Writing - Key findings

• Writing results from the Curriculum Insights and Progress Study are available for the first time with 41% of Year 3, 33% of Year 6 and 24% of Year 8 students meeting end-of-phase curriculum expectations.
• Table 1 shows the percentage of students meeting end-of-phase curriculum expectations in writing at each year level for the 2024 assessments.

_{Note: Percentages are rounded to whole numbers. Due to rounding, the totals may not equal 100%.}

• At each year level, relatively low proportions of students reached benchmark scores set to mark curriculum expectations. These proportions should be interpreted with care given the newness of the curriculum and the complexity of determining what students should be able to score under assessment conditions.
• There has not been a significant change in students’ writing achievement since the last National Monitoring Study of Student Achievement (NMSSA) reports (reported in 2019).
• The box plots in Figure 1 show the spread of student scores at each year level. The box represents the middle 50% of scores, with the line inside showing the median (middle score). The whiskers on either side show the range of scores outside the middle band.

Figure 1: Distribution of student achievement on the 2024 national writing assessment, by year level

• There was a wide spread of achievement at each year level. This was more marked at Year 6 and Year 8 than at Year 3.
• Students at schools with fewer socio-economic barriers (as measured by the Equity Index, EQI), scored higher, on average, at all year levels.
• At Years 6 and 8, the spread of scores was greater for students at schools with more socio-economic barriers.
• At all levels, most students agreed that they liked writing and were confident as writers.

Mathematics - Key findings

• Between 22 and 30 percent of students at each year level reached the provisional benchmark scores with Year 3 at 22%, Year 6 at 30%, and Year 8 at 23%.
• Table 2 shows the percentage of students meeting end-of-phase curriculum expectations in mathematics at each year level for the 2024 assessments.

_{Note: Percentages are rounded to whole numbers. Due to rounding, the totals may not equal 100%.}

• To support consistent comparison, the 2023 provisional benchmarks used to report when scores meet curriculum expectations have also been applied to 2024 results.
• There have been minor shifts of one or two percentage points between the 2023 and 2024 Mathematics results. In 2023, 20% (at Year 3), 28% (at Year 6), and 22% (at Year 8) of students are meeting curriculum expectations. None of these were statistically significant at the 95% confidence level.
• The box plots in Figure 2 show the spread of student scores at each year level. The box represents the middle 50% of scores, with the line inside showing the median (middle score). The whiskers on either side show the range of scores outside the middle band.

Figure 2: Distribution of student achievement on the 2024 national mathematics assessment, by year level

• Students at schools with fewer socio-economic barriers (as measured by the Equity Index, EQI), scored higher, on average, at all year levels.
• The development and administration of the 2024 Writing and Mathematics assessments have occurred at a time of changes to the curriculum.
• Overall, students in Year 3 were more positive about learning mathematics and their own mathematical ability than students in later year levels.

More information is available on the website of the Curriculum Insights and Progress Study.