This literature review was commissioned to provide context for the research project The Experience of Education: The impacts of high stakes testing on school students and their families.

The project is a collaboration between the Whitlam Institute, the University of Melbourne and the Foundation for Young Australians. The project seeks to examine whether the regime of high stakes testing throughout the school years is in the best interests of the students.
The research aims to identify what the impacts of high stakes testing such as NAPLAN are on school students and their families, not only in terms of curriculum and learning but also with regards to students’ health and well-being.