Letter from the Editor: Why 'good enough' isn't OK for the ACT's education system

There’s nowhere smarter than Canberra.

The ACT has the highest median income of any Australian jurisdiction, and it’s filled with well-educated people in very well-remunerated jobs in the public service, academia and associated white-collar roles.

So why don’t our students do better academically?

Results posted on the My School website last week are discouraging for the ACT, which has the highest median income, the largest proportion of big salary earners and the highest percentage of tertiary qualifications in Australia, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

While income and academic achievement aren’t an exact correlation, there’s no doubt that schools full of children whose parents have tertiary degrees (if not PhDs), and wander off to school carrying musical instruments or their language extension homework should do well on a national basis.

But that’s not what happens. The ACT is just ahead of other states on balance, while NAPLAN results show many schools are performing at below or well below average levels in a range of areas when benchmarked nationally.

That goes for the Territory’s most disadvantaged and wealthiest suburbs alike. It’s discouraging reading because it means something is wrong for all students and probably really wrong for kids from the least advantaged backgrounds.

The disadvantaged kids’ results will be pulled up – and to some extent disguised – by the natural advantage enjoyed by a disproportionate number of students from well-resourced homes where education is a major priority. But the kids from wealthier homes aren’t doing well by comparison with their peers either.

It’s fine to say that ATAR and NAPLAN results don’t matter to you or your child so long as they’re happy and healthy. It’s fine – and true – to say NAPLAN doesn’t measure the whole of your child’s achievements and personality.

But these are matters to consider as a family and for your own child’s individual wellbeing.

They’re not good benchmarks for a whole jurisdiction and they don’t bode well for the Territory’s future as results unfurl over the next decade. Happy, healthy and poorly educated is not a good outcome for the smart city.

Considering the socio-economic advantage Canberra enjoys, we should have outstanding results on any national comparison – and we don’t. That means the system is “good enough” for bright, advantaged children – and failing those who struggle.

The ACT Education Directorate report for 2021-22 showed while the focus on achieving equitable learning outcomes and meeting individual needs is progressing well, the ACT did not meet any of its NAPLAN targets in literacy and numeracy for Years Three to Nine.

Due to COVID-19 disruption, the NAPLAN 2020 testing did not occur and the 2022 – 23 report says as a result, no data are available to report for the 2020-22 gain cycle.

However the report says the ACT is “continuing to deliver stable performance in NAPLAN where the ACT remains one of the highest performing jurisdictions”, from which it may be surmised there’s been no meaningful change.

It’s not OK to see results from many ACT schools that are below or well below those of students from similar demographics. It’s as bad – or worse – to see those results are equally disappointing when compared to all Australian students.

There is real poverty in Canberra, make no mistake, but nowhere in this city has the degree of entrenched multigenerational disadvantage that exists in major cities or remote areas.

Yet a school like Fairfield Public in Sydney, where 71 per cent of students come from the lowest socioeconomic quartile does better than many schools in the ACT. No student cohort in the Territory comes close to that level of student disadvantage.

Many will say – and do – that our outcomes are “fine”. More than 70 per cent of students, assessed across all years in 2023 achieved at the “strong” and “exceeding” level in Canberra under the new NAPLAN results system.

That’s on a par with Victoria and NSW, but both states manage more complex demographics with areas of far greater social need. We should be head and shoulders above on literacy and numeracy skills measured by NAPLAN.

The ACT has the right to expect a first-class education for our children, rather than allowing students with a raft of financial and social advantages to coast through on results that are “good enough” but risk leaving others behind.

The ACT can, and should, do better. We ought to be the leading light in Australian academic achievement. If that’s not for your child, that’s fine. But let’s not deny others the chance to achieve in a city where they have so many benefits and opportunities.