NSW urges return to pen-and-paper writing tests for NAPLAN
NSW will ask to restore pen-and-paper NAPLAN writing tests for year 5, 7 and 9 students from 2028.
The New South Wales government will ask national education ministers to stop computer-based writing tests for older students. NAPLAN moved online eight years ago.
Right now, only year 3 students write by hand. Older students take the test on a computer.
University of Sydney economist Marian Vidal-Fernandez supports this move. Research from other countries shows students do worse when they switch from handwriting to typing.
Vidal-Fernandez noted that most primary classroom work is still done by hand. So students should be tested the same way.
Edith Cowan University associate professor Anabela Malpique agreed that handwriting helps learning and memory. One issue is the cost of marking handwritten papers.
But Vidal-Fernandez said AI tools could now read handwritten work. Human checks could review submissions that are unclear.
The proposal needs support from the Commonwealth, states and territories to move forward.
- 8 years (since 2018)
- Years of online testing
- 2028
- Proposed implementation
- Only year 3 currently
- Year levels with pen-and-paper
- Portugal and United States
- Research countries
Why it mattersThe decision could reshape how millions of Australian students are tested. It may also change how schools teach writing.
AustraliaIf adopted, all Australian schools would shift how year 5, 7 and 9 students take NAPLAN writing tests from computer to paper.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 3 h ago
