Tips To Avoid Major Confusion And Stress Surrounding NAPLAN

Perhaps, the most important and talked about a scenario in Australian education is NAPLAN. Many parents and educators are adamant that it’s crucial to keep an eye on kids’ fundamental reading and numeracy abilities through a nationwide testing program that reveals where kids and schools are at. Some of you might think it’s excessive to test kids in reading, writing, arithmetic, and spelling every two years. NAPLAN provides a “snapshot” of your child’s abilities on one of the three test days in May. 

  NAPLAN is administered by ACARA, the Australian Assessment and Curriculum Reporting Authority, which states that NAPLAN results are used by instructors to help identify who would benefit from more challenging assignments or extra assistance. 

  Additionally, according to ACARA, schools utilize NAPLAN data to pinpoint teaching strategies’ strong points and flaws as well as to establish numeracy and literacy targets for the entire institution. Some schools do extensive test-day drilling despite NAPLAN’s own advice in an effort to raise their school’s performance. This time is time that might be better spent helping pupils learn. Additionally, we find pupils get more anxious and lose interest in arithmetic. 

Yes, familiarisation lowers exam anxiety, so it’s important for pupils to know what to expect. However, adults’ excessive attention on NAPLAN achievement (even when they don’t realize it) raises anxiety, which makes it harder for kids to correctly exhibit their knowledge. 

Please reassure your youngster, that they should take it seriously but not allow themselves to become stressed out. Thankfully, from our vantage point, we can disregard NAPLAN and take advantage of the “four weeks off” for these pupils to work ahead of their peers. There is plenty of evidence that test anxiety can affect test results just as much as students’ actual understanding of a given concept, and the increasing number of standardized tests that students are required to take these days has been pretty closely linked to an increase in test anxiety. Here is a short list of strategies you may use to assist your kids in relaxing on test days. 

Here are some tips to avoid major confusion and stress surrounding NAPLAN. 

Preparation in Advance! 

Although the NAPLAN examinations are still a ways off, adding extra learning opportunities now will enable those abilities to be solidified by the time the testing takes place. Make practicing enjoyable and lighthearted. Play games with the youngster, read books to them, or make stories based on their interests. Parents and kids may now access a wide range of excellent educational tools outside of the classroom that can help them gain confidence in particular areas, like arithmetic, for instance. Children won’t put too much strain on themselves months before the real examinations thanks to this kind of preparation. Additionally, it can aid in reducing tension related to topics they might be more apprehensive about. 

Eliminate External Stressors 

For young children, “The exam” can be stressful enough, especially when they are so young and have never experienced this kind of event before. There are several things you may stay away from to help them concentrate on what they need to. To prevent rushed tension, get to school on time. Try to minimize conflict with your siblings. Aim to maintain your composure. This will prevent your youngster from picking up on your own stress.  

Emphasizing Giving Your Best 

Do your best, rather than trying to be the greatest. Doing your best and becoming the best are quite different things. If you tell your kids over and over again that all you want is for them to achieve their best, they will develop self-confidence and believe they are capable of doing that. It significantly lessens the burden on them, which will enable them to outperform their initial expectations. 

  Relax and Breathe 

When your child or kids experience tension or anxiety, it’s crucial to tell them to pause and take a few deep breaths. Assisting your child to become more aware of their breathing may seem like such a basic and apparent thing, but it may actually assist in reducing stress. You may assist your child(ren) with some management skills if you teach them to recognize the symptoms of test anxiety. To keep people present and focused, it may be as simple as pausing for a minute and taking three deep breaths through the nose and out through the mouth.   

Have a discussion with your youngster about how their entire learning is more significant than the isolated test. The test’s purpose is to help the teacher better understand how to assist the student in their future academic endeavors. The most crucial thing for students to keep in mind on “test day” is to just do their best. In addition, it’s critical that kids consume nourishing food, enjoy time with their friends, and drink lots of water throughout the day to maintain a healthy body and mind. Remind your child that the exam is only a test and that no matter how it turns out, they haven’t failed or the world will end. If the final exam result isn’t what you’d hoped for, encourage them to keep their minds on the idea that it’s an opportunity to learn more and get better. 

Considering the fact that solid preparation matters for the test, planning well ahead benefits your child in the long run.   NAPLAN is an important part of their growing-up academic years, but as a parent, you need to be aware of the fact that the amount of importance you give to an assessment test should be in check.