NAPLAN Curriculum Development and Design 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A curriculum developer is designing a Year 7 writing unit. Which text type is most commonly assessed in NAPLAN Writing?
- Multimodal presentation
- Persuasive or narrative writing (Correct answer)
- Scientific report
- Research essay with citations
Correct answer: Persuasive or narrative writing
NAPLAN Writing primarily assesses persuasive and narrative writing, focusing on structure, language, and ideas appropriate for the genre.
Question 2: Which of the following is an example of horizontal alignment in curriculum design?
- Ensuring Year 3 literacy skills build on Year 1 skills
- Coordinating the same concepts across different subjects within the same year level (Correct answer)
- Planning a multi-year progression from simple to complex tasks
- Aligning curriculum to national assessment standards
Correct answer: Coordinating the same concepts across different subjects within the same year level
Horizontal alignment ensures that related concepts are reinforced consistently across different subject areas within the same year level.
Question 3: In NAPLAN reading assessments, students must infer meaning not explicitly stated in a text. Which curriculum approach best develops this skill?
- Drilling students on vocabulary lists
- Modeling think-alouds and teaching inference strategies explicitly (Correct answer)
- Having students read independently without guidance
- Focusing only on literal comprehension questions
Correct answer: Modeling think-alouds and teaching inference strategies explicitly
Explicit modeling of inference strategies through think-alouds teaches students the cognitive moves needed to read between the lines.
Question 4: Which element is LEAST relevant when developing a curriculum scope and sequence for NAPLAN readiness?
- Vertical progression of skills across year levels
- Student interest surveys for extracurricular activities (Correct answer)
- Alignment with Australian Curriculum content descriptors
- Assessment checkpoints to monitor student progress
Correct answer: Student interest surveys for extracurricular activities
Extracurricular interest surveys do not directly inform academic curriculum design for literacy and numeracy readiness.
Question 5: A numeracy curriculum unit for Year 9 focuses on interpreting statistical data. Which NAPLAN strand does this most directly address?
- Number and Algebra
- Statistics and Probability (Correct answer)
- Measurement and Geometry
- Space and Shape
Correct answer: Statistics and Probability
Interpreting statistical data aligns directly with the Statistics and Probability strand assessed in NAPLAN Numeracy.
Question 6: When designing curriculum for diverse learners, which approach aligns with Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles?
- Creating separate curriculum tracks for high and low achievers
- Providing multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression (Correct answer)
- Teaching only to the middle ability group
- Eliminating assessment accommodations to maintain fairness
Correct answer: Providing multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression
UDL proactively builds flexibility into curriculum design to reduce barriers and support all learners from the outset.
Question 7: What distinguishes formative assessment from summative assessment in curriculum design?
- Formative assessment occurs only at the end of a unit
- Formative assessment provides ongoing feedback to guide instruction during learning (Correct answer)
- Summative assessment informs day-to-day teaching decisions
- Formative assessment is always standardized and externally administered
Correct answer: Formative assessment provides ongoing feedback to guide instruction during learning
Formative assessment is embedded throughout learning to provide feedback that shapes teaching and student improvement, unlike summative assessment which evaluates final outcomes.
NAPLAN Curriculum Development and Design 3
A curriculum developer is designing a Year 7 writing unit.
Which text type is most commonly assessed in NAPLAN Writing?