Lucy is co-founder of Cleverbean and a literacy specialist with more than 15 years of curriculum leadership and teaching experience across Australia and internationally. She is highly regarded for translating complex educational research into actionable strategies, empowering schools to sustainably elevate literacy practices for high student engagement and exceptional results.

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For most school leaders, NAPLAN is a checkpoint, one of many ways to track the whole school's progress and growth. Yet every year, as Term 1 unfolds, pressure starts to creep in. Conversations shift toward results, even in schools that take a balanced approach to NAPLAN. Teachers feel it. Students pick up on it. The challenge isn’t just managing expectations; it’s ensuring that great teaching continues uninterrupted, no matter the test.

The schools that navigate this best are the ones that don’t need to pivot when NAPLAN approaches. Instead, they have:

✅ Strong, explicit teaching embedded year-round

✅ Clear learning progressions that build student confidence  

✅ A focus on growth over time, not just performance on a single test

These schools don’t ‘prepare’ for NAPLAN in the traditional sense. They prepare their students every day, through high-impact instruction, structured feedback, and opportunities to practice writing skills in meaningful ways.

### Enhancing traditional assessment for learning impact

If we narrow in on year-round writing assessment as an example, traditional and timely methods like termly pre- and post-writes often fail to capture the real-time impact of modern, explicit teaching. To adopt the latest research and ensure assessment practices match and enhance the high standard of instruction, schools are refining their approach, using tools that reduce time burden, develop consistent assessment across the whole school and measure the impacts of instruction. When leveraging assessment systems that align with their pedagogical approach, deeper insights are gained into student progress to identify where additional support is needed. This ensures that assessment isn’t just a check on progress—it becomes a tool for refining and improving instruction every day.

### Assessing every-day practice, objectively

The shift to assessing everyday practice, objectively, is well underway. Forward-thinking schools embrace real-time, automated insights that support responsive teaching year-round by combining their own human educator strengths with AI companion tools.

A key consideration in this shift, particularly in the primary space, is ensuring that assessment tools enhance learning without sidelining teachers; capturing daily student data from explicit instruction while keeping educators at the heart of the teaching and learning experience. At Cleverbean, we call this ‘invisible assessment’ because, for students, it simply feels like learning. It allows students to refine their writing in real time, free from the pressure of formal testing, while educators continue to own the lesson delivery and all school stakeholders have laser-sharp insights into capabilities within an instant.

For teachers, continuous insight means fewer surprises and more opportunities to tailor instruction. They can track individual progress, identify whole-school trends, and pinpoint areas where both students and educators may need additional support. This is where AI-powered tools like Loomi, step in to enhance the process.

In 2024, schools using Loomi saw real results—AI-powered feedback seamlessly supported teachers while keeping them at the heart of learning. Designed to reduce the burden and increase the accuracy and consistency of writing assessment, Loomi provides real-time feedback to every student, allowing teachers to focus on instruction and meaningful 1:1 student interactions.

### The results of using daily practice to assess, and feedback to students 👀:

📈 __Sharp improvements in writing skills:__ 60% of students significantly improved targeted writing skills in just one lesson.

🤸‍♀️ __Higher student confidence:__ 97% of students reported greater confidence due to instant, constructive feedback during independent practice.

☺️ __Stronger wellbeing outcomes:__ Students feel greater independence and clarity, especially those who typically miss out on direct feedback.

✋🏽 __Effective differentiation for every student:__ High achievers received new challenges, and support students received targeted scaffolding.

You can read more about [Loomi here.](https://www.cleverbean.co/realtime-feedback "Loomi - personalised writing feedback and automated assessment")

### Leading with best practice
Every school wants the best for their students. And the best way to drive long-term growth is through the consistent, high-quality teaching that school leaders champion every day. So, as the year unfolds, the question isn’t, "Are we ready for NAPLAN?" It’s: "Are we looking beyond traditional assessment?" Because when schools focus on explicit instruction, structured feedback, and practical classroom-first innovation, growth isn’t just a goal—it’s a given.


NAPLAN & Beyond: Building Stronger Schools Year-Round

This space is dedicated to exploring best-practice teaching, literacy instruction, and the realities of school leadership. From assessment and feedback to curriculum, pedagogy, and the role of AI in primary education, we share practical insights and perspectives to support effective teaching and learning in schools.

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