3	School education
This chapter focuses on performance information — equity, effectiveness and efficiency — for government funded school education in Australia. Reporting relates to government funding only, not to the full cost to the community of providing school education. Descriptive information and performance indicators are variously reported for:
•	government primary and secondary schools
•	non-government primary and secondary schools
•	school education as a whole (government and non-government primary and secondary schools).
Schooling aims to provide education for all young people. The main purposes of school education are to assist students in:
•	attaining knowledge, skills and understanding in key learning areas
•	developing their talents, capacities, self-confidence, self-esteem and respect for others
•	developing their capacity to contribute to Australia’s social, cultural and economic development.
Indigenous data in the school education chapter
The school education chapter in the Report on Government Services 2007 (2007 Report) contains the following data items on Indigenous people:
•	the number of full time students (and as a proportion of all students) in government, non-government and all schools, 2005
•	apparent retention rates from year 7 or 8 to year 10 of full time secondary students, all schools, 2005
•	apparent retention rates from year 10 to year 12 of full time secondary students, by school type, 2005
•	proportion of students achieving the years 3, 5 and 7 reading benchmark, 2004
•	proportion of students achieving the years 3, 5 and 7 writing benchmark, 2004
•	proportion of students achieving the years 3, 5 and 7 numeracy benchmark, 2004
•	proportion of years 6 and 10 students achieving at or above the proficient standard in civics and citizenship performance, 2004
The school education attachment contains additional data relating to Indigenous people including:
•	proportion of year 6 students achieving at or above the proficient standard in science literacy, 2003
•	proportion of 15 year old secondary students achieving at or above the OECD mean for reading, mathematical, scientific literacy and problem solving, by equity group, 2003
•	proportion of 15 year old students achieving level 3 or above in the overall reading literacy scale, 2003
•	information on Australian Government spending on Indigenous specific programs.
Throughout the chapter, the following definition is used for an Indigenous student:
“A student of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander origin who identifies as being an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander or from an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background.”
It needs to be noted that administrative processes for determining Indigenous status vary across jurisdictions.
Supporting tables
Supporting tables for data within the school education chapter of this compendium are contained in attachment 3A of the compendium. These tables are identified in references throughout this chapter by an ‘A’ suffix (for example, table 3A.3 is table 3 in the school education attachment). As the data are directly sourced from the 2007 Report, the compendium also notes where the original table, figure or text in the 2007 Report can be found. For example, where the compendium refers to ‘2007 Report, p. 3.15’ this is page 15 of chapter 3 of the 2007 Report, and ‘2007 Report, table 3A.2’ is attachment table 2 of attachment 3A of the 2007 Report.
Indigenous full-time students, 2005
Certain groups of students, including Indigenous students, have been identified as having special needs in school education. Government schools provide education for a high proportion of students from special needs groups. In 2005, 86.9 per cent of Indigenous students attended government schools (table 3A.2).
The proportion of full time Indigenous students in schools varies greatly across jurisdictions (table 3.1). Table 3A.2 provides additional information on Indigenous enrolments.
In all jurisdictions, the proportion of full time Indigenous students was higher in government schools than in non-government schools. Nationally, the proportion of full time Indigenous students was 5.2 per cent for government schools and 1.6 per cent for non‑government schools in 2005 (table 3.1).
Table 3.1	Indigenous students as a proportion of all students, 2005a
	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust	
Government schools	4.9	1.3	7.3	7.6	4.2	7.6	2.6	41.2	5.2	
Non-government schools	1.1	0.3	2.6	3.3	1.0	2.6	0.7	28.3	1.6	
All schools	3.6	0.9	5.9	6.2	3.1	6.3	1.8	38.1	4.0	
a Absolute numbers of Indigenous and all full time students.
Source: ABS (2006); table 3A.2; 2007 Report, table 3.5, p. 3.10.
Framework of performance indicators
Data for Indigenous people are reported for a subset of the performance indicators for school education in the 2007 Report. It is important to interpret these data in the context of the broader performance indicator framework outlined in figure 3.1. The performance indicator framework shows which data are comparable in the 2007 Report. For data that are not considered directly comparable, the text includes relevant caveats and supporting commentary. 
Figure 3.1	Performance indicators for all schools
	
Source: 2007 Report, figure 3.4, p. 3.18.
Retention
‘Retention’ is an output indicator of equity‑effectiveness (box 3.1).

