A Third of Australian Students Failed to Meet National Education Targets

Students are still falling behind benchmarks in reading, spelling, writing, and numeracy, though scores in the latter have lifted since they were last tested.

School students are seen in Brisbane, Australia, on May 2, 2018. AAP Image/Dan Peled

A third of students across years 3, 5, 7, and 9 have failed to meet the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) benchmarks, with only numeracy showing any sign of improvement.

In March, 1.3 million students sat the standardised tests, representing 98.3 percent of those enrolled, the highest participation rate since 2017.