ABSTRACT
This chapter draws on the analysis of empirical data from a summative evaluation of the Stronger Smarter Learning Communities Project (SSLC), 2009-2012. This evaluation involved multiple facets of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education in state schools. The question of the validity of the multiple uses of the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) testing data is debated. The argument developed builds on the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Developments (OECD) call for a balance between formative and summative assessment and ONeill's distinction between secondary and primary uses of testing data by systems, schools and principals. The summative evaluation of the SSLC Project described the operations and analysed the effects of SSLC on a national network of 57 hub schools and 70 affiliate schools. The intent was also to argue for a greater balance between assessment that is formative for all students and summative forms of assessment such as NAPLAN tests.