Box 3.1	Retention	
‘Retention’ (apparent retention rate), to the final years of schooling, is an output‑access indicator of governments’ objective to develop fully the talents and capacities of young people through increased participation to higher levels of schooling.
The apparent retention rate is defined as the number of full time school students in a designated level/year of education as a percentage of their respective cohort group (which is either at the commencement of their secondary schooling — at year 7 or 8 — or at year 10). Data are reported for the proportion of:
•	people commencing secondary school (at year 7 or 8) and continuing to year 10
•	people commencing secondary school (at year 7 or 8) and continuing to year 12
•	year 10 students continuing to year 12.
Data are reported for all students and Indigenous students, and for government and non-government schools. Holding other factors constant, a higher or increasing apparent retention rate suggests that students have greater exposure to schooling over their lives, which is likely to result in improved educational outcomes. The term ‘apparent’ is used because the indicator is derived from total numbers of students in each of the relevant year levels, rather than by tracking the retention of individual students. Apparent retention to year 12 is a long standing measure that is presented as an indicator of the extent to which students progress to their final year of schooling.
Apparent retention rates are influenced by a wide range of factors, including student perceptions of the benefits of schooling, the availability of employment and further educational alternatives, socioeconomic status and population movements. Care needs be taken in interpreting apparent retention rates in school education because rates are influenced by jurisdictional differences in:
•	enrolment policies across jurisdictions, which contribute to different age/grade structures
•	the extent of part time year 12 enrolment in schools.
The indicator has been consistently reported over time, but does not reflect factors such as:
•	students repeating a year of education or returning to education after a period of absence
•	interstate movement of students
•	movement between the government school sector and the non-government school sector
•	the impacts of migration and full fee paying overseas student
•	varying enrolment patterns in which students choose to complete their secondary schooling in alternative pathways.	
	
	The apparent rate of retention from the commencement of secondary school at year 7 or 8 to year 10 provides one measure of the equity of outcomes for Indigenous students (see 2007 Report, figure 3.1, which shows differences across jurisdictions). Apparent retention rates for all students in most jurisdictions were 98–100 per cent in 2005 with a national proportion of 98.3 (figure 3.2). High rates are to be expected because normal year level progression means students in year 10 are generally of an age at which schooling is compulsory. 
Rates for Indigenous students were considerably lower than those for all students in most jurisdictions. The national retention rate for Indigenous students was 88.3 per cent, or 10.0 percentage points lower than that for all students.
Figure 3.2	Apparent retention rate from year 7 or 8 to year 10, full time secondary students, all schools, by Indigenous status 2005a, b, c, d
	
a Apparent retention rates are affected by factors that vary across jurisdictions. For this reason, variations in apparent retention rates over time within jurisdictions may be more useful than comparisons across jurisdictions. b Retention rates can exceed 100 per cent for a variety of reasons, including student transfers between jurisdictions. c The exclusion of part time students from standard apparent retention rate calculations has implications for the interpretation of results for all jurisdictions, but particularly for SA, Tasmania and the NT where there are high proportions of part time students in government schools (2007 Report, table 3.4, p. 3.9). d Ungraded students are not included in the calculation of apparent retention rates. This exclusion has particular implications for the NT, where 20.2 per cent of Indigenous secondary students are ungraded (compared with an average of 5.1 per cent for the rest of Australia), in 2005, and this should be considered when interpreting the data.
Source: ABS (2006); table 3A.62; 2007 Report, figure 3.6, p. 3.22.
The apparent rate of retention from year 10 to year 12 has been derived by expressing the number of full time school students enrolled in year 12 in 2005 as a proportion of the number of full time school students enrolled in year 10 in 2003. 
For government and non-government schools, apparent rates of retention from year 10 to year 12 for Indigenous students in 2005 varied across jurisdictions (figure 3.3). In interpreting this indicator, note that between 10–20 per cent of Indigenous students leave school before year 10 (figure 3.2) so are not included in the base year for retention from year 10 to year 12. Further, Indigenous students as a proportion of all students was 5.2 per cent in government schools compared with 1.6 per cent in non-government schools and some jurisdictions have very low numbers of Indigenous students (table 3A.2). Nationally, Indigenous retention from year 10 to year 12 for all schools in 2005 was 45.3 per cent (figure 3.3), or 31.2 percentage points lower than the rate for all students. 
Figure 3.3	Apparent retention rates from year 10 to year 12, Indigenous full time secondary students, 2005a, b, c
	
