Minns Government sets high expectations for schools with new system-wide targets

The Minns Labor Government is continuing its work to improve education outcomes for all students as ambitious academic, HSC attainment and school attendance targets are introduced to public schools to lift outcomes for students from Kindergarten to Year 12.

New system-wide measures will provide

clear guidance for school leaders, and are designed to lift outcomes for all students, including at comprehensive primary and high schools, selective schools, regional and rural schools, and Schools for Specific Purposes.

Our long-term plan to improve outcomes for students is in sharp contrast with the former Government’s failed approach, which was criticised in an OECD report for its “top-down” approach, which focused solely on lifting the outcomes of those already achieving the top results.

Schools will be required to strive for ambitious new goals, including:

• Increasing the average NAPLAN reading and numeracy scores in 2027 by:
  • 10.2 points for Year 5 Reading
  • 5.8 points for Year 9 Reading
  • 11.5 points for Year 5 Numeracy
  • 5.7 points for Year 9 Numeracy
• Increasing the proportion of NSW students attaining Year 12 from 70.5 per cent in 2022 to 74 per cent in 2027.
• Growing the number of students taking up university, training or work for school leavers from 88.1 per cent to 92 per cent in 2027
• Increasing the average student attendance rate from 87.8 per cent in 2023 to 88.8 per cent in 2027

These new system-wide targets reflect specific improvement targets required of schools in the areas of reading, numeracy and completions. With NAPLAN tests scheduled two academic years apart, data is now available to measure year group improvement after the Commonwealth introduced new NAPLAN baselines in 2023.

Correcting the course of our education system is vital for our state’s future, after 12 years of neglect under the Liberals and Nationals led to a stagnation in academic results, and a fall in our international rankings in Reading, Science and Mathematics. Under the former Government, disadvantage gaps also continued to widen, particularly in rural, regional, and remote areas.

The Minns Labor Government is committed to reversing this decline and setting high expectations for academic results and educational outcomes like attendance and school completion for every child and every public school. This ongoing work includes:

• Bringing teacher vacancies to a four-year-low, or a 40 per cent reduction since when we came to Government in 2023, ensuring all students have a teacher in front of them
• Making Small Group Tuition permanent in all NSW public schools to support all students with critical foundational literacy and numeracy skills
• Trialling a Number Screening Check for Year 1 school children
• Valuing the workforce by delivering the largest pay rise in a generation to NSW’s 95,000 teachers
• Giving teachers job security by making 16,000 teachers and school support staff on temporary contacts permanent
• Implementing the new knowledge-rich NSW Curriculum, underpinned by evidenced-based explicit teaching

Alongside new academic targets, the Department has introduced a suite of system-focused measures to support teachers, schools and school-support staff wellbeing and retention, as well as prioritising key school infrastructure projects.

These measures include reducing teacher administrative time, cutting teacher vacancy rates, and attracting and retaining teachers, as part of our recognition that a strong teaching workforce is critical to improving student learning. The complete set of 16 measures is available on the Department’s website.

Progress made to date during 2024 can be found here.

Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car said:

“We were elected with a commitment to rebuild public education in NSW by fixing a broken system and lifting outcomes. That is exactly what we are doing.

“We cannot undo 12 years of neglect overnight, but we are working hard to ensure that no matter your postcode, parents know their children are receiving a world-class education.

“This is about setting high expectations of our public education system and every one of our students.

"No longer will targets be focused simply on the top-achieving students – these ambitious measures will help lift outcomes for all students across the state.”

Department of Education Secretary Murat Dizdar said:

"We have high expectations for achievement for our public education system, with ambitious reading and numeracy improvement measures being put in place by every school during term 1 this year.

"All public schools aim to ensure all students show growth in their literacy and numeracy skills. We recognise that this is the cornerstone for a successful schooling experience for every student.”

"Our new measures will account for the achievements of all students, not just those in the highest bands.

“The pathways improvement measure will capture the transitions of all students into meaningful post-school pathways, whether that is tertiary education, technical and further education or paid employment."