Primary test scores up but not high school

Primary schools have generally boosted their students' achievements since 2008 but high schools seem to be stagnating, new national testing results show.

Preliminary results for the 2013 National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests were released on Friday.

Schools in Queensland in particular made improvements in most areas for Year 3 and 5 students.

That state's 2013 results for Year 3 grammar and punctuation were substantially better than they were five years ago.

However, its Year 7 students' results in persuasive writing were worse in 2013 than in 2012.

Another highlight was for Year 5 students in reading, where all states except NSW improved their scores since the 2008 tests.

But Year 9 students showed no significant change, for better or worse, in any of the five areas tested.

And for Year 7, results for reading and numeracy showed no change since 2008. For persuasive writing, the only difference was Queensland's scores dropping.

Western Australia was the only state to improve its Year 7 grammar and punctuation results over the past five years - and for spelling only WA and Queensland were better.

Generally, there was little change in any of the results from 2012 to 2013.

Students across the country took the NAPLAN tests in reading, persuasive writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy in May.

Full results will be made public in December.

The ACT topped or came equal first in 17 of the 20 categories.

Education Minister Joy Burch said the pleasing results validated the ACT government's investment in education.

Queensland Premier Campbell Newman said it was important to have benchmarks to measure how students were going.

"But I'm afraid the whole thing has gotten too serious and over the top," he told reporters in Brisbane.

"We've got to create well rounded happy balanced individuals ... We need free thinkers, innovators and not people who can just slavishly pass tests."