Search

Although various assessments differ in notable ways, they often follow a plan that is thoroughly tested and features four basic steps: (1) selecting learning areas and identifying their objectives; (2) developing achievement test items to determine the degree to which these objectives are accomplished; (3) administering the test items to representative samples of students and gathering background data about them; and (4) analyzing the results and disseminating them to administors, board members, legislators, and the public. The largest, most informative assessment ever designed follows this general plan very closely. It is the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), for which planning began in 1964. It is designed to obtain census-like data on the knowledges, skills, concepts, understandings, and attitudes possessed by young Americans in a variety of learning areas; and to measure the growth or decline of these achievements that occurs over time. This publication describes the NAEP and some major findings of the first assessments in various areas, and then offers a speculative view of our schools. Surveys like the NAEP serve as excellent vehicles for generating hypotheses about causes of achievement fluctuations, which in turn can be studied more intensively by designing appropriate experiments or conducting thorough case studies. (RC) Aspect of National Assessment (NAEP) dealt with in this document: Results (Overview).

Data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are reviewed to outline the achievement levels of students in the United States. This examination of NAEP data showing changes in levels of achievement during the 1970s leads to a number of conclusions. The overall picture for 9-year-olds is promising. The outlook for 13-year-olds, (with the possible exception of mathematics) is less encouraging, and that for 17-year-olds is quite disturbing. Despite these declines, repeated gains have been achieved by student groups that typically fall below the national average. A vexing problem that appears regularly is the uneven achievement in tasks requiring more than recall of information. This paper concludes with proposals for steps to be taken to improve higher-order learning. These steps are to be taken within the classrooms, within the schools, and within the communities. (BW)

As an initial review of National Assessment of Educational Progress data designed to determine whether the achievement of American youth is improving, a limited examination of changes in levels of achievement during the 1970s is presented. Benchmark assessments established in 1974-75 indicates a large degree of consistency from one learning area to another in terms of the various regional and racial subgroups of students. Findings on levels of achievement over the 9-year period were examined. Overall the achievement pattern for 9-year-olds was found to be quite encouraging; clearly less encouraging for 13-year-olds; and disheartening for 17-year-olds. Differential changes in each learning area and the relative improvement of low-achieving subgroups are discussed. Possible school and societal factors influencing achievement are examined. (CM)