Since 2025, the NSW Selective Test is fully computer-based. No paper booklets. No handwritten essays. No pencil-and-ruler working out on the test itself.

This sounds like a small logistical change. In practice, it has created an entirely new set of challenges that many families are not preparing for — because they are still practising the way the test used to work.

If your child can solve every question type but has never practised on a screen under timed conditions, they are going to lose marks on test day. Not from lack of knowledge, but from lack of digital fluency.

What the Digital Test Actually Looks Like

The computer-based Selective Test is not a PDF on a screen. It is an interactive testing platform with specific interface elements your child needs to be comfortable with.

Key features of the test interface:

• Split-screen layout — Reading passages appear on one side, questions on the other. Your child must read and answer simultaneously without losing their place.
• Scrollable content — Passages and question sets extend beyond the visible screen. Missing a paragraph because you did not scroll is a real risk.
• On-screen timer — Visible and ticking. Some children find this motivating; others find it paralysing. Both reactions need practice.
• Digital tools — Highlighters, flags for review, and navigation between questions. Using these efficiently saves time; ignoring them wastes it.
• Typed Writing response — The essay is typed, not handwritten. Typing speed directly affects how much content your child can produce.

The 3 Core Digital Skills Your Child Needs

1. Typing Speed

In the Writing section, your child has 30 minutes to produce a complete essay. For handwriting, most Year 6 students can produce 300–400 words in that time. For typing, the range is much wider — and much more trainable.

Target typing speed: 25–35 words per minute (WPM) is the practical minimum. This produces roughly 350–500 words in 25 minutes of writing (allowing 5 minutes for planning).

Where your child might be:

Typing Level	Approximate WPM	25 Min Output	Impact
Hunt-and-peck	10–15 WPM	250–375 words	Severely limiting
Developing	15–25 WPM	375–625 words	Manageable but tight
Competent	25–35 WPM	625–875 words	Comfortable range
Fluent	35+ WPM	875+ words	Strong advantage

A child typing at 12 WPM will physically struggle to produce enough content for a competitive essay, regardless of their writing ability. This is a mechanical problem, not an intellectual one — and it is completely fixable with practice.

How to build typing speed:

• Free typing practice sites (TypeClub, Typing.com) — 10 minutes daily
• Focus on accuracy first, then speed. Accuracy naturally brings speed.
• Practise with real essay content, not just random words
• Set a baseline WPM now and track weekly improvement

2. Screen Navigation and Reading

Reading on a screen is cognitively different from reading on paper. Research on screen reading consistently finds that comprehension and retention are slightly lower on screens — but this gap closes with practice and familiarity.

Specific skills to build:

• Scrolling while reading — maintaining comprehension while physically navigating the page
• Split-screen attention — reading a passage on one side while the question panel sits on the other
• Finding your place — after answering a question, returning to the relevant part of the passage without rereading everything
• Screen distance and posture — sitting at the right distance to read comfortably for extended periods

How to practise:

• Do all reading practice on a screen for the final 4 weeks minimum
• Practise the "paragraph-question-paragraph" workflow: read a chunk, check the question, return to the text
• Use online reading comprehension exercises rather than printed worksheets
• Set up a desk space that mimics test conditions — proper chair height, screen distance, good lighting

3. Using Digital Test Tools

The test interface includes tools that most children will never have used before unless they practise with them:

Tool	What It Does	When to Use It
Highlighter	Marks text in the passage	Key evidence for reading questions
Flag for Review	Marks a question to return to	Skip and come back — essential for pacing
Question Navigator	Jump between questions	Review flagged questions in final minutes
On-screen Calculator	Basic calculation tool (Maths)	Verify working, avoid arithmetic errors

Children who use these tools well gain a real advantage. Flagging a hard question and moving on — rather than freezing on it for 3 minutes — can be worth several marks across the test.

How to practise: The only way to build fluency with these tools is to use a practice platform that includes them. Paper practice cannot replicate this.

The Scratch Paper Dilemma

Here is a problem unique to the computer-based format: scratch paper.

In the Maths and Thinking Skills sections, many questions require working out. On a paper test, children work directly on the page. On the computer test, they must work on separate scratch paper, then look back at the screen to enter their answer.

This screen-to-paper-to-screen workflow introduces three risks:

1. Transcription errors — copying the wrong number from screen to paper or back
2. Time loss — physically shifting attention between two surfaces
3. Lost place — looking back at the screen and not finding where you were

How to practise:

• From now on, do all Maths and Thinking Skills practice on screen with scratch paper beside the computer
• Practise the workflow: read question on screen → work on paper → enter answer on screen → check
• Develop a notation system — circle final answers on scratch paper, label question numbers clearly
• Time the transition: the goal is smooth, not rushed

Why Paper Practice Tests Are Now a Disadvantage

This is a hard message for parents who have invested in workbooks and printed papers. But it needs to be said clearly: paper-based practice no longer matches the test your child is sitting.

Paper practice still builds content knowledge. If your child works through maths problems on paper, they learn the maths. That has value. But paper practice does not build:

• Screen reading stamina
• Split-screen navigation fluency
• Typing speed under pressure
• Digital tool familiarity
• The scratch paper workflow

A child who has done 50 paper-based practice tests and zero computer-based ones will feel like a first-timer on test day. A child who has done 10 computer-based practice tests will feel at home.

The transition does not need to be sudden. A practical approach:

Timeline	Practice Format
8+ weeks out	Paper is fine for content learning
4–8 weeks out	Mix of paper and computer
Final 4 weeks	All practice on computer
Final 2 weeks	Computer only, full test conditions

Setting Up a Home Test Environment

Create a space at home that approximates test day conditions:

The basics:

• Desktop or laptop computer (not a tablet or phone)
• External keyboard and mouse if using a laptop — closer to test centre setup
• Chair and desk at proper height
• Good lighting, minimal glare on screen
• Quiet environment, no interruptions during timed sessions

The extras that help:

• Scratch paper and pencils positioned beside the keyboard
• A visible timer (use the platform's built-in timer or a separate one)
• Water bottle where it would be on test day
• No second screens, no background music, no phone

The goal is familiarity. The more closely your child's practice environment matches the real test, the less cognitive load goes to "adjusting" on test day — and the more goes to actually answering questions.

Action Plan for the Final Weeks

If your child has been doing mostly paper-based practice, here is how to transition:

This week

• Measure current typing speed (use a free online WPM test)
• Do one practice session on a computer to establish a baseline comfort level
• Set up a dedicated study space with proper desk and screen setup

Next 2 weeks

• 10 minutes daily typing practice
• Switch all reading and writing practice to screen
• Practise the scratch paper workflow for maths questions

Final 2 weeks

• All practice on computer with full test conditions
• At least one full timed mock in the home test environment
• Practise using highlight, flag, and navigation tools

Day before

• Do a short, familiar practice set on the computer — just for rhythm
• Check that the desk setup is ready
• Early night

The Advantage of Digital-Native Practice

Children who practise on a computer-based platform from the start never need to make this transition. They build digital fluency alongside content knowledge from day one.

SelectiveReady's practice modules are designed to match the real test interface — split-screen reading, typed writing, on-screen timers, and flag-for-review tools. When your child sits the real test, the environment feels familiar rather than foreign.

That familiarity is worth marks. Not because the questions are easier, but because your child spends zero mental energy adjusting to the interface — and all of it on the questions themselves.