General questions

Queries relating to administration of the NAPLAN tests should be directed to the Test Administration Authority in each State or Territory. Contact details are available on the NAPLAN website www.naplan.edu.au under ‘Test Administration Authorities’.

Test timetable:

* Language Conventions incorporates spelling, grammar and punctuation.
**Numeracy incorporates Number, Algebra, function and pattern, Space, Measurment, chance and data.

Q: What happens if my child is sick on one of the test days?

A: Schools can organise for individual students who are absent at the time of testing to complete missed tests at another time during testing week.

Q: Are any students exempt from NAPLAN tests?

A: Yes. Students can be exempted from one or more NAPLAN tests if they have significant intellectual or functional disability or if they are from a non-English-speaking background and arrived in Australia less than one year before the tests. However, this is not automatic and parents may choose for their child to participate. Signed parent/carer consent forms are required for students exempted from the tests.
All Australian governments have committed to promoting maximum participation of such students in the national assessment process. Common national practices for providing students with special support, adjustments and accommodations for the administration of the NAPLAN tests have been agreed.

Q: My child has special needs and requires special provisions. How do I organise this?

A: Special provisions which typically will reflect the support normally provided in the classroom may be provided to students with disabilities or special needs. If you have concerns, please discuss these with your child’s teacher or your school principal. You can also obtain more information from the Test Administration Authority in your State or Territory. Contact details are available on the NAPLAN website.

Q: What do I do if my child’s school suggests not participating in testing?

A: Students who are in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are expected to participate in the testing. Please discuss your concerns with your child’s teacher or school principal. Any further queries relating to the administration of the NAPLAN tests, including exclusions from the tests, may be directed to the Test Administration Authority (TAA) in your State or Territory. Contact details are available on the NAPLAN website.

Q: I want to withdraw my child. How do I do this?

A: Your school principal will also be able to discuss special circumstances should they apply. Signed parent/carer consent forms are required for students withdrawn from the tests.
There are nationally agreed protocols around the withdrawal of students from the NAPLAN tests. These are administered by the relevant Test Administration Authority. You can find details, including telephone numbers, on the NAPLAN website.
ACARA does not manage the consideration of requests for withdrawals or exemptions.

Q: Who will conduct the tests?

A: NAPLAN tests are conducted at schools and administered by classroom teachers, school deputies or the principal.

Q: Can my child be prepared for the NAPLAN tests?

A: The best preparation schools can provide for students is teaching the curriculum as the tests reflect core elements of state and territory curricula. Test practice involves students completing examples of previous tests or sample tests for the purpose of familiarising them with test instructions and common forms of questions. Teachers routinely prepare students for testing including, as appropriate, practice on sample tests. Adequate preparation ensures that students feel comfortable in the testing environment and are able to confidently demonstrate what they know and can do.

Q: Does ACARA endorse any commercial ‘test preparation’ products or services?

A: Neither the Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth affairs (MCEECDYA) nor the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) endorses any organisation who may be offering answers to the NAPLAN sample questions, diagnostic tools or any other product or service to teachers or students in connection with NAPLAN. These organisations are not authorised by and do not represent MCEECDYA or ACARA. Teachers and students who are considering purchasing such products or services do so at their own risk and need to make their own assessment as to their suitability.

Q: What will be assessed in the tests?

A: The content of each test is informed by the National Statements of Learning in English and Mathematics which underpin state and territory learning frameworks. Test questions cover aspects of literacy (Reading, Writing, Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation) and numeracy.
Questions are either multiple-choice or require a short written response. The Writing task requires students to write a narrative (story).
All government and non-government education authorities have contributed to the development of NAPLAN materials.

Q: What specific skills are tested in NAPLAN?

A: There is no published list of specific skills that will be tested in NAPLAN tests.
The development of NAPLAN tests is guided by the National Statements of Learning in English and Mathematics which are available from the Educational Services Australia (formerly Curriculum Corporation) website at www.esa.edu.au. In future, the NAPLAN tests will be aligned with the Australian Curriculum, currently in draft form for consultation.

Q: Will I receive a report on my child’s performance?

A: If your child sits the tests, a report will be issued by your school later in the year. The same report format is used for every student in Australia. The school will notify you when the reports are being sent home. If your child sits the tests and you do not receive a report, you should contact the school. Individual student results are strictly confidential.
The report is one aspect of the school’s assessment and reporting process, and does not replace the extensive, ongoing assessments made by teachers about each student’s performance.
Examples of student reports can be found at http://www.naplan.edu.au/reports/student_report.html

Q: What information will be provided about student performance?

