 Hi, I'm Rob Randall, Chief Executive Officer of Okara. Across three days in May, all students in Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 will sit the annual NAPLAN tests. NAPLAN provides a snapshot of how students are performing in the fundamentally important areas of literacy and numeracy. The tests complement school and class-based assessment but add a national component. The results give schools and systems the ability to compare their students' achievements against national minimum standards and against those of other states and territories. NAPLAN tests the sorts of skills that every child will need if they are to successfully progress through school and life. These include reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation and numeracy. While teachers will undertake their own assessments and draw on other school-based data, NAPLAN is unique because it provides nationally comparable data. We know this information is valued by teachers and parents. NAPLAN is not a pass-fail type assessment. It assesses students' levels of achievement in literacy and numeracy compared with their peers throughout Australia. And while there are some hype and commercial products linked to NAPLAN, we think that the best way to prepare for NAPLAN is by learning from and through a rich and engaging curriculum. Teachers and schools want an honest picture of what students can do in the areas of literacy and numeracy so that they can plan for improvement. I hear about unintended consequences of NAPLAN. In media reports we read about things like teaching to the test, student anxiety, narrowing the curriculum and NAPLAN not examining many other aspects of school life. I'm confident that principals, schools and parents are finding the right balance and taking steps to ensure that NAPLAN is placed into context. It is important, after all it's about the fundamentals of a child's life, but it's only a few hours across three days at four points in a child's schooling. My advice is that teachers know best about preparing their students for NAPLAN and anyone in the community with concerns about NAPLAN preparation or their child's ability to manage any anxiety in the lead up to NAPLAN should talk first to the student's teacher or the school principal. In the videos that follow, teachers talk about the importance of analysing NAPLAN data and how they use it to plan for student improvement. They share specific initiatives and programs that are working in their schools. I hope you enjoy hearing from these teachers. Thank you.