A Message from the Deputy Principal

Celebrating Growth in NAPLAN Results

As you may have seen in the media, the national NAPLAN results were released this week, with some commentators describing them as a "national tragedy" after reporting that one-third of Australian students are not meeting expected literacy and numeracy standards (link to ABC article). 

The national results highlight the challenges many schools across Australia continue to face in supporting all students to achieve expected levels of literacy and numeracy. They also reinforce the importance of high-quality teaching, targeted intervention and strong partnerships between schools and families. 

At St Joseph the Worker, we are pleased to report that our NAPLAN results demonstrated growth in all five disciplines (reading, writing, spelling, grammar & punctuation and numeracy) across both Year 3 and 5. Averaging across all disciplines in both year groups, three quarters of our students met or exceeded expected literacy and numeracy standards. These positive results reflect the hard work of our students, staff and families, and the strong instructional practices that underpin learning across the school. 

While some areas are still approaching our aspirational targets, the growth demonstrated over the last 12 months is extremely encouraging. In particular, the significant improvement in spelling across both year levels reflects a major area of focus for our school. Over the past 18 months, we have implemented a whole-school spelling scope and sequence to ensure students receive explicit, systematic instruction in the sounds, patterns and conventions of English spelling. It is pleasing to see this work translating into improved student outcomes. 

The strength of our Year 3 reading and writing results (81% and 91% strong or exceeding, respectively) also highlight the effectiveness of the solid foundations being established in the early years through evidence-based literacy instruction, high-quality classroom teaching and targeted support for students. 

While NAPLAN provides only a snapshot of student achievement at a particular point in time, it offers valuable insight into the effectiveness of our teaching programs and helps us identify areas for continued improvement. We are proud of the progress our students have made and remain committed to continuously refining our practice to ensure every child continues to grow, achieve and thrive. 

Warm regards,

Sarah Goulding

Deputy Principal