Analysis of Year 9 NAPLAN Results 2025

What is the NAPLAN?

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a nationwide assessment conducted annually in Australia for students in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9. It tests foundational skills in reading, writing, language conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation), and numeracy.

NAPLAN is not a test of content knowledge, but rather a measure of how well students can apply skills in literacy and numeracy that are developed over time through the school curriculum. The results are used by governments, schools, and educators to evaluate educational programs and track student progress at a national level.

Why is it done at Year 9?

NAPLAN is conducted in Year 9 to assess the progression of foundational literacy and numeracy skills as students enter the later stages of secondary school. By this point, students are expected to apply these core skills across all subject areas — from writing essays in English to interpreting data in Science and Geography.

Year 9 testing serves multiple purposes:

• It provides a final checkpoint before senior schooling begins in Year 10.
• It tracks long-term learning growth by comparing student results from Year 3, 5, and 7.
• It identifies students who may need targeted support before moving into more specialised senior subjects and post-school pathways.

What are the proficiency levels?

As of 2023, NAPLAN results are reported using proficiency levels rather than numerical bands. These levels are designed to provide clearer insights into a student’s development and where they sit in relation to national expectations.

There are four proficiency levels:

1. Exceeding – The student demonstrates skills well above the expected level for their year.
2. Strong – The student demonstrates solid understanding and skills at or above expectations.
3. Developing – The student shows partial achievement but is not yet consistently meeting expectations.
4. Needs Additional Support – The student requires targeted teaching and support to meet expected skills.

These categories help teachers and parents better understand whether a student is on track, ahead, or in need of support.

Although there are no official benchmarks, most schools are aiming to have at least 66% of their students as “Strong” or “Exceeding”.

What domains are being assessed?

There are five domains that are assessed:

1. Reading: Assesses a student's ability to comprehend, interpret, and analyse a range of written texts, including narratives, information texts, and persuasive writing. Students are required to read passages and answer multiple-choice or short-answer questions based on the content.
2. Writing: Evaluates how well students can express ideas through written language. Students are given a prompt (either persuasive or narrative) and assessed on their ability to structure their ideas, use appropriate vocabulary, organise paragraphs, and apply correct grammar and punctuation.
3. Spelling: Measures students’ understanding of common spelling patterns and their ability to apply them correctly in written words. This helps identify their grasp of phonics, word structure, and spelling rules.
4. Grammar and Punctuation: Assesses students’ knowledge and correct use of sentence structure, verb agreement, capitalisation, commas, apostrophes, and other grammatical conventions necessary for clear written communication.
5. Numeracy: Tests students’ ability to solve problems using mathematical knowledge across number, algebra, measurement, geometry, and statistics. It includes both multiple-choice and short-answer questions, requiring reasoning and calculation.

What were the results in 2025?

Reading

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Australia’s national average for Year 9 Reading shows a gradual upward trend, rising from 564.4 in 2023 to 567.7 in 2025. The ACT and NSW continue to lead the nation, consistently achieving the highest scores, while the Northern Territory remains well below the national benchmark. Encouragingly, most states exhibit steady or improving performance, indicating positive momentum in secondary reading comprehension outcomes.

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The data indicates that most jurisdictions have over 60% of students in the Strong or Exceeding categories, with Western Australia, Victoria, and ACT leading. However, the Northern Territory stands out with over 39% of students requiring additional support or being exempt — the highest by far. This underscores a persistent equity gap in reading proficiency that continues into Year 9.

Writing

Victoria stands out with the highest Year 9 writing scores across all three years, reaching an impressive 587.1 in 2025. New South Wales and Western Australia also show strong performances, maintaining scores well above the national average. Encouragingly, most jurisdictions have shown steady improvement, especially South Australia and Queensland. In contrast, the Northern Territory continues to lag significantly behind, with scores remaining in the low 480s—highlighting ongoing equity challenges. Overall, national results reflect gradual improvement in writing proficiency across the country.

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The Year 9 writing proficiency data reveals a mixed landscape across Australia. Nationally, 61.3% of students fall into the Strong or Exceeding categories, with 21.7% achieving at the highest proficiency level. Victoria leads the country in top-end performance, with 66.7% of students in Strong or Exceeding and only 10% needing support or exempt. Western Australia and New South Wales also perform well, with a substantial proportion of students achieving Strong or Exceeding. On the other hand, the Northern Territory shows the highest proportion of students requiring additional support (37.9%) and the lowest representation in the Strong or Exceeding bands (37.8%), highlighting significant equity gaps. Queensland and Tasmania also fall below the national average for top-end performance. This suggests that while many students nationwide are writing confidently, targeted interventions are still necessary to lift outcomes for students in underperforming jurisdictions.

Spelling

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Australia’s national average for spelling has remained relatively stable, with a small increase from 566.9 in 2024 to 569.0 in 2025. New South Wales consistently leads in performance, reaching 576.1 in 2025. Victoria and Western Australia also show steady improvement. The Northern Territory lags significantly behind, with a decline in 2025. Overall, the data suggests strong national performance in spelling, though equity gaps persist across jurisdictions.

Grammar and punctuation

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Nationally, scores have slightly improved, with Australia’s average rising from 556.7 in 2023 to 559.0 in 2025. Victoria and the ACT continue to outperform other states, consistently scoring above the national average, while the Northern Territory remains well below, showing a continued decline. This highlights persistent regional disparities in literacy outcomes that may warrant targeted interventions.

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The 2025 data shows that while most states maintain a relatively strong performance in Grammar and Punctuation, there remains a notable equity gap. Nationally, 56.4% of students are achieving in the Strong or Exceeding bands, though 15.4% require additional support. Victoria, the ACT, and Western Australia lead in high-end performance, each with over 60% of students in Strong or Exceeding. By contrast, the Northern Territory continues to face challenges, with nearly 44% needing additional support and only 30.1% in the top bands. Tasmania and South Australia also have higher concentrations in the Developing category, suggesting room for growth. Targeted literacy support in lower-performing jurisdictions could help bridge these disparities.

Numeracy

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Nationally, the average score rose from 567.7 in 2023 to 572.6 in 2025. New South Wales and Victoria demonstrated the most consistent growth, both surpassing 580 by 2025. Meanwhile, the Northern Territory continued to lag behind, with scores remaining below 500 and showing a slight decline over the three years. Most other states saw gradual improvement, with Tasmania and Queensland maintaining steady but modest gains.

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Overall, the data reveals a mixed performance. While over half of Australian students are in the Strong or Exceeding bands nationally (65.6%), the distribution shows notable disparities across jurisdictions. The Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, and Western Australia lead in high performance, with over 67% of students at Strong or Exceeding levels. In contrast, the Northern Territory continues to face significant challenges, with over 41% of students needing additional support or exempt from the test. This chart reinforces the need for targeted numeracy support programs, especially in lower-performing regions.

Final thoughts

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Australia’s Year 5 students show strong foundational literacy and spelling abilities, but writing sophistication and mathematical reasoning need improvement. Addressing disparities — particularly in underperforming states — and enriching learning for high achievers will be key to lifting national standards across the board.