Each year over one million students in years 3, 5, and 7 across Australia undergo three days of NAPLAN (National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy) testing.
NAPLAN aims to provide additional information to support educators’ professional judgement about student progress. While informative, the testing process can place extra demands on educators, students, families, and carers across the learning community.
Creating a safe and supportive environment for children and young people is important for their mental health and wellbeing, and how they feel going into the NAPLAN tests.
Though, this may not be the experience of all learning communities, you may observe changes in behaviours in your colleagues, students and their families and carers. It is important to recognise how this time of the year may impact your personal mental health and wellbeing and that of your colleagues.
While stress can be a normal response to the demands of work, prolonged or excessive stress is not good for anyone. Sources of stress in the lead up to NAPLAN may include:
- Increased time pressures and workload
- Conflict with management and colleagues
- Adapting and implementing change influenced by NAPLAN
- Supporting students who may experience increased anxiety during this period, which may appear in the form of lack of motivation and effort, disrespect, or challenging authority.
By acknowledging some of these additional sources of stress and pressures leading into and during the NAPLAN testing period, it can be easier to support yourself and your colleagues, and those within your learning community.
Creating or maintaining a safe environment for children and young people benefits their mental health and is important for your wellbeing too.
What are the strategies educators can put in place to support their learning communities?
Of course, wellbeing strategies should be top of mind all year round, however, the NAPLAN period does provide an opportunity to acknowledge, review, build on, or introduce wellbeing strategies. Strategies include:
- Build into your daily routine strategies to support your wellbeing, such as taking breaks, going for a walk, eating healthy snack, taking deep breaths or listening to your favourite song
- Build a culture of help-seeking that includes all staff
- Review and implement structures and processes to minimise work-related stressors
- Provide staff with access to the Be You Educator Wellbeing resources to help staff build their sense of self-efficacy
- Encourage and improve connectedness with children, young people, and colleagues
- Ensure staff receive appropriate recognition for their work
- Provide staff with the contact details of your Employee Assistance Provider (EAP).
Be You hosts regular online sessions and events designed for educators to build their mental health literacy and implement evidence-informed strategies across their learning communities. Visit the Be You Sessions and Events homepage to read more.
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