Principals fear technical glitches will plague the rollout of NAPLAN Online this week after students struggled to log on to the platform during recent practice tests.
Pen-and-paper tests have been sent to the more than 900 Victorian schools taking part in NAPLAN Online in case the system fails.
And some schools have warned students against accessing the internet during testing periods due to concerns about limited bandwidth.
The union’s Victorian branch president, Meredith Peace, said many schools who took part in the practice testing were frustrated to discover that the technology dropped out.
“Teachers are worried their kids will be disadvantaged,” she said.
One assistant principal who did not want to be named said teachers at her school gave up on the practice tests in April after students spent 30 minutes trying to connect to NAPLAN’s lockdown browser, which prevents students from cheating and links them to the test.
“We gave up and that was 30 minutes of teaching and learning that we lost,” she said.
“As a school we will be judged on this. We think that is really unfair.”
She said her school had a limited number of laptops and iPads, and students would have no access to this technology during the two-week testing period unless they were sitting NAPLAN.
Teachers at Fairhills High School in the eastern Melbourne suburb of Knoxfield have been told to avoid using the internet for classroom activities while years 7 and 9 students sit the test.
The precaution comes after some computers froze during last year’s NAPLAN Online tests.
Curriculum co-ordinator Michelle Nickels said she wasn’t sure whether the issue was caused by inadequate bandwidth or another issue.
Curriculum co-ordinator Michelle Nickels said she wasn’t sure whether the issue was caused by inadequate bandwidth or another issue.
This week marks the third time the school has taken part online in NAPLAN, and Ms Nickels said students preferred the online format to pen and paper tests.
“We surveyed kids and 80 per cent preferred NAPLAN Online,” she said. “It is much more colourful and there are pretty pictures. They are much more engaged.”
She said the online tests provided teachers with more detailed data on student performance because they diverted students to easier or more difficult questions depending on whether they’d answered questions correctly.
It's not known how many Australian schools encountered difficulties during the practice testing because this information is not collected centrally.
A spokesman for the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority said NAPLAN performed well online last year and students found the test engaging.
“Schools are aware of procedures to manage any issues, and can also contact their local Test Administration Authority and helpdesks for guidance,” he said.
A spokeswoman for the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority said schools taking part in NAPLAN Online had contingency measures in place.
“This includes the options of students sitting a paper test or rescheduling the online tests to another time,” she said.
The VCAA wrote to schools on Friday and told them to have at least three back-up devices available during every test session. Schools have been told to reboot devices if a blue or a black screen appears.
All Australian schools are expected to run the online test next year.
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