Administered by NCES, NAEP is considered “the nation’s report card,” measuring what US students know across multiple academic subjects. NAEP reports national, state, and trial urban district assessment (TUDA) results (i.e. for different demographic groups and geographic areas, as opposed to individual-level scores). NAEP provides comparable long-term achievement/performance trends and serves as a common metric across states with different standards.
Specifications
- Category
- Student Performance
- Collection method
- Assessment
- How often released
- Biennially (every 2 years) for Math/Reading in grades 4 and 8; timeframe varies for other subjects
- Timeline
- 12-18 months
- Representative or comprehensive sample
- Representative
- Level of data
- National, state, district (TUDA)
- Source
- Samples of students in participating schools; teachers & principals via questionnaires
- Status
- Active, reduced in scope; data collection planned for winter 2026
- Legislation/Regulation/Other
- 20 U.S.C. §§ 9621 §§ 9622 §§ 9623