Australian Secondary Principals' Association calls for a child-centred approach to education reform as national assessment data reveals achievement gaps.

30 July 2025

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The Australian Secondary Principals' Association (ASPA) today responded to the release of the 2025 NAPLAN National Results, emphasising that while modest improvements are encouraging, the persistent achievement gaps reflect broader societal inequities that cannot be addressed through education policy alone.

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"Education systems mirror society's inequities. To address gaps, we must confront structural barriers and prioritise public expenditure to support and resource schools based on equity," said ASPA President Andy Mison in response to today's results showing two-thirds of students at "Strong" or "Exceeding" proficiency levels, while significant disparities remain for Indigenous students, those in remote areas, and students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

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Rejecting the 'Teacher-Shame' Narrative

ASPA strongly rejected any interpretation of the results that places yet more responsibility on educators, emphasising that teachers are not failing students - students and families are being failed by systems that treat equity as optional.

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"For too long, NAPLAN's annual release has been framed as a 'crisis' that demoralises educators and distracts from systemic solutions," said Mison. "Teachers hear 'code red' rhetoric, not 'we trust you to teach.' Rather than blaming teachers, we must support rural and remote schools to retain educators and reduce unsustainable workloads."

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The 2025 results show that in reading, only 22.8% of students from very remote schools achieved "Strong" or "Exceeding" levels compared to 71.9% of students from major city schools, a gap that reflects systemic disadvantages no individual teacher can overcome.

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Beyond Narrow Metrics

While acknowledging the 93.8% participation rate, the highest since 2017, Mison emphasised that learning extends far beyond literacy and numeracy scores.

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"NAPLAN captures only a slice of student potential. It suppresses by default the value of most of the domains in our national curriculum, including the arts, sciences, humanities, technologies, languages, physical education, social and cultural competency," he noted. "We're abandoning creativity and joy to chase narrow benchmarks that don't reflect the full scope of what students need to thrive."

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ASPA calls for recognition and investment in a broader conception of schooling to nurture and prepare the whole child, rather than continuing to narrow curriculum focus to the national standardised testing domains.

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Systemic Change Required

The results showing 30.8% of Indigenous students in reading and 32.3% in numeracy requiring additional support, compared to fewer than 8% of non-Indigenous students, underscore the need for comprehensive reform beyond the classroom.

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"Indigenous students in remote areas face systemic disadvantages that no teacher training program can fully redress without multi-agency policy reforms beyond education," Mison stated. "Piling pressure on teachers and schools while tolerating resource inequities, housing poverty, or food insecurity won't close gaps."

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Mr Mison emphasised the need for wraparound supports, ensuring all students have access to healthcare, nutrition, and stable housing. These are basic requirements that schools alone cannot provide.

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A Call for Genuine Reform

"As Einstein said, 'Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.' For two decades, we've maintained NAPLAN's narrow metrics as a driver of education policy, leading to a demoralised profession and negligible learning return," Mison concluded. "It's time to trust teachers, invest in communities, and redefine success beyond test scores."

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Addressing structural inequities in our early childhood and school education sector should be a foundational piece in Australia’s new productivity agenda, prioritising what is in the best interests of every Australian child. These inequities, reflected in persistent achievement gaps for Indigenous students, those in remote areas, and disadvantaged backgrounds, demand a child-centred approach to reform.

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ASPA's 2025 Policy Briefing, released earlier this year, outlines comprehensive recommendations for transformative education reform focused on flourishing students, effective school leadership, and positioning Australia as a global education leader through collaborative, evidence-informed policy rather than superficial accountability measures.

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Media Contact:
Andy Mison
Phone: 0400 202 088
Email: admin@aspa.asn.au
Web: www.aspa.asn.au
 

About ASPA: The Australian Secondary Principals' Association is the national voice and professional body representing government secondary school leaders across Australia, advocating for excellence, equity, and innovation in public education.