This book describes results from the 1994 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment in U.S. history, conducted at grades 4, 8, and 12. Included in this report card are the results of students' achievement at each grade and within various subgroups of the general population. The report discusses the relationships between student performance and instructional and home background variables. This information gives educators a context for evaluating the U.S. history achievement of students and the results that may be used to guide reform efforts. Chapters include: (1) "NAEP 1994 U.S. History Assessment"; (2) "U.S. History Results for the Nation and Regions"; (3) "U.S. History Achievement Levels"; (4) "Contexts in which Students Learn History"; and (5) "What Students Know and Can Do in U.S. History." A conclusion, three appendices, 52 tables, and 13 figures complete the book. (EH)

This report is a first look at the results of the 1994 NAEP U.S. History Assessment. It presents national findings of 4th-, 8th-, and 12-grade students' overall performance and summary data for the major demographic subpopulations in the United States. Results are reported on a 500-point scale, used to show comparisons and trends over time, and according to the achievement levels, which are in a developmental stage, established by the National Assessment Governing Board. About 60 percent of the assessment was devoted to performance exercises with the remainder to multiple-choice questions. Sample questions for grade level are provided. The preliminary results show: (1) the pattern of average scores by grade was typical of other subjects assessed by NAEP; (2) among the different regions of the United States, student scores varied by each grade level with high school seniors in the Southeast scoring a lower average than those in the Northeast and Central regions; (3) 17 percent of 4th graders, 14 percent of 8th graders, and 11 percent of 12th graders reached the proficient level which demonstrates competency in challenging subject matter; (4) 64 percent of 4th graders, 61 percent of 8th graders and 43 percent of 12th graders attained at least the basic level which demonstrates partial mastery of challenging subject matter; (5) across the three grades, 1 to 2 percent reached the advanced level showing superior performance; (6) U.S. history scores at all grade levels were higher for students whose parents had more education; (7) at grade 12, males scored higher than females in U.S. history with no differences between males and females in average scores evident at grades 4 and 8; (8) at grades 4, 8, and 12, White and Asian students had significantly higher U.S. history scores than did Black and Hispanic students; and (9) 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade students attending non-public schools displayed higher U.S. history scores than their counterparts attending public schools. Tables, figures, and graphs accompany the text. (EH)

This book reports on the 1994 National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment in geography for grades 4, 8, and 12. Students performance is summarized on a scale ranging from 0 to 500 with the achievement levels of Basic, Proficient and Advanced for each grade. Major findings for the nation include: (1) The Proficient level was reached by 22 percent of fourth graders, 28 percent of eighth graders, and 27 percent of twelfth graders; (2) At each grade level, roughly 70 percent of students were at or above the Basic level; (3) As students' geography scores increased, the complexity and sophistication of the geographic knowledge and skills they exhibited increased; and (4) Generally, students across grades in the higher percentiles exhibited greater abilities to work with a range of geographic tools, create maps based on tabular or narrative data, grasp processes and relationships, bring outside knowledge to bear on answering questions and analyze data. The book contains five chapters. Chapter 1, "NAEP 1994 Assessment in Geography," presents the overview of the NAEP 1994 geography assessment, including its content framework, design, and administration, along with sample questions and student responses from the assessment. Chapter 2, "Geography Results For the Nation and Regions," provides overall average scale score results for the nation, regions, and subgroups of students. Chapter 3, "Geography Achievement Levels," describes student performance in terms of achievement levels. Chapter 4, "Contexts in Which Students Learn Geography," describes contextual factors related to students' geography achievement. Chapter 5, "What Students Know and Can Do in Geography," describes the specific abilities that students demonstrated on the NAEP 1994 geography assessment and reports student performance in different content areas of geography. Three appendices and extensive tables and figures accompany the text. (EH)

This report describes students' reading achievements at grades 4, 8, and 12 and within various subgroups of the general population. State-level results are presented for individual states that chose to participate in the 1994 Trial State Assessment. Chapter 1 presents an overview of the 1994 NAEP reading assessment and sample questions and responses. Chapter 2 provides overall average proficiency results for the nation, regions, subgroups of students, and jurisdictions participating in the Trial State Assessment. Chapter 3 describes students' reading performance in terms of achievement levels. Chapter 4 focuses on cross-state comparisons of proficiency results from the state-by-state assessment at grade 4. Chapter 5 describes contextual factors related to students' reading achievement. Chapter 6 describes specific abilities demonstrated by students in the NAEP reading assessment and reports student performance when reading for different purposes. The "most striking" finding from the 1994 assessment is that the average reading proficiency of 12th-grade students declined significantly from 1992 to 1994. Other major findings include: (1) the decline in average proficiency among 12th-graders between 1992 and 1994 was concentrated among lower performing students; (2) reading proficiency at all three grade levels was higher on average for students whose parents had more education; (3) at all three grade levels, female students had higher average reading proficiencies than male students; and (4) students who reported having a greater array of literacy materials in their homes displayed higher average reading achievement. Contains 38 tables and 23 figures of data. Appendixes provide an overview of procedures used in the 1994 assessment and describe students' reading performance; cross-state proficiency and achievement level results; and sample texts and questions. (RS)

This report documents the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) special pilot study of group assessment. In 1994, NAEP administered U.S. History projects to a limited number of students. The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility of group assessment, and to gain practical experience in the design, development, administration, and scoring of such instruments. The report first describes the development and conduct of the study. It then discusses practical lessons learned, and makes recommendations regarding the future assessment of groups. Appendices include the testing instruments, scoring guides, and examples of student work. (Author)

This report presents a first look at national and state-level findings of students' overall proficiency in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 1994 reading assessment for grades 4, 8, and 12 and provides comparisons with the performance of their 1992 counterparts. The first chapter introduces the report, discussing topics such as the NAEP, the national sample, the trial state assessment program, the proficiency scale, achievement levels, and cautions in interpretations. The second and third chapters present a first look at the average reading proficiency and the attainment of achievement levels by America's students, discussing average national reading proficiency and average reading proficiency by region and by major reporting subgroups (race/ethnicity, gender, parents' educational level, public and nonpublic schools, and cross-state proficiency findings). Major findings include: (1) the average reading proficiency of twelfth-grade students declined significantly from 1992 to 1994; (2) across all three grade levels, female students continued to display higher reading achievement than male students; (3) reading proficiency was higher on average for students whose parents had more education; and (4) students attending nonpublic schools displayed higher average reading proficiency than their counterparts attending public schools. Appendixes present national and state sample descriptions, reporting subgroup(s) definitions, comparisons among states based on average proficiency, cross-state proficiency and achievement level tabular summaries, and state contextual background factors. Contains 7 figures and 12 tables of data. (RS)