Deputy Principal
Mr Simon Vaughan, Deputy Principal
Understanding NAPLAN: What the Results Mean for Your Child
Each year, students across Australia participate in the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). As parents receive their child’s results over the coming weeks, it is natural to ask: What do these results actually tell us, and how should they be used?
At St Stephen’s Catholic College, we view NAPLAN as one valuable source of information about student learning. It is important to remember that NAPLAN is not a test that determines a student’s worth, potential, or future success. Rather, it provides a snapshot of a student’s literacy and numeracy skills at a particular point in time.
NAPLAN assesses students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 across five areas: reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy. The results help identify strengths and areas where additional support may be beneficial. They also allow schools to monitor trends in student achievement over time and evaluate the effectiveness of teaching programs.
Since 2023, NAPLAN results have been reported using four proficiency levels: Exceeding, Strong, Developing, and Needs Additional Support. These categories provide a clearer indication of whether a student is meeting the literacy and numeracy expectations for their year level. While many students achieve in the Strong or Exceeding categories, students identified as Developing or Needs Additional Support can benefit from targeted interventions to strengthen their skills.
One of the most useful aspects of NAPLAN is that it enables conversations between parents, teachers and students about learning progress. A NAPLAN report can highlight specific areas requiring attention, such as reading comprehension, spelling accuracy or mathematical reasoning. This information helps schools and families work together to improve outcomes for individual students.
However, NAPLAN should never be viewed in isolation. Teachers assess student learning every day through classroom activities, assignments, projects, observations and examinations. These ongoing assessments provide a much broader picture of a child’s capabilities, effort, growth and engagement. A student's creativity, problem-solving skills, leadership, resilience, faith development, sporting abilities and contribution to the community are not measured by NAPLAN.
At St Stephen’s Catholic College, our focus remains on supporting the growth of every student. We use NAPLAN data alongside a range of other assessment information to inform teaching and ensure students receive the support and challenge they need to thrive.
As parents, the most important question is not simply, “How did my child score?” but rather, “What can we learn from these results to help them continue growing?” When viewed in this way, NAPLAN becomes a valuable tool that supports learning, informs teaching and strengthens the partnership between home and school in helping every student achieve their best.
Regards,
Simon Vaughan