# Presentation: 331842

## The Nation’s Report Card: 2007 Writing

## Overview of the 2007 Writing Assessment

**Overview of the 2007 Writing Assessment**

**Given January**–**March 2007 **
**139,900 eighth-graders**
**27,900 twelfth-graders**
**Writing tasks focus on three purposes**
**Narrative**
**Informative**
**Persuasive**

## Scoring Students’ Writing

**Scoring Students’ Writing**

**Students’ responses rated as first drafts and not as polished pieces of writing**
**Six performance ratings**
**Excellent**
**Skillful**
**Sufficient**
**Uneven**
**Insufficient**
**Unsatisfactory**

## Writing Results

**Writing Results**

**National results for both grades 8 and 12**
**Additional results available for grade 8**
**45 states and Department of Defense schools**
**10 urban districts**
**Results reported as**
**Average scale scores (on a 0**–**300 scale)**
**Achievement levels (*****Basic, Proficient, Advanced*****)**

## Grade 8 Results

## National Scale Score Results

**National Scale Score Results**

**Average score up ****3 points since 2002 and up 6 points since 1998**

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## National Achievement-Level Results

**Higher percentage of students performing at or above *****Basic***** than in both previous assessments****	**
**Percentage at or above *****Proficient***** shows no significant change since 2002, but higher than in 1998**

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## National Results by Race/Ethnicity

**National Results by Race/Ethnicity**

**White**
**Up 3 points from 2002**
**Up 7 points from 1998**
**Black**
**Up 6 points from 2002**
**Up 10 points from 1998**
**Hispanic**
**Up 5 points from 2002**
**Up 10 points from 1998**
**Asian/Pacific Islander**
**Up 6 points from 2002**
**Comparable to 1998**
**American Indian/Alaska Native**
**Comparable to 2002 and 1998**

- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

-  ↑   Indicates the score was higher in 2007.
- ↔ Indicates there was no significant change in the score in 2007.

## White – Black score gap narrows in 2007 compared with both previous assessments  
White – Hispanic gap shows no significant change 

**White – Hispanic gap shows no significant change **

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- NOTE: Black includes African American, and Hispanic includes Latino. Race categories exclude Hispanic origin. Score gaps are calculated based on differences between unrounded average scores.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## Scores increase for both female and male students
No significant change in gender score gap

**Scores increase for both female and male students**
**No significant change in gender score gap**

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- NOTE: Score gaps are calculated based on differences between unrounded average scores.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

**National Results by Gender**

## National Results by Eligibility for National School Lunch Program

**Students eligible for free lunch score lower than students eligible for reduced-price lunch**
**Both groups score lower ****on average than students who were not eligible**

- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2007 Writing Assessment.

## State Results

**State participation in the writing assessment is voluntary**
**46 jurisdictions participated in 2007**
**Results reported for public school students only**

## Changes in Average Scores Compared With 2002

**Changes in Average Scores Compared With 2002**

**Scores increase in 20 out of 39 jurisdictions**
**One state decreased**

- 1 Department of Defense Education Activity (overseas and domestic schools).
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2002 and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## Changes in Average Scores Compared With 1998

**Changes in Average Scores Compared With 1998**

- 1 Department of Defense Education Activity (overseas and domestic schools).
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998 and 2007 Writing Assessments.

**Scores increase in 29 out of 34 jurisdictions**
**No states decreased**

## Writing Trial Urban District Assessment

## Writing Trial Urban District Assessment

**Writing Trial Urban District Assessment**

**Ten participating districts in 2007**
**Representative samples of between ****900 and 2,000 students in each district **
**Trend results available ****for four districts**

## Changes in Urban District Scores Compared With 2002

**Changes in Urban District Scores ****Compared With 2002**

**Three urban districts gain since 2002**
**Score increases for large central cities**

- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2002 and 2007 Trial Urban District Writing Assessments.

-  ↑   Indicates the score was higher in 2007.
- ↔ Indicates there was no significant change in the score in 2007.

## Urban District Average Scores in 2007

**Urban District Average Scores in 2007**

**Most districts perform comparably to or higher than large central cities, but below the nation**

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from large central city public schools.
- ** Significantly different (*p *< .05) from nation (public schools).
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2007 Trial Urban District Writing Assessment.

## Urban Districts Compared With Home States

**Gains since 2002 in Atlanta and Los Angeles greater than their home states**

- * Significantly different (*p* < .05) from 2007.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2002 and 2007 Trial Urban District Writing Assessments.

## Urban District Achievement-Level Results

**Most districts surpass or are comparable to large central cities in percentage at or above *****Proficient***

- # Rounds to zero.
- NOTE: The shaded bars are graphed using unrounded numbers. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2007 Writing Assessment.

## Sample Eighth-Grade Informative Writing TaskDescription of a Backpack

**Sample Eighth-Grade Informative Writing Task*****Description of a Backpack***

**67% of eighth-graders received a rating of “Sufficient” or higher on their essays about a backpack, showing at least**
**information developed with some details**
**some organization with related ideas**
**control over sentence structure**
**minimal errors in grammar, spelling, and   ****punctuation**

## Grade 12 Results

## National Scale Score Results

**National Scale Score Results**

**Average score up 5 points since 2002 and 3 points since 1998**

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## National Achievement-Level Results

**Higher percentage of students performing at or above *****Basic***** than in both previous assessments**
**Percentage at or above *****Proficient***** shows no significant change since 2002, but higher than in 1998**

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## National Results by Race/Ethnicity

**National Results by Race/Ethnicity**

**White**
**Up 6 points from 2002**
**Up 4 points from 1998**
**Black**
**Up 7 points from 2002**
**Comparable to 1998**
**Hispanic**
**Comparable to 2002 and 1998**
**Asian/Pacific Islander**
**Up 9 points from 2002**
**Comparable to 1998**
**American Indian/Alaska Native**
**Comparable to 1998**

- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

-  ↑   Indicates the score was higher in 2007.
- ↔ Indicates there was no significant change in the score in 2007.
-  ‡   Reporting standards not met. Sample size is insufficient to permit a reliable estimate.

## No significant changes in White – Black or White – Hispanic score gaps 

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- NOTE: Black includes African American, and Hispanic includes Latino. Race categories exclude Hispanic origin. Score gaps are calculated based on differences between unrounded average scores.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

## National Results by Gender

- * Significantly different (*p *< .05) from 2007.
- NOTE: Score gaps are calculated based on differences between unrounded average scores.
- SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 1998, 2002, and 2007 Writing Assessments.

**Score for male students up since 2002, and scores for both groups higher than in 1998**
**Gender score gap narrows since 2002, but shows no significant change compared to 1998**

**National Results by Gender**

## Sample Twelfth-Grade Persuasive Writing TaskBig or Small Inventions

**60% of twelfth-graders received a rating of “Sufficient” or higher on their essays about the importance of big inventions or small inventions, showing at least**
** ****a clear position supported with examples**
** ****some development and general **** organization**
** ****simple sentence structure**
** ****minimal errors in grammar, spelling, **** and punctuation**

## For More Information

_**http://nationsreportcard.gov**_