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Writing Boost Free template for school leaders

School writing-data review

For the person who leads teaching and learning, and the team in the room.

Bring the writing evidence your school already has to one table. Read it criterion by criterion, choose the one or two criteria that need a whole-school push, agree how teachers will teach them, and set a short task and a date to check again.

School
Date
In the room
Year levels in this review

The meeting at a glance

About 75 minutes, with the evidence gathered beforehand.

  1. Before Gather the evidence
  2. 25 min Read it by criterion
  3. 15 min Choose the priority
  4. 20 min Agree the teaching
  5. 10 min Set the re-check
  6. 5 min Set the review date

Part 1: Gather the evidence you already have

Ask whoever holds each source to bring it, so the meeting is spent reading the evidence, not finding it.

Bring to the meeting

  • NAPLAN writing results by criterion for each year level tested, from your school’s NAPLAN reports (your state or sector’s reporting tool). Note the year and the genre.
  • The NAPLAN marking guide for that genre, narrative or persuasive, with its annotated samples.
  • Results from a recent school writing task: one genre, one year level, marked on the same criteria.
  • Moderation samples: three or four pieces per year level that teachers have marked together, with their scores.
  • Anything else you already use, such as work samples or literacy progression checks.
The evidence on the table
Source Year levels Genre When written Conditions Time, support, tools, typed or handwritten Pieces
NAPLAN writing
School writing task
Moderation samples
Other:

Part 2: Read it criterion by criterion

Fill in one grid per year level. Compare each average as a share of its maximum: 2.6 out of 4 is 65%.

Year level
Genre
NAPLAN year
School task
Writing evidence by criterion
Criterion Out of Narr. · pers. NAPLAN average % vs state +, = or − Task average % What the samples show Shortlist
Audience 6
Text structure 4
Ideas 5
Character & setting Narrative only 4 · –
Persuasive devices Persuasive only – · 4
Vocabulary 5
Cohesion 4
Paragraphing 2 · 3
Sentence structure 6
Punctuation 5
Spelling 6

Maximums are from the NAPLAN marking guides. Leave “vs state” blank if your report gives no state or national figure.

Part 3: Choose one or two criteria for a whole-school push

Two at most. Every teacher will teach them, and fewer priorities get taught more often.

Priority 1

Criterion
Year levels
What the evidence shows
The writing now
The writing we want

Priority 2

Criterion
Year levels
What the evidence shows
The writing now
The writing we want
Considered and set aside for now, and why

Part 4: Agree the teaching moves

Say what teachers will do, how often, and what you’ll see in the writing. Keep it small.

What teachers will do
Teaching move Year levels How often What we’ll see in the writing Who leads

Part 5: Set a short task to check again

Match your starting evidence: the same genre, conditions and criteria. Mark a few pieces together first.

The task or prompt
Genre
Year levels
Time allowed
Week it’s written
ConditionsSupport, tools, typed or handwritten
Samples to bring backe.g. three per class

Part 6: Set the review point

Put the date in the calendar before anyone leaves the room.

Review date
Who brings what
We’ll call it working if
If it isn’t, we’ll

If your school uses Writing Boost

Writing Boost can mark the re-check task. A school leader sets one task for a year level, and every class’s writing comes back marked on the same NAPLAN criteria within minutes, class beside class. Its scores are not official NAPLAN results. Writing Boost for school leaders

NAPLAN writing marking guides. Free to copy and adapt for your school. Writing Boost is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by ACARA. writingboost.com.au/writing-data-review/