澳大利亚国家课程评估与报告部门（ACARA）对私立学校在招生程序中不当使用NAPLAN成绩的做法提出批评。[1]布里斯班三分之二的私立学校明确要求家长在申请时提供学生的NAPLAN成绩，[1]尽管该测试原本设计仅作为诊断工具使用。[1]ACARA首席执行官Stephen Gniel强调："NAPLAN不是通过/不通过考试，不应被用作学校入学考试的替代品。"[1]
教育界对这一做法的影响表示担忧。[1]将NAPLAN成绩纳入入学评估可能对学生造成过度压力，并促使低龄儿童寻求辅导来提升成绩。[1]昆士兰教育部长John-Paul Langbroek批评将NAPLAN成绩用于学校排名是"自古以来的问题"。[1]不过，布里斯班文法学校副教学总监Steve Uscinski为该校使用NAPLAN成绩进行入学评估进行了辩护。[1]一些州立精英学校如布里斯班州立高中和昆士兰科学数学技术学院也要求以年5的NAPLAN成绩作为年7入学申请的依据。[1]NAPLAN成绩于8月5日在ACARA网站向公众发布。[1]
Australia's education regulator has condemned the practice of private schools requesting students' NAPLAN results as part of their enrollment processes.[1] Two-thirds of Brisbane's private schools explicitly ask parents to provide NAPLAN scores with admission applications, despite the national assessment being designed solely as a diagnostic tool rather than a gatekeeping mechanism.[1]
Stephen Gniel, chief executive of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), stated clearly that "NAPLAN is not a pass/fail test and should not be used as a substitute for school entry exams."[1] The controversy intensified after NAPLAN results were publicly released on the ACARA website on August 5, 2024.[1] Education experts have raised concerns that this misuse of test scores places excessive pressure on young students and encourages families to pursue tutoring in attempts to boost performance.
Some government selective schools, including Brisbane State High School and the Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology, require Year 5 NAPLAN scores for Year 7 enrollment applications.[1] Brisbane Grammar School's deputy head of teaching, Steve Uscinski, defended the school's use of NAPLAN scores in its admission assessments.[1] Queensland Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek criticized the use of NAPLAN scores for school rankings, calling it "an age-old problem."[1]