a Apparent retention rates are affected by factors that vary across jurisdictions. For this reason, variations in apparent retention rates over time within jurisdictions may be more useful than comparisons across jurisdictions. b The exclusion of part time students from standard apparent retention rate calculations has implications for the interpretation of results for all jurisdictions, but particularly for SA, Tasmania and the NT where there are high proportions of part time students in government schools (2007 Report, table 3.4, p. 3.9). c Ungraded students are not included in the calculation of apparent retention rates. This exclusion has particular implications for the NT, where 20.2 per cent of Indigenous secondary students are ungraded (compared with an average of 5.1 per cent for the rest of Australia), in 2005, and this should be considered when interpreting the data. 
Source: ABS (2006); table 3A.63; 2007 Report, figure 3.8, p. 3.24.
Some historical data for apparent retention rates for Indigenous students is included in tables 3A.64–66.
Nationally comparable learning outcomes
‘Reading performance’, ‘writing performance’, ‘numeracy performance’, ‘civics and citizenship performance’ and ‘science literacy performance’ have been identified as indicators of learning outcomes, and are able to be reported for Indigenous students (boxes 3.2–3.6). To assist with making comparisons between jurisdictions, 95 per cent confidence intervals are presented in charts. For more information on interpreting learning outcomes data please refer to p. 3.37 in the 2007 Report.
Reading performance
‘Reading performance’ is an outcome indicator (box 3.2).

Box 3.2	Reading performance	
‘Reading performance’ is an outcome indicator of governments’ objective that young Australians should attain high standards of knowledge, skill and understanding in core curriculum areas. 
Reading performance is defined as the proportion of assessed years 3, 5 and 7 students who achieved the national reading benchmark for a given year, reported by sex, Indigenous status and language backgrounds other than English (LBOTE) status. The benchmarks describe nationally agreed minimum acceptable standards for reading performance at years 3, 5 and 7. Student performance is measured (or assessed) by State-based testing programs which are equated by a national process designed to (or intended to) allow comparable reporting against the benchmarks.
Holding other factors equal, a high or increasing proportion of students achieving the reading benchmark is desirable. This indicator is affected by socioeconomic circumstances, age, length of time spent in schooling, and LBOTE and Indigenous status.	
	
	Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 3 students who achieved the reading benchmark in 2004 was 91.5–94.5 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 3 reading benchmark in 2004 was 
79.3–86.5 per cent (figure 3.4).
Figure 3.4	Proportion of year 3 students achieving the reading benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.46 and 2007 Report, table 3A.78.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.43; 2007 Report, figure 3.18, p. 3.39.
The proportion of assessed year 5 students who achieved the reading benchmark in 2004 was 87.1–90.3 per cent nationally. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 5 reading benchmark in 2004 was 
65.6–73.2 per cent (figure 3.5).
Figure 3.5	Proportion of year 5 students achieving the reading benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.46 and 2007 Report, table 3A.78.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.44; 2007 Report, figure 3.20, p. 3.40.
The proportion of assessed year 7 students who achieved the reading benchmark in 2004 was 90.3–91.7 per cent nationally. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 7 reading benchmark in 2004 was 
68.2–73.8 per cent (figure 3.6).
Figure 3.6	Proportion of year 7 students achieving the reading benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.46 and 2007 Report, table 3A.78.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.45; 2007 Report, figure 3.22, p. 3.42.
Writing performance
‘Writing performance’ is an outcome indicator (box 3.3).

