Sydney students must retake NAPLAN writing tests

Students at two schools in Sydney are required to retake their NAPLAN writing tests due to a technical problem. The issue involved access to predictive text and spellcheck, which should not have been available during the test. The problem was discovered at Kambala School and Waverley College. Students were given an Apple feature that creates text suggestions based on their writing style. This feature was unintentionally turned on during the writing component of the exam last week. Waverley College confirmed they notified the NSW Education Standards Authority about the issue. A school representative stated that this technical glitch could potentially affect students' submissions. Consequently, year 5 students at the college will resit their writing test with a different prompt. Kambala also acknowledged the glitch and reported it immediately. A spokesperson confirmed that the issue occurred only in year 5 and did not affect other grades. The Australian Curriculum and Reporting Authority said there were no widespread problems with the NAPLAN tests overall. In another incident, Randwick High encountered an "administrative error" and students took literacy and numeracy exams in a different order than planned. The NSW Department of Education has since apologized for the mix-up. NESA stated that schools were reminded to disable predictive text before testing began. The authority is working with schools to address any issues that arise during the testing period.