,

instead of an assessment of student learning. This is something that has happened over time,

along with the main focus/purpose of the NAPLAN test. This day and age it just seems like the test

is a competition between other schools in the district, states and territories. The test results aren‟t

being used to monitor progress of students learning, but instead the results are just another

number used to compare against other schools, states etc. Also how can educators ensure the

success of all students when the test is only mandatory for public schools?

There is a lot more pressure on teachers now, then there was a few years ago, to ensure

intellectual rigor is being taught at all times throughout the learning experiences; and also to

ensure that students are using the various literacy reading strategies (such as WALT, WILT,

SCORE), making sure that students have comprehensions skills and that students know their basic

numeracy strategies. There is now a big emphasis on pulling out the strategies needed for the

completion of the NAPLAN test and teaching that directly to the students. This, ergo, is now the

new default curriculum. Some schools are putting this emphasis in place as early as grade one,

making sure the students know their reading strategies and much more before heading off to

grade two where the real preparation begins. How is this setting students up for success when

the focus of their whole schooling learning journey has been NAPLAN testing.

Confusions and Contradictions continued..

Results are used by schools, education systems and governments to compare student achievements

against national standards and student achievements in other states and territories across Australia.

The results of NAPLAN testing on individual students are available on the OneSchool website that only

teachers have access to, and allows monitoring of progress over time. Other results from the test are

available on the „My School‟ website, which shows the results from a school as a whole. The four

stakeholders that benefit from the test results are school systems, schools, teachers and students.

Brady and Kennedy (2012, p. 128) states that “these data enable schools to recruit and assign

teachers to particular grades, to allocate special resources to targeted domains” this here means

that the schools results from the NAPLAN test determines the allocation of resources and support

services. This in fact can become an issue as the test isn‟t a true indication of students success, and if

the information is misleading then you could end up with a high achieving school, who done poorly

on the test, with more staff and more resources; while the less fortunate schools who are in desperate

need of support staff and resources are still left with nothing, even after acquiring very good results

from the test. With this policy in place it is unlikely that students will experience success due to the

continuation of the lack of staff and resources.

NAPLAN Testing

Yes NO

Your thoughts so far on ‘do NAPLAN test results show a fair and accurate assessment of a students learning ability’

Confusions and Contradictions continued..

A large proportion of questions on the NAPLAN test are multiple choice. This allows for a lot of

guessing when the learners have become tiered and frustrated. Assessment Reform Group

indicate that this is more likely to happen in the low achievers, as they become discouraged

and are then more likely to minimize their effort and respond to the questions randomly

through guessing. When the students are placed in this type of situation where they‟re

stressed, have a lot of pressure being hindered on them and are frustrated, it is unlikely they

will experience success. Other questions on the test are short written response and there is

one question that requires the students to write a narrative.

The Australian Education Union states:

With the current NAPLAN design, where there is only one annual test of 40 questions per

subject area, student scores contain large margins of error. NAPLAN results do not

provide sufficiently accurate information on student performance, student progress or

school performance. (2010, p. 25)

Confusions or Contradictions continued..

The NAPLAN test does not cater to everyone's individual learning styles. Why remind

that one kid always that he is at the bottom of the hierarchy? This is certainly not the

way to ensure these students are achieving success and felling success. Systematic

testing is great in that it provides data about a students learning, but there needs to be

a new standardised test that is better equipped for students, and can meet all learning

needs.

The National Assessment Program (2011) discussed that work is already underway to

move NAPLAN online as of 2016. How is this going to better anything? It will definitely

reduce the cost of NAPLAN, but what other benefits will this have?

Original Research

The survey that was handed out to a cohort of teachers, that teach from grade 1 through to grade 7.

Teacher Survey Results

NAPLAN – is it really a fair and accurate indication?

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 Q6

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Survey Results

Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree

Survey results

Q1 NAPLAN gives a genuine assessment of a students learning ability? 75% disagreed with this statement, while 25% have a neutral feeling about it.

Q2 NAPLAN caters for all learning styles?75% strongly disagree with this, while 25% just disagreed.

