The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as The Nation’s Report Card, is the largest continuing, nationally representative measure of student achievement in core subjects in grades 4, 8, and 12. The District of Columbia participates in the NAEP assessment biennially. The assessments follow the frameworks developed by the National Assessment Governing Board, which specify what a student should know and be able to do in a given grade. Since the assessments are administered uniformly across the nation, with the same digital equipment and test booklets, NAEP results serve as a common measure of academic achievement.
To learn more about the NAEP assessment and resources available to educators and families, please explore the resources below.
Test Design
To learn more about how NAEP assessments are designed, see the “How the NAEP mathematics Assessment Works” and the “How the NAEP Reading Assessment Works” section of the NAEP Reading Assessment page. For information on other tested NAEP subject areas like science and U.S. history, please select them from the NAEP Subject Areas page.
Practice Tests and Tutorials
Sample question booklets are available on the NAEP website for fourth grade and eighth grade.
Test Results
NAEP informs the public about student achievement results, reveals trends over time, and compares performance among states, urban districts, and student demographic groups. In addition to the District of Columbia’s participation in the traditional NAEP testing program, DCPS participates in the Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA). The District of Columbia receives national, state, and TUDA results.
State Results for the District of Columbia
TUDA Results for DC Public Schools
Additional information and results can be found on the NAEP website.
- An Introduction to NAEP [PDF]
- An Overview of NAEP in English [PDF] and Spanish [PDF]
- Parent Notification Templates (forthcoming)
- NAEP Frequently Asked Questions
- NAEP 101 is a video used as an introduction to the NAEP assessment.
- NAEP for Teachers presents educators discussing the NAEP assessment.