ACT tops the class in international reading study

The 2021 Progress in International Reading Literacy study showed Australian students did not have any significant changes in achievement levels since the 2016 study despite disruptions to learning because of COVID-19.

Across Australia, 80 per cent of year 4 students met or exceeded the intermediate benchmark compared to 90 per cent of students in the highest achieving country, Singapore.

Singapore had 35 per cent of its students achieving the advanced benchmark compared to 14 per cent of Australian students.

Australia's average score was statistically higher than 28 of the 57 participating countries.

The ACT had the highest average scores out of all states and territories and shrank the proportion of students who were below the intermediate benchmark from 18 per cent in 2016 to 11 per cent in 2021.

Mean scores for all jurisdictions held steady except for Victoria where schools endured the longest lockdowns. However, the number of students below the benchmark remained steady in that state.

Ms Hillman said while it was positive Australian results had held steady, the proportion of students who weren't meeting the proficient standard hadn't changed in five years.

The study did not examine the reasons behind differences between achievement in each state and territory, nor did it examine the type of reading instruction in earlier years.

"We haven't looked at socio-economic differences between the jurisdictions, but I think it's fairly safe to say that the ACT has a different profile to some of the other jurisdictions," Ms Hillman said.

"It definitely suggests that there's been some some good work in identifying students who need additional help, potentially."

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The gap between average scores of First Nations students and students from other backgrounds has changed little over time, from 57 points in 2011 to 67 points in 2016 and 56 points in 2021.

Children who reported having many books in their home or who resided in major cities performed better than those who had a few books or were located in remote areas.

Ms Hillman said high-performing countries had systemic approaches to identifying students needs to provide additional support.

"That can be based on individual assessments or it might be a more blunt way of doing things in terms of identifying... students who belong to disadvantaged groups and therefore ensuring that they get additional support."

The study found a drop in teachers' reported job satisfaction during the pandemic years. In 2016, 58 per cent students in the study were taught by teachers who were very satisfied with their profession but this dropped to 49 per cent in 2021.

"I think it's an indicator of some broader issues that we are aware are impacting on our education system at the moment," Ms Hillman said.

"It's something that we we can't sweep under the rug and certainly if we're aiming for an excellent and equitable education system we have to ensure that our educators are supported and resourced and valued and appreciated."

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