Performance » Reading » Year 6 Reading :
Benchmarking Year 6 Reading performance: Are standards being met?
Table CRT6.1 shows the Small Island States distribution of year six reading scores against the PILNA reading proficiency scale. This scale converts a student’s reading performance into a level ranking from zero to eight. The expected minimum reading performance for year six students is proficiency level five. Pacific stakeholders expect these students to reach or exceed this proficiency level.
The average performance of year six students in Small Island States in reading was 540.28 (SD = 93.87). This corresponds to proficiency level seven on the PILNA reading proficiency scale (level seven is assigned to scores 537.5–587.5). On average, year six students in Small Island States are meeting the minimum expected standard in reading.
Figure CRF6.5: PILNA
Overall reading score
- 0
- 363
- 413
- 438
- 463
- 488
- 513
- 538
- 588
- 625+
- 588
Proficiency Scale Levels
Expected minimum performance
- 0
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4 Year 4
- 5 Year 6
- 6
- 7
- 8
Year 4
Mean score: 454.23 (13.18)
Year 6
Mean score: 540.28 (9.08)
The average reading score does not tell us the whole story. The proportion of students who are meeting the minimum expected standard is also important. This is shown in Figure CRF6.5. Approximately 73% of year six students in Small Island States were performing at or above the minimum expected level in reading (levels 5–8) but about 27% of year six students in Small Island States did not meet this level (levels 0–4). Also shown in Table CRT6.3, are the significant proportions of year six students who scored at level seven (21%) and level eight (35%), the two highest levels on the reading scale.
Year six students in Small Island States are performing substantially higher in reading than those across the region. The average reading score in Small Island States was 540 while the regional average was 492. Also, a substantially higher proportion of students in Small Island States are meeting the expected proficiency level in reading (73%) compared with the region (53%).
When looking at the Small Island States distribution of year six reading proficiency scores in 2021 by gender (Table CRT6.3), we can see differences in the scores. Approximately 83% of year six girls performed at or above the expected minimum proficiency level, but only about 64% of year six boys did so.
