Figure CWF3.2 shows the average writing scores for this group and for grade three students in Papua New Guinea in PILNA 2018. The average writing score in 2021 (505.63) was higher than in 2018 (445.30) and the standard deviation in 2021 (36.93) was half of that in 2018 (75.54). This shows that the spread of writing scores in 2021 was narrower than in the 2018 PILNA.

Standard deviation shows how close data points are to the average. A lower standard deviation means that data points are, overall, closer to the average; a higher standard deviation means that data points are, overall, further away from the average.