Q3 The focus of practicing for NAPLAN has over taken the ordinary learning experiences taught in the classroom?25% strongly agreed that NAPLAN has changed the focus, while 75% just agreed.

Q4 The test provides a lot of stress on learners and teachers?75% agreed, while 25% strongly agreed.

Q5 Results from the NAPLAN tests are just being used as a number to compare against other schools, in order to see which school is doing better?There were a lot of mixed feelings about this one. 25% disagreed, 25% were neutral, 25% agreed and 25% strongly agreed.

Q6 Students have sufficient time to be offered learning support after the test results come back?25% strongly disagreed, 50% disagreed and 25% were neutral.

Q7 Additional comments?Additional comments were that the writing task in particular is not suitable as it doesn’t allow students to show their true ability. Asking a student to

brainstorm, write and edit all in 40 minutes is a huge ask. This caused some amazing writers to do extremely poorly because they didn’t have time to digest the topic. The teachers also commented that so much importance is placed on NAPLAN by schools and the media that many students feel they have failed before they’ve even opened their book. Results from NAPLAN tests are essentially useless for grade 7 teachers, by the time the results come back, there is only one term left with the students to provide support. There is a lot of pressure both on students and teachers children as young as year one are already being exposed to NAPLAN style questions and curriculum in preparation. Teachers are doing their planning in order to mould children so that they perform well on NAPLAN – all other genuine learning is being pushed aside! Students are being taught how to do well in NAPLAN, and there is little to no holistic teaching and learning. As a result children are missing out on other fundamental

learning experiences.

Everybody learns

differently. So why

give everybody the

same test?

School Based ExampleObservation of a low achieving boy in grade 3 trying to complete the

NAPLAN test in 2012

This student, a male, is learning between a year 1 and 2 level. He has trouble writing, reading and

spelling; but is very good at numeracy. This student‟s learning style is auditory, so he needs the teacher

standing their talking him through the process and often needs tasks re-worded so that he can

comprehend what is asked of him. He struggled a lot with the literacy section of the test, which was to

be expected. The student kept putting his hand up for assistance from the teacher, however, teachers

are under strict rules to only read the question on the test as is, and are not to provide any extra

assistance. Therefore, this particular student struggled a lot because he couldn‟t get that extra

assistance he needs. As I observed the student I could see he was becoming very frustrated and

embarrassed because he wasn‟t able to comprehend the question and couldn‟t answer it. He just

began guessing the multiple choice questions and as time went on other students were starting to

finish, the student then began to cry all because he couldn‟t do it. My heart broke for this poor

student, as educators we are there to help, assist and care for our students, but in this situation I couldn‟t.

With a little assistance of re-wording the question that student could have easily of answer the

questions, but instead he was ranked in the lowest band on the test. This student did not achieve success

that day, instead he was reminded that he is still a low achieving student and that his class mates can do

the work he couldn‟t.

Is NAPLAN ensuring the

success for ALLstudents?

Resolution

There is no doubt that there is a lot of controversy and debating relating to

NAPLAN. The test is here to stay, but in an effort to reduce the negative

impacts from NAPLAN teachers can:

Reduce the pressure on practising for the test, and not make NAPLAN the

focus of learning experiences

Always encourage students to do their best, not only in tests, but in any

situation

Be mindfull of the real purpose of the test and remember its an assessment

of student learning, not of teachers and schools

Use the data/results from the test to benefit and help improve student

learning

References

Australian Education Union. (2010). The NAPLAN debate, 9(1). Abbotsford, VIC: AEU

Brady, L., & Kennedy, K. (2012). Assessment and reporting celebrating student

achievement (4th ed.). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Australia

Marzano, R. J., & Pickering, D. J. (with Arrendondo, D. E., Paynter, D. E., Blackburn, G.

J., Brandt, R. S., … Whistler, J. S.). (1997). Dimensions of learning teacher’s

manual (2nd ed.). Alexandra, VA: ASCD.

National Assessment Program (NAP). (2011). Publications and research. Retrieved from

http://www.nap.edu.au/information/publications--research/publications--

research.html