THE Australian Tertiary Admission Rank which students receive at the end of Year 12 is increasingly being questioned for the simple reason that it is associated with a narrow measure of a student’s ability and intelligence.
Most schools champion that they exist to educate and develop a person holistically — that is academically, emotionally, socially and physically.
Yet, at the end of 13 years of schooling, student achievement is defined by a single number, a ranking, which is determined as a result of how they have performed in a number of assessment pieces: SACs, SATs and exams.
MORE: WHAT IS THE ATAR?
The technology revolution’s impact on the work force is demanding that more emphasis be placed on the development of key skills and qualities of character for success in the future. Skills such as critical and creative thinking, the ability to think big and solve problems, and character traits such as adaptability, empathy, persistence and resilience are seen as increasingly essential to the future workforce.
And many parents and teachers agree. Kilvington Grammar recently commissioned an independent survey of 1000 parents and teachers in which the overwhelming majority placed a much higher value on these key “life skills” than they did their child’s ATAR score; most agreed these skills should be taught explicitly by schools in conjunction with core academic skills.
Of those surveyed, 85 per cent agreed that focusing on test scores like NAPLAN, and the ATAR, does not take into account all aspects of a child’s development and capabilities.
I admit to being surprised that academic achievement and a high ATAR were considered to be of least importance in preparing children for the future job market.
Moreover, our world is crying out for leaders who model values such as honesty and integrity, who embrace diversity and inclusion, people who think beyond the day’s crises and focus on the longer term. We need leaders who grasp the impact of their decisions on the broader community and take seriously their responsibility that goes beyond the immediate result of a decision. We need leaders who serve the greater good, not themselves.
The dilemma for schools is that core skills such as reading, writing and mathematics are specific, teachable abilities that can be defined and measured; but life skills such as adaptability, problem solving, creativity, collaboration and communication are less tangible and measurable.
However, this should not mean they take second place or be viewed as less important. On the contrary, these skills are more vital than ever in today’s world — children should be learning them from a young age and we need to find a way to measure them.
Kilvington Grammar launched The Character Initiative in 2016 to introduce students as young as four to key traits and skills they would need to thrive in life. Each semester, a new character trait is actively incorporated into the school curriculum, many of which are qualities expected by employers of the 21st Century.
By embedding traits such as resilience, adaptability and courage into the school culture and curriculum, we are reinforcing the importance of these characteristics not only in terms of students’ relationships at school and at home, but also in managing challenges and their general approach to life.
And yet, for these qualities, which are fundamental to thrive in an ever changing world, there is little or no measure of progress. Surely in a holistic education system we need a broader assessment of student ability and intelligence.
The ATAR does have its usefulness and place. For instance, it efficiently assesses a level of student academic progress and outcomes and it determines which candidates are most likely to cope with demanding university courses such as law, medicine and veterinary science. I doubt anyone would be prepared to go under the knife unless they were confident their surgeon had the smarts and the required knowledge and skills to operate. The ATAR does provide a needed measure of ability and intelligence, but it is too narrow and inadequate.
We need to think beyond university and how students are going to cope with life and work today — which is very different from 20, 30 and 50 years ago. We need to develop a system to support and measure the development of character and key skills in young people and schools need to teach to this.
As we rush headlong into exam season, imagine having another measure, one that trumps or sits alongside the ATAR, which measures a student as a whole and takes into account a broader range of competencies — which appraises their academic skills, character traits, leadership qualities and values. Our students and our education system would be the better for it.
Jon Charlton is principal of Kilvington Grammar, an independent Baptist coeducational school in Ormond
Originally published as Why we need something better than ATARs