Results from the 2017 National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests, posted on the My School website yesterday, show there has been little improvement in reading among Australian school students in the 10 years since NAPLAN testing began in 2008.
The results also show that in every year from 2008 to 2017, Indigenous school students did not do as well their non-Indigenous peers in reading and writing. It’s been estimated that in very remote areas of Australia, Indigenous students in Year 9 are an equivalent of 6 years behind in reading, and 7 to 8 years behind in writing.
“For some groups of Indigenous students, the difference is more a gulf than a gap.” (Peter Goss, Grattan Institute)
The Indigenous Literacy Foundation is committed to providing essential, new resources to help Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander children not only to learn to read but to develop a real love of reading.
The Indigenous Literacy Foundation works as an initiative of the Australian Book Industry with the support of:
The
Indigenous Literacy Foundation is registered with the ACNC and is a Public Benevolent Institution with DGR1 and TCC status.
ABN 45146631843.
Copyright © 2025 Indigenous Literacy Foundation · Privacy & Security Statement
