Schools get top marks
TOWNSVILLE’S MOST IMPROVED SCHOOLS REVEALED
TOWNSVILLE public primary schools have dominated the list of mostimproved, according to the latest NAPLAN results.
Three public primaries feature in the top- five list of the city’s schools showing the best improvement in student results.
Kirwan State School, Heatley State School and Annandale State School featured in the top five.
Kirwan Primary School’s principal John Kratzmann said the results showed him the teachers were getting the curriculum right.
“I’m expecting our school to continue to improve,” he said.
THREE Townsville public schools have ranked in the top five most- improved primary schools in the region, according to the latest national data.
A Townsville Bulletin analysis of NAPLAN results revealed Kirwan State School, Heatley State School and Annandale State School had joined Good Shepherd Catholic School and The Cathedral School as the schools showing the most improve- ment in NAPLAN results. Annandale Christian College topped the improvement rankings for Townsville high schools, followed by Ignatius Park College and Ryan Catholic College.
The rankings compared the performances of students who were in Years 3 and 7 in 2016 with their results this year, in Years 5 and 9.
Kirwan Primary School’s principal John Kratzmann said while NAPLAN data was a valuable tool to track progress, it wasn’t the be- all and end- all.
“NAPLAN and our improvement just means to me that teachers are getting the curriculum right; it’s another source of evidence to say ‘ hey, we’re improving our students’ ability’,” he said.
“I’m expecting our school to continue to improve.”
Good Shepherd Catholic School was ranked most improved in Townsville for primary schools, and assistant principal of religious education Nicole Preitz said the school was incredibly proud of the result.
“What we’re achieving here really shows some great results that aren’t often reported,” she said.
“We may not be the number one ranked school in Townsville but, holy mackerel, have we moved those kids from where they were in Year 3 to where they are now.”
Annandale Christian College and Ignatius Park College’s principals also both attributed their students’ improvement to quality teaching and practical use of data.
“Our focus has been a lot on quality teaching, developing teachers to understand what they’re teaching in the Australian curriculum and how they can improve it,” Annandale principal Andrew Jones said.
“We want to see continual growth and we’re pleased with our growth,” Ignatius Park principal Shaun Clarke said.
Compared to statewide results, Townsville’s improvement rankings spanned across the range.
A previous Bulletin analysis of NAPLAN results had revealed Townsville Grammar School as the highest achiever for both primary and secondary students.
But many of the top performing schools in the region did not feature as highly in improvement rankings due to consistency in results over the two years.
Magnetic Island State School ranked as the thirdhighest average primary performers in the region, with state schools Mundingburra and Hermit Park also in the top 10.
One state high school ranked in Townsville’s top 10 for performance, with Pimlico State High placed seventh.