Migrant students lead reading, maths in NAPLAN results, Indigenous students improving

The final literacy and numeracy test results for 2016 confirm Australian students are not improving as much as expected, but students from non-English-speaking backgrounds have led the pack.

Children sit in a classroom during a lesson at Stafford State School in Brisbane. Source: AAP

The release of the final 2016 NAPLAN results round out a trio of report cards on Australian students and the grade is not great.

But students from non-English-speaking backgrounds have performed strongly in reading and maths.

Results show in Year 3 reading, students from migrant backgrounds had stronger mean scores across all of Australia, and scored more highly in all states except Victoria and the territories.

Migrant children also outscored non-migrant children in Year 3 writing, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy.

The NAPLAN results show there was a continuing strong performance among children from non-English-speaking backgrounds in Years 5, 7 and 9.

There has also been a definite improvement among Indigenous primary school students, according to NAPLAN results, but there's still a long way to go.

Association of Heads of Independent Schools national chairwoman, Karen Spiller, said the 2016 NAPLAN Report delivered encouraging news for schools working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

She said the 2016 NAPLAN results showed overall gains for Indigenous students in Year 3 and Year 5 in reading and numeracy and welcome improvements in early learning.

Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham told ABC News 24 the improved results for Indigenous and migrant students were "good news".

"If there is a glimmer of light in today's NAPLAN results, it is that we are seeing in some measures Indigenous students starting to close the gap, that that gap has shortened or narrowed in terms of Year 3 reading skills for Indigenous students," he said.

"Similarly we are seeing in some migrant groups or students that don't have a background in English improvement in their results, in some cases outstripping other students.

"There are positive indicators there that back the fact that we want to see funding distributed according to need."

However the results were less rosy for Australian students in general, with both the literacy and numeracy results confirming that student achievement has largely stagnated in recent years

Education ministers meet on Friday to discuss a new deal on school funding, expected to be finalised in the first half of next year and start from 2018.

Results have improved since NAPLAN testing began in 2008 and there are good results in some year levels in some states and territories, testing administrator, the Australian Curriculum and Reporting Authority says.

But chief executive Robert Randall said with no significant improvements across the board in recent years, Australia should expect more for its children.

 

联邦教育部长伯明翰Brimingham告诉澳广ABC，移民和原住民学生的进步是好消息。

他说：“如果NAPLAN的成绩有唯一令人欣慰的地方，就是原住民和移民学生的成绩。一些移民背景的学生，虽然来自非英语背景，但是有所进步，甚至在一些方面超过了其他的学生。”

但是，澳大利亚学生整体的结果不容乐观，在读写和计算两方面的考试结果都显示，近年来学生的水平停滞不前。

教育部长将于这周五举行回忆，重点讨论学校拨款的新协议，预计新的拨款资金计划将于明年上半年确定，并于2018年开始实行。