Box 3.3	Writing performance	
‘Writing performance’ is an outcome indicator of governments’ objective that young Australians should attain high standards of knowledge, skill and understanding in core curriculum areas.
Writing performance is defined as the proportion of assessed years 3, 5 and 7 students who achieved the national writing benchmark for a given year, reported by sex, Indigenous status and LBOTE status. The benchmarks describe nationally agreed minimum acceptable standards for writing performance at years 3, 5 and 7. Student performance is measured (or assessed) by State-based testing programs which are equated by a national process designed to (or intended to) allow comparable reporting against the benchmarks.
Holding other factors equal, a high or increasing proportion of students achieving the writing benchmark is desirable. This indicator is affected by socioeconomic circumstances, age, length of time spent in schooling, and LBOTE and Indigenous status.	
	
	Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 3 students who achieved the writing benchmark in 2004 was 91.4–94.4 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 3 writing benchmark in 2004 was 
72.5–81.1 per cent (figure 3.7).
Figure 3.7	Proportion of year 3 students achieving the writing benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.50 and 2007 Report, table 3A.84.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.47; 2007 Report, figure 3.25, p. 3.45.
Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 5 students who achieved the writing benchmark in 2004 was 93.1–95.3 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 5 writing benchmark in 2004 was 
78.2–85.2 per cent (figure 3.8).
Figure 3.8	Proportion of year 5 students achieving the writing benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.50 and 2007 Report, table 3A.84.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.48; 2007 Report, figure 3.27, p. 3.46.
Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 7 students who achieved the writing benchmark in 2004 was 92.3–94.9 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 7 writing benchmark in 2004 was 
75.0–82.6 per cent (figure 3.9).
Figure 3.9	Proportion of year 7 students achieving the writing benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.50 and 2007 Report, table 3A.84.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.49; 2007 Report, figure 3.29, p. 3.48.
Numeracy performance
‘Numeracy performance’ is an outcome indicator (box 3.4).

Box 3.4	Numeracy performance	
‘Numeracy performance’ is an outcome indicator of governments’ objective that young Australians should attain high standards of knowledge, skill and understanding in core curriculum areas.
Numeracy performance is defined as the proportion of assessed years 3, 5 and 7 students who achieved the national numeracy benchmark for a given year, reported by sex, Indigenous status and LBOTE status. The benchmarks describe nationally agreed minimum acceptable standards for numeracy performance at years 3, 5 and 7. Student performance is measured (or assessed) by state-based testing programs which are equated by a national process designed to (or intended to) allow comparable reporting against the benchmarks.
Holding other factors equal, a high or increasing proportion of students achieving the numeracy benchmark is desirable. This indicator is affected by socioeconomic circumstances, age, length of time spent in schooling, and LBOTE and Indigenous status.	
	
	Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 3 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark in 2004 was 92.5–94.9 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 3 numeracy benchmark in 2004 was 
75.1–83.3 per cent (figure 3.10).
Figure 3.10	Proportion of year 3 students achieving the numeracy benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.54 and 2007 Report, table 3A.90.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.51; 2007 Report, figure 3.32, p. 3.51.
Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 5 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark in 2004 was 90.0–92.4 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 5 numeracy benchmark in 2004 was 
65.5–73.3 per cent (figure 3.11).
Figure 3.11	Proportion of year 5 students achieving the numeracy benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.54 and 2007 Report, table 3A.90.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.52; 2007 Report, figure 3.34, p. 3.52.
Nationally, the proportion of assessed year 7 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark in 2004 was 81.3–82.9 per cent. The national proportion of Indigenous students who achieved the year 7 numeracy benchmark in 2004 was 
49.1–54.7 per cent (figure 3.12).
Figure 3.12	Proportion of year 7 students achieving the numeracy benchmark, by equity group, 2004a, b
	
aError bars represent the 95 per cent confidence interval associated with each point estimate. b For further information and caveats see table 3A.54 and 2007 Report, table 3A.90.
Source: MCEETYA (2006a); table 3A.53; 2007 Report, figure 3.36, p. 3.54.
Civics and citizenship performance
‘Civics and citizenship performance’ is an outcome indicator (box 3.5).

