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‘Because then you could never ever get a job!’: children’s constructions of NAPLAN as high-stakes.
- Source :
-
Journal of Education Policy . Sep2017, Vol. 32 Issue 5, p564-587. 24p. - Publication Year :
- 2017
-
Abstract
- In the midst of the debate surrounding the question of whether Australia’s National Assessment Program: Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) test is high-stakes, it is evident that children’s own accounts of their experiences remain sparse. This paper describes the findings of a case study which documented the experiences of 105 children across two Catholic primary schools in Queensland serving different socio-economic status (SES) communities. Analysis of the data revealed that these teachers and principals did not experience NAPLAN as high-stakes. However, the data suggested that the children experienced the tests within a confusing context of contradictions and dissonances emanating from multiple sources; receiving little, if any, clear and consistent information regarding the purpose and significance of NAPLAN. While the children’s responses were varied, many reported NAPLAN as a negative experience, with some constructing the test as high-stakes. These constructions ranged from personal judgement or sense of letting their families down, to failure, and less commonly, grade retention and school exclusion. Some Year 3 children had also constructed good results as vital to future prosperity. These constructions bring into question the assumption that because NAPLAN is designed to be a low-stakes test, that children will necessarily experience it in this way. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 02680939
- Volume :
- 32
- Issue :
- 5
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Journal of Education Policy
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 123449685
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2017.1305451