# Reading and writing worsen in Australian schools as one in three students miss NAPLAN benchmarks

https://mins.news/en/item/12910

- The Guardian, 2026-08-04 15:00 UTC
- Society
- Original: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/aug/04/naplan-results-2026-reading-writing-australian-school-standards

> Reading and writing performance is declining across nearly every age group in Australia’s national standardised school tests. One in three students still falls short of the NAPLAN benchmarks. The March assessment measured literacy and numeracy among 1.2 million students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9. Education minister Jason Clare described the results as showing “real challenges”, while saying numeracy scores were encouraging.