Box 3.5	Civics and citizenship performance	
‘Civics and citizenship performance’ is an outcome indicator of governments’ objective that students be active and informed citizens with an understanding and appreciation of Australia’s system of government and civic life.
Civics and citizenship performance is defined as the proportion of sampled year 6 and year 10 students achieving at or above the proficient standard in civic knowledge and understanding, reported by sex, Indigenous status, LBOTE status and geolocation (national data only for subgroups). The proficient standard for civics and citizenship performance is set at proficiency level 2 for year 6, and at level 3 for year 10, (of levels 1 to 5). This is a challenging level of performance where students needed to demonstrate more than minimal or elementary skills expected of a student at that year level to be regarded as having reached the proficient standard. It differs from the literacy and numeracy benchmark standards where the focus is on identifying the minimum skill and knowledge requirements students would be expected to demonstrate to progress to the next level of schooling (MCEETYA 2006b). Student performance is measured (or assessed) by a national sample assessment program resulting in comparable reporting against the standard. 
Holding other factors equal, a high proportion of students achieving at or above the applicable proficient standard in civics and citizenship performance is desirable. 
This indicator is affected by socioeconomic circumstances, age, length of time spent in schooling, and LBOTE and Indigenous status.	
	
The National Years 6 and 10 Civics and Citizenship Assessment measures civics and citizenship performance and was conducted for the first time in 2004, and will be conducted triennially. The sample was drawn from all states and territories and both government and non‑government schools participated. In 2004, 10 712 year 6 students from 318 government and non-government schools and 9536 year 10 students in 249 government and non-government schools across states and territories, participated in the national civics and citizenship assessment (MCEETYA 2006b). 
Years 6 and 10 civics and citizenship performance 2004 results are reported as the proportion of Australian students from the sampled students (years 6 and 10 enrolled in participating schools) who achieved at the proficient standard or above. Nationally, the proportion of participating students who achieved at the proficient standard or above in civics and citizenship performance was 47.0–53.0 per cent for year 6 students and 36.5–42.1 per cent for year 10 students (2007 Report, p. 3.57). 
The national proportion of year 6 students who achieved at the proficient standard or above in civics and citizenship performance was 17.1–30.5 per cent for Indigenous students (table 3A.56).
The national proportion of year 10 students who achieved at the proficient standard or above in civics and citizenship performance was 14.2–30.6 per cent for Indigenous students (table 3A.56).
Science literacy performance
‘Science literacy performance’ is an outcome indicator (box 3.6).

Box 3.6	Science literacy performance	
‘Science literacy performance’ is an outcome indicator of governments’ objective that young Australians should attain high standards of knowledge, skill and understanding in core curriculum areas. 
Science literacy performance is defined as the proportion of sampled year 6 primary students achieving at or above the proficient standard in scientific literacy, reported by sex, Indigenous status, LBOTE status and geolocation (national data only for subgroups). The proficient standard for year 6 scientific literacy is set at proficiency level 3.2 (of levels 1 to 4 or above). This is a level of performance based on what ‘well advanced’ or ‘expert’ students should know and be able to do by the end of year 6. It differs from the literacy and numeracy benchmark standards where the focus is on identifying the minimum skill and knowledge requirements students would be expected to demonstrate to progress to the next level of schooling (MCEETYA 2004). Student performance is measured (or assessed) by a national sample assessment program resulting in comparable reporting against the standard.
Holding other factors equal, a high proportion of students achieving at or above the applicable proficient standard in scientific literacy is desirable. This indicator is affected by socioeconomic circumstances, age, length of time spent in schooling, and LBOTE and Indigenous status.
Data collections for the science literacy performance indicator have been developed. Data for 2006 are anticipated to be available for the 2009 Report.	
	
	The National Year 6 Science Assessment measures the scientific literacy of a sample of students and was conducted for the first time in 2003, and will be conducted triennially (MCEETYA 2004). Results from the 2003 national science literacy sample assessment are included in table 3A.55 and are discussed in more detail in the 2006 Report (SCRGSP 2006, pages 3.59–62).
Years 3, 5 and 7 nationally comparable learning outcomes data for reading, writing and numeracy performance for the years 2001–2003 inclusive are included in the attachment tables for this chapter.
Triennial Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2003 learning outcomes data for 15 year olds are reported across three domains: reading literacy, mathematical literacy and scientific literacy. Problem solving was also assessed as a discrete test in 2003. Data from the PISA 2000 and 2003 is reported in tables 3A.57–61.

Supporting tables
Supporting tables for data within this chapter are contained in the attachment to the compendium. These tables are identified in references throughout this chapter by an ‘A’ suffix (for example, table 3A.3 is table 3 in the school education attachment). The tables included in the attachment are listed below. 

