Right: NAPLAN; is it a revolution for a brave new world of education or, as some describe it, a copy of a system already tried and found wanting in other countries?. Found a word you're not familiar with? Double-click that word to bring up a dictionary reference to it. The dictionary page includes an audio sound file with which to actually hear the word said. |
Further implications
Despite some of the reservations expressed by the University of Melbourne researchers about the manner in which NAPLAN tests are being prepared for and the effect they are having on some children it is unlikely that these tests will be abolished.
This is not the outcome that the researchers have recommended.
The head of the research team, Dr Nicky Dulfer, has stated, 'I don't think it [NAPLAN} needs to be abolished but I think that we do need to start to look at some of the impacts of NAPLAN, intended and unintended.'
What Dr Dulfer has recommended is that educators consider the undesirable consequences of NAPLAN testing and what are the causes of these side-effects. Dr Dulfer appears to be suggesting that it is the emphasis placed on the NAPLAN results which is causing many of their more negative effects on curriculum delivery, teacher attitudes and student attitudes.
Dr Dulfer has suggested that it may be beneficial to stop publishing each school's students' NAPLAN performances on the MySchool website. She has recommended, 'What is needed is that teachers, parents and governments enter into a conversation about it [NAPLAN] - after all it's one test on one day, it's been given a lot of importance, it's been put up on the website, and it has an ability to impact on all these aspects [of student behaviour and curriculum delivery.]'
Dr Dulfer has argued that what is required is more investigation. The University of Melbourne team proposes to conduct further surveys, one to gauge parent attitudes and another to gauge student attitudes firsthand, rather than via what teachers believe them to be.
It remains to be seen what response any further investigations by the University of Melbourne research team will receive. To this point, the federal Education Minister has not been positive. The current government's response has been to defend the testing regime it introduced. Given that both sides of politics favour formalised testing it seems likely that even if there is a change of federal government in 2014 the implementation of NAPLAN and the online publication of its results will stay much the same.