[English] Congratulations Vic Teachers of English :-)

Sat Feb 28 22:48:08 EST 2009

Dear Victorian English Teaching Colleague,

 www.education.vic.gov.au/about/news/mediareleases-education.htm

National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) Results

"This report found that Victorian students at Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 were 
significantly higher than the Australian average in reading, writing, 
grammar, punctuation and numeracy"

Absolutely stunning results! Hearty congratulations to all Vic teachers!

Can i suggest we use this list to help formulate Yr-9 responses to this:

" .. and significantly higher than the Australian average in Years 3, 5,
  and 7 in spelling"

Maybe simple & informal chat about what we can do to be perfect .. haha!

Facts such as the above, with all Aussie kids tested for the first time,
means that we teachers in Victoria ARE doing it RIGHT! So guys, why not
relax and have a chat about things here. Even (gasp) invite our English
Teaching colleagues to go to our www.edulists.com.au site and subscribe?

So, we're nearly perfect "except for Years 7 and 9 Spelling, and Year 9
Grammar & Punctuation where the Vic results are similar to other States"

Overall, these results ARE stunning .. let's chat how we can do better?

And, these NAPLAN Stage Two results make for beautiful reading ...

Performance of students with a Language Background Other than English 
LBOTE

•    The average scores for Victorian LBOTE students are higher than for 
Australian LBOTE cohort in all domains for Years 3 and 5, and for Years 7 
and 9 Writing.

•    Victorian results are similar to the Australian LBOTE average in all 
other domains for Years 7 and 9.

Performance by gender

•    Both male and female students in Victoria achieved higher results 
than their counterparts in Australia in all domains for Years 3 and 5. 

•    Male students achieved higher results than their counterparts in 
Australia in all domains for Years 7 and 9, except for Year 9 Spelling, 
and Grammar and Punctuation, where their results are similar.

•    Female students achieved higher results than their counterparts in 
Australia in all domains for Years 7 and 9, except for Years 7 and 9 
Spelling, and Year 9 Grammar and Punctuation, where their results are 
similar.

Performance of Indigenous students

•    The average scores for Indigenous students in Victoria are higher 
than those for the Australian Indigenous average scores in all domains 
and for all year levels.

•    The proportions of Victorian Indigenous students achieving at or 
above the national minimum standard are higher than those for the 
Australian Indigenous average in all domains and for all year levels, 
except for Year 9 Spelling and Numeracy, where the results for Victoria 
are similar to the Australian average.

Student performance by geographic location 

The average scores for students in metropolitan areas:

•    The results for Victorian students are above the Australian average 
in all domains for Years 3 and 5, in Writing for Years 7 and 9 and in 
Grammar and Punctuation for Year 7.

•    The results for Victorian students are similar to the Australian 
average in all other domains for Years 7 and 9.

The average scores for students in provincial areas:

•    The results for Victorian students are above the Australian average 
in all domains and for all year levels, except for Years 7 and 9 Spelling 
and Grammar and Punctuation, where Victoria’s results are similar to the 
Australian average.

For the proportion of students in metropolitan or provincial areas 
achieving at or above the national minimum standard, the results for 
Victoria are either similar to or above the respective Australian average 
in all domains and for all year levels.

:) http://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/news/mediareleases-education.htm

> From the Minister for Education 

VICTORIA AMONG AUSTRALIA’S BEST IN SCHOOL TESTING  Friday, 19 Dec 2008

Education Minister Bronwyn Pike said the 2008 National Assessment 
Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) Stage 2 Report results released 
today showed Brumby Government’s investment in initiatives to improve 
literacy and numeracy are having a positive impact.

More detailed results from Australia’s first national school testing 
shows that Victoria’s Indigenous students and those from non-English 
speaking backgrounds are among the country’s best. 

The latest figures breakdown Victorian student performances into 
categories of gender and geographic location and also look at the 
specific performances of non-English speaking students and Indigenous 
students.

Ms Pike said the report was good news for parents who can be confident 
that students are gaining vital skills as they move through the various 
stages of their schooling.

“The results are great news for Victoria’s education system,  but more 
work is needed to help some students who may be falling behind,” she said.

“We are continuing to invest in a range of strategies and programs to 
ensure students develop these vital skills and have every opportunity to 
thrive, learn and grow. 

“We are serious about closing the gap for Indigenous students and believe 
our initiatives including 15 new literacy improvement specialists for 
Koorie students and introducing individual education plans for every 
Koorie student will lead to even better outcomes for Koorie students.”

Ms Pike said the Brumby Government’s Education Strategy for Koorie 
Students – Wannik: Learning Together, Journey to Our Future – was focused 
on delivering a better deal for Victoria’s Koorie students.

Another Brumby Government initiative to ensure every child has every 
opportunity regardless of their circumstances is the package to support
our refugee students, announced in this year’s State Budget.

It includes support to coordinate homework programs run by volunteers at 
schools, libraries and community locations across Victoria and funding 
for professional development for teachers, counselling support in schools 
for students and helping schools to access a range of specialist agencies 
and resources.

This is in addition to a package including new purpose built relocatables 
for intensive language classes, more money for transition programs and an 
after school hours learning support program in Melbourne’s West.

Stage one of the NAPLAN report was released by the Ministerial Council of 
Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) in September. 

That report found Victorian students at Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 were 
significantly higher than the Australian average in reading, writing, 
grammar, punctuation and numeracy and significantly higher than the 
Australian average in Years 3, 5, and 7 in spelling.

Performance of students with a Language Background Other than English 
(LBOTE)