A: NAPLAN results provide an important measure of how all Australian students are performing in literacy and numeracy. Individual student performance on each test is shown on national achievement scales from Year 3 to Year 9. Six bands are reported for each year level. The second bottom band at each year level will represent the national minimum standard for students at that year level. A result at the national minimum standard indicates that the student demonstrated only the basic literacy and numeracy skills needed to participate in that year level. The performance of individual students can be compared to the average performance of all students in Australia.

Q: How will the NAPLAN test results be used?

A:

• Students and parents may use individual results to discuss achievements and progress with teachers.
• Teachers use results to help them better identify students who require greater challenges or additional support.
• Schools use results to identify strengths and weaknesses in teaching programs and to set goals in literacy and numeracy.
• School systems use results to review programs and support offered to schools.

Q: Can students sit the test overseas?

A: The tests are administered by Test Administration Authorities within each State or Territory, and can only be sat within Australia.

Q: Where are the answers to the NAPLAN tests?

A: ACARA does not supply answers to NAPLAN test questions. If you have queries about particular questions, you may like to discuss them with your child’s teacher or Principal.

Q: Where do I get another copy of my child’s NAPLAN report?

A: You should talk to your child’s teacher or the Principal.

Q: Who will mark the tests?

A: Student answers to multiple-choice questions will be scanned and the data captured electronically. All other responses and the Writing task will be marked by trained, independent markers.

Q: How can I apply to be a marker?

A: Administration of the NAPLAN tests, including marking, is managed by the Test Administration Authority in each State or Territory.

Q: Can I download and print the NAPLAN tests?

A: The NAPLAN tests are available in PDF format at www.naplan.edu.au and may be downloaded and printed for non-commercial, educational purposes. The test material may not be used for commercial purposes. Please see the ‘Copyright’ section on the website for further information relating to the use of this material.

Q: I don’t have a computer. Can you supply me with hard copy tests?

A: The NAPLAN tests are available in PDF format at www.naplan.edu.au and may be downloaded and printed for non-commercial, educational purposes. However, ACARA does not supply tests in hard copy from the website unless there are special circumstances. In such cases, please advise ACARA of your circumstances in your request.

Q: How will information be shown on student progress over time?

A: ACARA is working with education authorities to develop measures to track growth over time. Student growth will be shown once the measures have been agreed, and once data from several years of NAPLAN assessments are available. If data for an individual student are not available, no growth can be shown for that student.

Q: Can NAPLAN test results be compared from one year to the next?

A: Yes. An expert advisory group is responsible for monitoring the reliability of NAPLAN tests between years. A rigorous equating process was undertaken in 2009 to ensure that the 2008 and 2009 results could be compared. A similar process will take place in 2010. As a result, changes in performance of schools and school systems over time can be identified.

Q: How accurate are school results?

A: The NAPLAN average score for a school is a good indication of school performance based on the students who were tested in the school. The greater the proportion of students tested, the greater the accuracy. The My School website gives indicative standard errors for schools with different numbers of students. Standard errors reflect the accuracy of the estimates and the degree of confidence one can have in them.

Q: What do the NAPLAN scores on My School represent?

A: The numbers on the My School website are the mean of the results of all students in the selected school for the selected year level in each domain (eg Year 5 Reading). The higher the number, the higher the achievement of the students. NAPLAN tests are on a single scoring scale for each domain with ten achievement bands that extend across Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. Each year level, however, has a different lowest achievement band. Band 1 is the lowest for Year 3, Band 3 for Year 5, Band 4 for Year 7 and Band 5 for Year 9. This single scale allows students, teachers and parents to monitor progress across the years and compare results to those in previous years as students advance through school.

Q: What is the purpose of conducting NAPLAN testing?

A: The main purpose of the NAPLAN tests is to identify whether all students have the literacy and numeracy skills and knowledge that provide the critical foundation for other learning and for their productive and rewarding participation in the community. The introduction of national literacy and numeracy tests in 2008 has provided consistency, comparability and transferability of information on students’ literacy and numeracy performance nationally.

Q: How are NAPLAN tests developed?

A: NAPLAN consists of four tests in the domains of Reading, Writing, Language Conventions (Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation) and Numeracy. Specialist writers are employed to develop test questions (items). NAPLAN is developed so that the curriculum coverage is appropriate for the relevant year levels.
Test items are trialled in order to provide performance data. That data is used to make decisions about which items will be used in the tests. This process ensures the quality of the tests.
The final test forms are reviewed by experts, including experienced teachers and approved only after they meet strict criteria.