Parent and carer information

In 2025, NAPLAN will be held from Wednesday 12 March to Monday 24 March.

Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 who are enrolled at a school are expected to participate in 4 NAPLAN tests:

• writing
• reading
• conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation)
• numeracy.

All schools in NSW undertake NAPLAN online. However, Year 3 students do the writing test on paper. Teachers will ensure students are familiar with the format of the tests before the NAPLAN test window.

Supporting your child

NAPLAN assesses the literacy and numeracy skills your child is already learning at school.

It is important to remember that NAPLAN is not about passing or failing; it is about assessing learning progress.

The best approach for preparing your child for NAPLAN is to encourage your child to do the best they can on the day.

Excessive preparation or the use of coaching providers is not recommended.

Public demonstration site

The public demonstration site is available for students, teachers and parents to familiarise themselves with the types of questions, tools and functions available for the NAPLAN tests. It includes demonstration tests for each NAPLAN year level, test domain and alternative tests for students with disability.

Disability adjustments

Adjustments are available for students with disability. The adjustments should reflect the normal support a student receives in classroom assessments.

Contact your child’s school to discuss possible adjustments and to sign a parent/carer consent form.

Withdrawals and exemptions

You can withdraw your child from NAPLAN tests.

Your child may be exempt from NAPLAN tests if they have:

• significant disabilities that severely limit their capacity to participate in the tests or
• a language background other than English and have recently arrived in Australia (less than a year before the tests).

Contact your child’s school for further information about withdrawals and exemptions and to sign a parent/carer consent form.

Tailored testing

Tailored testing provides a more precise assessment of students’ performance in the areas of reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy by adapting to responses.

Students at each year level start with a similar set of questions. Depending on the number of questions they answered correctly, the next set of questions may be more, or less, difficult.

Students should not be concerned if the questions are more difficult than expected.

A student’s NAPLAN result is based on both the number and difficulty of questions the student answers correctly. A student who completes a more difficult set of questions is more likely to achieve a higher score (and a higher proficiency level).

Watch a video (3:06 length) to learn more about tailored testing.

Catch-up tests

Where possible, schools may arrange catch-up tests for individual students who were absent on the day of a scheduled NAPLAN test.

Contact your child’s school to arrange a catch-up test for your child.

Privacy

For privacy information, visit:

• NAPLAN and privacy
• ACARA Privacy

More information

If you have any questions, please contact your child’s teacher in the first instance.

For more information about NAPLAN, visit:

• About NAPLAN
• Results and reports
• ACARA information for parents and carers