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14:56
Naplan testing begins across Australia for 2025
Naplan – loathed by students and loved by data analysts – has kicked off across the nation, with 1.3 million students across more than 9,400 schools expected to take part in the annual tests.
This year, data will be able to be comparable after proficiency levels were changed in 2023 and testing was moved to March, not May. Preliminary results will be distributed from early Term 2, with full results to be published by early August.
Schools affected by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred in Queensland and NSW will have the option to delay testing until next Monday.
Australian Catholic University associate professor in teaching education, Steven Lewis, welcomed the more timely delivery of results but cautioned against teaching to Naplan.
Teaching to any test is never going to work to create long-lasting, rich learning among students. Evidence-based practices addressing the needs of each student are always the way to go.
The testing window will end on 24 March.
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- The Independent
A storm is brewing in the Atlantic and could be the first to impact the US this season
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Scottish Sun
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Terrifying ‘spy' laser that can read text smaller than a grain of rice from a mile away unveiled by China
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The Independent
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‘Global red alert': Wildfires drive record forest loss in 2024, alarming data reveals
Global forest loss surged to record levels in 2024, with wildfires destroying 6.7 million hectares of tropical primary forest – nearly double the previous year's – according to new satellite data. For the first time, fires, not agriculture, were the leading driver of tropical forest loss, according to data released by Global Forest Watch, as experts called it a 'global red alert'. The new figures, based on analysis by the University of Maryland 's GLAD Lab and published on the World Resources Institute 's Global Forest Watch platform, reveal the devastating toll of fire-fuelled deforestation on both the climate and vulnerable communities around the world. 'This level of forest loss is unlike anything we've seen in over 20 years of data,' said Elizabeth Goldman, co-director of Global Forest Watch. 'It's a global red alert – a collective call to action for every country, every business and every person who cares about a liveable planet. 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'The damage could take centuries to undo.' Colombia, meanwhile, experienced a nearly 50 per cent increase in forest loss, though largely from illegal mining and coca cultivation rather than fire. 'We need to keep supporting local, nature-based economies – especially in remote areas – and invest in solutions that protect the environment, create jobs and foster peace,' said Joaquin Carrizosa, senior advisor at WRI Colombia. Forest loss also spiked across Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo. In the ROC, fire-related loss rose to 45 per cent, driven by drought and unseasonably hot conditions. In the DRC, longstanding poverty and conflict continue to fuel deforestation. 'There's no silver bullet,' said Teodyl Nkuintchua, WRI Africa's Congo Basin strategy and engagement lead. 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Rod Taylor, director of forests and nature conservation at WRI, added: 'Forest fires and land clearing are driving up emissions, while the climate is already changing faster than forests can adapt. This crisis is pushing countless species to the brink and forcing Indigenous Peoples and local communities from their ancestral lands.' The report says that the path forward requires stronger fire prevention, deforestation-free supply chains, support for Indigenous land stewardship and greater political will, especially from countries that made bold commitments at climate summits, but are failing to follow through.
