NAPLAN Scale & Strategies: Literacy and Numeracy Insights for Parents

1. National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy(Parent Information)

2. NAPLAN Scale • The NAPLAN scale is made up of 10 equal bands, however, only six bands will be reported for each testing year i.e. • Year 3 – Bands 1-6 • Year 5 – Bands 3-8 • Year 7 – Bands 4-9 • Year 9 – Bands 5-10 (Band 5 will be the first band that is reported across all testing years)

3. NAPLAN: State Literacy findings • Demonstration of criteria • Grammar focus • Persuasive Text focus • Integrate the QTF to develop intrinsic meaning Early Stage 1: Use Reading Strategies and Engagement to enhance writing strategies and interest in Narratives and Persuasive texts Stage 1: Focus on the “Beginning/Orientation” of a Narrative or Persuasive text Stage 2: Focus on the development of a resolution in Narrative e.g. use of prediction, suspense. Focus on grammar, building the argument in Persuasive texts. Stage 3: In Narratives: a focus on dialogue and characterisation is essential to critical literacy. In Persuasive Texts, a focus on linking arguments and developing a strong conclusion is important.

4. Marking Criterion Word Level control • Audience • Text Structure • Ideas • Character and Setting • Vocabulary • Cohesion • Paragraphs • Sentences • Punctuation • Spelling Sentence Level features Whole Text Structure Whole Text Features

5. NAPLAN: Numeracy strategies State findings • Language: Key issues are language e.g. comparison (comparative adjectives), time, volume, ordering, predictive language. Terms such as “largest”, “even”, “next”, “fewer”, “more” were not understood by students. • Numeracy: Students performed poorly when they had to physically write down answers and show working out. Across the state, students showed weakness in their working out. Students had problem with multi-step problems e.g. they couldn’t subtract, add and convert with decimals in one question. • Measurement: Students had difficulty with volume and mass conversions e.g. from litres to mls. They had difficulty reading visual diagrams or cues to problem solve. • Chance & Data: Students can read tables and make graphs, but they can’t combine the information to answer questions, predict or make up their own questions.

6. NAPLAN: Numeracy strategies Space and Geometry: • Students had the greatest difficulty with position e.g. working out visual descriptions and understanding written language directions. • Irregular hexagons were a major stumbling block. Students need more experience with the name and features of irregular shapes. • Also, students had difficulty when answering questions on 3D manipulation e.g. rotation questions and nets. • Angles Fractions: Students had difficulty with multi-layered fraction questions where you had to read a pie graph and then work out percentages/fractions. Thinking and Working Mathematically: Students received low marks when written answers were needed. It highlights the need for higher order thinking with problem solving and working out answers.

7. Web Teaching Support • Go through the DET intranet. • Click on School Measurement Toolkit (SMART) link. • On the EMSAD homepage, click on What’s New? • Click on Literacy or Numeracy and go to teaching strategies