Sick on test day: NAPLAN and Selective rules

A cough the night before, a fever on the morning, a missed bus. Test days do not always cooperate. The rules for what happens next are quite different for NAPLAN and for the NSW placement tests, so it helps to know both before the day comes.

NAPLAN: sick or absent

NAPLAN is run by schools, and the school controls the schedule. These are the rules ACARA publishes in its participation FAQs.

• No testing at home. A sick student cannot do NAPLAN from home. The tests are overseen by teachers so that results are comparable.
• Catch-up sessions. A student who misses the day may be able to sit catch-up tests, provided they are back at school before the school's planned test schedule ends. The test window page explains that the test window is 9 days and that a school can put catch-up sessions in the last days of that window.
• If they cannot attend at all. A student who is away from school for that whole period is recorded as absent, and gets no NAPLAN result for the tests missed.
• No sitting early. Students are not allowed to take the tests earlier than the rest of their year level at their school.
• Away from home. A student who is travelling, for example interstate, may be able to join a scheduled session at a school in that place. That school's principal does not have to arrange a separate or catch-up session for visitors. Parents should talk to the school.
• Overseas. NAPLAN can only be sat within Australia.

Ask the school how it plans catch-ups for each test. The order of tests is fixed (writing first, then reading, conventions of language and numeracy), so a child who misses one session may be able to catch up on that session only.

Does a missed NAPLAN matter later?

Parents sometimes worry that an absence will follow a child. On its main NAPLAN page, ACARA says NAPLAN results can support teachers' professional judgement, while the tests form only one part of a school's assessment and reporting and do not take the place of the broad, continuing assessment teachers do. A missing test simply means there is no NAPLAN result for that area that year. The teacher will still know how your child is going.

It is also worth saying so to your child. A child who is ill on the day, or who realises they have missed a session, can feel they have let everyone down. Tell them plainly that both programs have a way through, that being unwell is a good reason to stay home, and that one missed session is not a verdict on anything they can do.

The OC and Selective placement tests: sick or away

The NSW Department of Education explains on its placement test page what to do:

1. Do not bring a sick child. If your child is sick, for example with COVID or flu, the department asks that you don't bring them. A sick child can disturb other students or pass the illness on, and may be turned away from the test if brought.
2. Lodge an illness or misadventure request. When illness affects your child's test, or makes them miss it, submit an illness or misadventure request through your application dashboard.
3. Mind the deadline. The request must be submitted within 5 business days after the test.
4. Sit the make-up. Students whose request is accepted can sit the make-up test. For 2027 entry, the make-up for both the Selective and the OC test was Friday 22 May 2026.

The tests are held on one day only for each student, and there are multiple versions, so the make-up is a different version of the same test. The department says that measures are in place so no student has an advantage on a particular day.

Other things that can go wrong

• Late arrival. If your child arrives late they will not get extra time, so plan the trip carefully using the details on the Test Admission Ticket, including travel and parking.
• The wrong place. Students are allocated to a test centre based on their primary school, and the venue and date are fixed unless something outside your control intervenes. In those rare cases, contact the department through your application dashboard. A change cannot be promised.
• Poor attendance. The department asks that students attend school regularly in the lead up. If a child is away too often without good cause, the department informs the selection committee, which may decide not to place students with poor attendance records.

A short plan for the morning of the test

Whichever test it is, a short plan reduces stress:

• Decide the night before who would stay home with a sick child and who would make the call to the school.
• Keep the Test Admission Ticket in a folder where you can find it (placement tests).
• Know the school's number and the application dashboard login before the day, since the 5 business days start the moment the test day passes.
• If your child is unwell but only mildly, ring the school or check the dashboard guidance before deciding. For a placement test, a child who is clearly sick should not be sent.

Where to go next

• NAPLAN, OC and Selective: which test is which?
• OC and Selective tests compared
• When your child is well again, our free samples offer a calm way back into practice.

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Not affiliated with ACARA or the NSW Department of Education.