Table 3A.1	Australian Government specific purpose payments for schools, 2004-05 	
Table 3A.2	Indigenous full time students, 2005	
Table 3A.3	Students from language backgrounds other than English as a proportion of all students (per cent)     	
Table 3A.4	Student body mix, government schools (per cent)	
Table 3A.5	Student body mix, non-government schools (per cent)	
Table 3A.6	Student body mix, all schools (per cent)	
Table 3A.7	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.8	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.9	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.10	Exemptions, absences and participation of equity groups in reading testing, 2001 (per cent)	
Table 3A.11	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.12	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.13	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.14	Exemptions, absences and participation of equity groups in writing testing, 2001 (per cent)	
Table 3A.15	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.16	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.17	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2001 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.18	Exemptions, absences and participation of equity groups in numeracy testing, 2001 (per cent)	
Table 3A.19	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.20	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.21	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.22	Exemptions, absences and participation of equity groups in reading testing, 2002 (per cent)	
Table 3A.23	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.24	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.25	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.26	Exemptions, absences and participation of equity groups in writing testing, 2002 (per cent)	
Table 3A.27	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.28	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.29	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2002 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.30	Exemptions, absences and participation of equity groups in numeracy testing, 2002 (per cent)	
Table 3A.31	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.32	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.33	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.34	Exemptions, absences and participation by equity group in reading testing, 2003 (per cent)	
Table 3A.35	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.36	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.37	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.38	Exemptions, absences and participation by equity group in writing testing, 2003 (per cent)	
Table 3A.39	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.40	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.41	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2003 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.42	Exemptions, absences and participation by equity group in numeracy testing, 2003 (per cent)	
Table 3A.43	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.44	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.45	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the reading benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.46	Exemptions, absences and participation by equity group in reading testing, 2004 (per cent)	
Table 3A.47	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.48	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.49	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the writing benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.50	Exemptions, absences and participation by equity group in writing testing, 2004 (per cent)	
Table 3A.51	Proportion of year 3 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.52	Proportion of year 5 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.53	Proportion of year 7 students who achieved the numeracy benchmark, 2004 (per cent)   	
Table 3A.54	Exemptions, absences and participation by equity group in numeracy testing, 2004 (per cent)	
Table 3A.55	Proportion of year 6 students achieving at or above the proficient standard in science literacy, by equity group, 2003 (per cent)  	
Table 3A.56	Proportion of years 6 and 10 students achieving at or above the proficient standard in civics and citizenship performance, by equity group, Australia, 2004 (per cent)  	
Table 3A.57	Proportion of 15 year old secondary students achieving at or above the OECD mean for reading literacy, by equity group (per cent) 	
Table 3A.58	Proportion of students achieving level 3 or above in the overall reading literacy scale, by equity group (per cent)  	
Table 3A.59	Proportion of 15 year old secondary students achieving at or above the OECD mean for mathematical literacy, by equity group (per cent) 	
Table 3A.60	Proportion of 15 year old secondary students achieving at or above the OECD mean for scientific literacy, by equity group (per cent) 	
Table 3A.61	Proportion of 15 year old secondary students achieving at or above the OECD mean for problem solving, by equity group, 2003 (per cent) 	
Table 3A.62	Apparent retention rates of full time secondary students to years 10–12, 2005 (per cent) 	
Table 3A.63	Apparent retention rates of secondary students from years 10–12, 2005 (per cent)  	
Table 3A.64	Apparent retention rates of full time secondary students, government schools (per cent) 	
Table 3A.65	Apparent retention rates of full time secondary students, non-government schools (per cent) 	
Table 3A.66	Apparent retention rates of full time secondary students, all schools (per cent) 	
References
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2006, Schools Australia, 2005, Cat. no. 4221.0, Canberra.
MCEETYA (Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs) 2006a, National Report on Schooling in Australia 2004: Preliminary Paper National Benchmark Results Reading, Writing and Numeracy Years 3, 5 and 7 2004, Melbourne.
—— 2006b, National Assessment Program Civics and Citizenship Years 6 and 10 Report 2004, Melbourne.
SCRGSP (Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision) 2006, Report on Government Services 2006, Productivity Commission, Canberra.