$24.7 million to transform NAPLAN to online testing

The Australian Government has today announced $24.7 million to construct the national platform for online NAPLAN testing across Australian schools that will be available in 2016.

The Minister for Education, Christopher Pyne said this new funding demonstrates the Australian Government is seriously committed to helping the states and territories move NAPLAN online and delivering the benefits it will bring to students, teachers and parents.

Online NAPLAN testing will transform national testing from a written format to a tailored online one with questions that vary in difficulty depending on the ability of the student.

“Every year there are concerns raised about ‘teaching to the test’ and stress in the classroom over the national testing regime – NAPLAN online will end this,” Mr Pyne said.

“NAPLAN online will deliver even greater insight into the individual capacity of a student to inform teachers, schools and parents as well as continue to provide the data giving us a national snapshot,” Mr Pyne said.

The key benefits to schools, teachers and parents are:

• Reduced test anxiety for underperforming students with individual tests more closely matching their ability and more accurately measuring their progress
• Tailored tests have the potential to increase participation rates and increase the ability of the test to measure a broader range of students’ capabilities
• Increased accessibility of the test to those students with a disability
• Faster delivery of results to parents and teachers through strengthening schools’ diagnostic capacity.

“I now look forward to my colleagues’ in the states and territories working with us to make NAPLAN online a reality and contributing to improving student performance in Australia,” Mr Pyne said.

Mr Pyne’s Media: 0407 691 050, pynemedia@education.gov.au