NAPLAN reports are being released to families, with ACARA reminding parents that results are one part of understanding a student’s learning progress.
Parents and carers of students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 who took this year’s NAPLAN assessments in March are receiving individual student reports (ISR) of their child’s results from their school from the start of Term 3.
These reports provide useful information on a student’s progress in reading, writing, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.
ACARA Chief Executive Officer, Stephen Gniel, highlighted the continuing value of the NAPLAN assessments to schools, parents and carers, and the wider community.
“The purpose of NAPLAN is clear. It’s the only national assessment we have that lets us see whether young Australians are developing critical literacy and numeracy skills, using a national, objective scale.
“NAPLAN provides valuable information on students’ progress in key literacy and numeracy skills. It also helps government and education authorities know how education approaches are working, identify where changes and support might be needed, and guide system-wide policy decisions,” he said.
Despite a technical disruption affecting the NAPLAN assessment platform on the first day of testing this year, ACARA has confirmed that the majority of assessments were completed as scheduled without disruption. ACARA has validated the data to ensure the NAPLAN 2026 results can be reported to schools, parents and carers.
The technical incident early in the morning on day 1 affected a number of schools mainly on the east coast of Australia. It meant that some students could not start the online writing assessment at the intended time. Some students experienced disruption during the test, while others did not experience technical disruptions at all. Students who did experience disruptions were supported to complete the tests at their school during the test period.
Students were able to complete their reading, conventions of language and numeracy tests as scheduled once the platform issue was resolved. Year 3 students were unaffected by the incident as they complete the writing test on paper.
“ACARA recognises the exceptional efforts of teachers and principals around the country who supported our students to complete their NAPLAN assessments this year, especially given the disruptions to testing on day 1,” added Mr Gniel.
“We recognise this unfortunate disruption affected students differently even if they were in the same class. That’s why ACARA has included a caveat on the 2026 writing results for students in Years 5, 7 and 9, on the individual student reports that parents and carers will receive for their child, which notes that the results should be interpreted with care given the disruptions.
“We made this decision in consultation with independent experts, and our partners in each state and territory. Year 3 students were unaffected as they completed the test on paper.”
Mr Gniel also reminded parents and carers about the importance of the NAPLAN results being used in the right way.
“NAPLAN is not a pass or fail test – and it shouldn’t be used as a proxy for school entrance exams. It’s a point-in-time test that helps us understand those strengths and areas for development, and is one aspect of a school’s assessment program.
“We’re clear that NAPLAN does not replace the extensive ongoing assessments made by teachers every day in the classroom. If parents or carers have queries about their child’s results, they should discuss them with the school in the first instance,” he said.
The specific timing of when parents and carers receive the individual student reports varies across states and territories, as determined by the relevant state or territory test administration authority.
Similar caveats will also appear on the NAPLAN National Results release, due out later next month.
You can find more information about NAPLAN and the individual student reports online at www.nap.edu.au/naplan.