UWA Handbook 2025

Unit Overview

Description

The Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students (the test) is designed to assess initial teacher education students' personal literacy and numeracy skills to ensure teachers are well equipped to meet the demands of teaching and assist higher education providers, teacher employers and the general public to have increased confidence in the skills of graduating teachers.

The test has been introduced to assess the aspects of students' personal literacy and numeracy skills that can be measured through an online assessment tool. Initial teacher education students will pay to sit the test. The test is available in set windows throughout each year.

The test is computer-based and consists of a literacy test and a numeracy test, each of which is administered in a two-hour session. At the beginning of each test session, additional time is allowed for a short orientation to the test screen and the various response formats.

If students are sitting both test components of the test at a test centre, they should allow at least 5½ hours from the time of registration for all testing procedures to be completed. There is a 20 minute break between each test component. It is not possible to leave the literacy or numeracy test component in the last 10 minutes. Care should be taken when making return travel arrangements including parking to allow adequate time at the test centre.

If students are sitting the test by remote proctoring, the test consists of four hours of test time, with a 10 minute break between the literacy and numeracy tests.

Students are administered 130 test questions in total, 65 literacy questions and 65 numeracy questions. In the numeracy test, there are 52 questions for which an online calculator is available, and 13 questions for which the online calculator is not available.

All the questions are in either selected responses (e.g. multiple choice) or short answer formats. No extended writing is required. Marks will not be deducted for incorrect responses.

Credit

0 points

Offering
(see Timetable)

Availability	Location	Mode
Non-standard teaching period	Online	Online flexible

Outcomes

Students are able to demonstrate their personal literacy and numeracy skills.

Assessment

Indicative assessments in this unit are as follows: national literacy and numeracy test. Further information is available in the unit outline.

To pass this unit, a student must: (a) achieve an overall mark of 50 per cent or higher for the unit; and (b) achieve the requisite requirements(s) or a mark of 50 per cent or greater, whichever is higher and specified in the unit outline, for the national literacy and numeracy test component.

This unit is assessed on an ungraded pass/ungraded failed basis. All assessment items must be successfully completed.

Student may be offered supplementary assessment in this unit if they meet the eligibility criteria.

Unit Coordinator(s)

TBA

Incidental fees

Incidental student fees and charges are costs incurred by students as part of their studies at UWA that are in addition to their tuition fees (further information is available "
Participation in this unit will incur the following incidental fee(s):
(1) Software application - Maths (estimated cost - $20 (Optional))
(2) Software application - English (estimated cost - $50 (Optional)).

Contact hours

assessment only—no associated contact hours

Note

The test is provided by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). Students can register for the test on this webpage: https://teacheredtest.acer.edu.au/