Six SA Catholic schools have been recognised by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) for the high gains achieved by students in their NAPLAN scores between 2019 and 2021.
Students in these schools who sat NAPLAN literacy or numeracy tests in 2019 and again in 2021 have shown increases in their scores that are significantly greater than both the national average gain and the gain by students from other similar schools.
The Catholic schools are:
| School name | Suburb | Student Cohort | Result |
| Our Lady of the River School | BERRI | Year 3-5 | Numeracy |
| Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College | ENFIELD | Year 7-9 | Reading & Numeracy |
| Our Lady Queen of Peace School | ALBERT PARK | Year 3-5 | Reading |
| St Dominic's Priory College | NORTH ADELAIDE | Year 7-9 | Numeracy |
| St Joseph's Memorial School | NORWOOD | Year 3-5 | Reading |
| St Margaret Mary's School | CROYDON PARK | Year 3-5 | Writing |
“All of our schools are committed to excellence in learning and teaching and it is pleasing to see these schools highlighted for their significant gains in NAPLAN results,” said John Mula OAM, Deputy Director, Catholic Education South Australia.
“These results reflect our 103 schools’ overall approach to learning and a whole community commitment to improvement with staff, students and parents working in partnership together.”
John said that NAPLAN is only one measure among many as part of a holistic approach to education in Catholic schools.
“Our Catholic schools focus on the whole child, on their learning and their wellbeing. As a system, we collect a diverse range of data to support young people spiritually, academically, socially, morally and physically.”
“In saying this, great things are happening across our state with our schools committed to CESA’s overarching strategy to achieve improvement in student learning outcomes, and that commitment should be acknowledged and celebrated.”
Kelly Campbell (pictured above, centre), principal, St Margaret Mary’s School Croydon said that their teachers use a range of evidence, including NAPLAN, to identify strengths and areas for improvement in student’s writing.
“We have a vibrant multicultural community and approximately 65% of our students speak another language at home. Across all year levels teachers deliver a program that explicitly models, teaches, and assesses strategies for successful language and writing, closely aligned with our EAL/D (English as an Additional Language/Dialect) strategy.
“Importantly, we believe all our students are writers and authors – they are all capable of growth and achievement in all areas of literacy.”
Congratulations to all schools with high gains achieved by students in their NAPLAN scores between 2019 and 2021.
9 students from 8 Catholic schools have represented Catholic Education SA at Teen Parliament 2022, sharing their bold ideas for enhancing the future of South Australia.
