Sample Questions Booklets
Sample Questions booklets are general information booklets about the NAEP assessment. They are given to participating schools so that administrators and teachers will have an idea of what to expect during an assessment. In addition, the booklets give teachers and the parents of participating students an opportunity to examine the types of questions students will be answering. The booklets contain many of the features of the actual test booklets, including instructions, sample subject-area questions and student responses from previous NAEP assessments, and background questions about the student's activities and characteristics related to education and the subject being assessed. Also included is a description of the framework for each subject assessed and a tutorial on how to use the NAEP Questions Tool. The subject-area questions and the background questionnaires are described below. Booklets for upcoming and recent assessments and field tests are available below in PDF format. Because of the large size of the booklets, the PDFs are broken into pieces to make it easier to download them. Note that prior to 2006, Sample Questions booklets were referred to as "demonstration booklets." Beginning with the 2006 assessments—civics, economics, and U.S. history—the booklets are referred to as Sample Questions booklets. Types of Questions AskedEach student participating in NAEP receives a booklet that contains directions for taking the test, subject-area questions, and two different types of background questions: subject-specific and general. Subject-area questions measure what students know and can do in various subjects at grades 4, 8, or 12. Questions are developed based on specifications in the subject-area framework, and are usually presented in two 25-minute blocks of questions. Released questions from past NAEP assessments, as well as the scoring guides and actual student responses for constructed-response questions, can be found in the NAEP Questions Tool. More than 2,000 questions are available for review. General background questions ask about students' demographic characteristics (e.g., gender, race) and general education-related experiences in a 5-minute section that follows the subject-area questions. Subject-specific background questions collect data related to subject-area classroom experiences, in a final 5-minute section. The two short sections of background questions serve to fulfill reporting requirements of federal legislation and help put results in context. In 2002, the design of the booklets and assessment administration was standardized across all regularly administered subjects; before that time, some subjects had background questions placed at an earlier point in the assessment booklets.
|
