THE NAPLAN SONG

CHORUS
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So ACARA started NAPLAN in 2008
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Cause they want Australia to be totally great
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Kids become adults and need cool skills
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Like reading, writing, language and num-er-acy
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So in mid-May, when you sit your test
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With year 3s, 5s, 7s and 9s
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Remember youre Aussie, and give ya bloody best
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Cause Australia wants to be a cut above the rest
(Or at least somewhere up there)

VERSE 1
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Eight-year-old Sam came into my office, with Mum in toe
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He said, Im feeling really nervous about NAPLAN
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I said, Never you mind, it just helps me see
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Where youre strong and where you need a hand.
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His mum said, and what about Eliza,
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Sams little friend who is blind?
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I said, I know what you mean, but theyve remembered her
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A teachers gonna read it to her
Words & Music by Hannah Cole, 2014

VERSE 2
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In the staffroom after school we were having a chat
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Dave said, Do you guys ever feel like your jobs on the line
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Over this NAPLAN performance stuff?
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I said, I feel like theres pressure, to get results, yeah
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Ash agreed and said, Theres too much focus
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On literacy and numeracy!
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On the other hand said Jeff, the arts promote literacy
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So maybe NAPLAN will broaden curriculum?

VERSE 3
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We had a NAPLAN Rep come and speak to us about it all
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They said, NAPLANs purpose is for national research
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And ninety percent of parents think that NAPLANs important.
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It got me thinking on the positives
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I thought about how even a few practice NAPLAN tests
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Helped kids feel more familiar
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And how the whole purpose of NAPLAN wasnt to learn
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Critical and higher-order thinking anyway

Words & Music by Hannah Cole, 2014