Vol. 3 No. 1 August 1998

NAEP and Dance: Framework and Field Tests

Abstract: The NAEP Arts Education Framework set new standards

for assessment of students’ dance achievement. The dance framework, and the field testing of dance assessment tasks developed in

response to the framework, provide significant new information for

schools, dance organizations, and dance studios charged with developing their own dance education programs and assessments.

In 1992, the Arts Education Consensus Project, sponsored by

the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), began

an 18-month effort to establish objectives for assessing arts

instruction in the nation’s elementary and secondary schools.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)

had assessed music in 1972 and 1978 and the visual arts in

1975 and 1978. The National Endowment for the Arts, in

collaboration with the Getty Center for Education in the Arts,

funded the Arts Education Consensus Project, designed to

develop the NAEP Arts Education Framework.

The Consensus Project1 identified objectives for arts education in general and individually for dance, music, theatre, and

the visual arts in the fourth, eighth, and twelfth grades. It also

developed Assessment Specifications for each of the four arts,

setting forth requirements for the content of the assessments

in more detail. NAEP field-tested the dance assessment for

the fourth and eighth grades in 1995 and for the twelfth grade

in 1997. In the spring of 1999, NAEP will publish a Field

Test Process Report, on the development, administration, and

scoring of arts tasks for the three grades in all four arts, including dance.

In 1997, NAEP conducted an assessment of student performance in music, theatre, and the visual arts, for the eighth

grade only. NAEP did not attempt an assessment of eighthgrade students in dance, because the number of schools offering comprehensive dance education programs in the eighth

grade is not large enough to permit NAEP to obtain a sample

of students consistent with its standards.2 While some schools

offer very rich programs, many have limited programs or

none at all. In the fall of 1998, NAEP will publish the examples of dance assessment tasks, along with assessment data

for eighth-grade student achievement in music, theatre, and

the visual arts, in the NAEP 1997 Arts Education Report

Card.

The dance framework and field-test information form a

unique resource for dance students, educators, instructors,

and policymakers at the state and local levels. College dance

programs and private studios, where most formal dance instruction takes place in the United States, will also find the

framework of long-term use. This Focus on NAEP will give a

The many varieties of dance, including ballet, ballroom, ethnic, jazz, and modern, are part of America’s artistic heritage.

NOTE: For reasons of confidentiality, the students shown in this picture

are not NAEP participants.

PHOTO BY JULIE NORA
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summary of the dance framework set forth in the Arts Education Assessment Framework and describe the development

and field testing of the dance assessment tasks.

The Importance of Dance

The NAEP Arts Education framework is founded on a vision

of a society that believes the arts are essential for every child's

complete development and education. The expectation is not

that all children will become professional dancers, although

some will. What is expected is that all students will experience the joy of creating and the self-confidence that comes

from the development of skills and performance, that they

will come to know the importance of discipline, practice, persistence, and self-criticism, and that they will apply these

lessons to other aspects of their lives.

Through dance students can discover insights into themselves

and into their social and cultural worlds. In addition, they can

come to understand the importance of dance in their own

culture and in cultures around the world, for today dance is

remarkably international and draws inspiration from many

cultures. The NAEP framework sets guidelines for assessment

that will respect the diversity of today’s dance world (see table 1).

The Dance Assessment Framework:

Content and Processes

The dance assessment framework covers both content and

processes. Content includes (1) knowledge and understanding

of dance and (2) perceptual, technical, expressive, and intellectual/reflective skills. Processes include (1) creating, (2)

performing, and (3) responding. While much of what students

know, as well as what they can do, will be demonstrated

through performance, the dance assessment framework includes a written portion as well. Table 2 sets forth the dance

assessment framework in brief.

Content

Knowledge and understanding of dance are valuable in themselves. They can also increase students’ ability to perform,

and increase their ability to place dance in a more objective

context than that offered by their own experiences. This context includes their own personal perspective, but goes beyond

it to include social, cultural, and historical contexts as well.

Students need a knowledge of aesthetics in order to understand the varied concepts and philosophies of dances from

different cultures and periods. Students also need to understand the use of form and structure in dance, and the technical processes needed to create them.

The acquisition and application of skills determine the quality of the learning experience. Students apply a variety of

cognitive, affective, and motor skills in dance. Perceptual

skills are needed to collect and analyze the sensory stimuli of

music, rhythm, and movement. Technical skills are needed to

produce quality work. Expressive skills are needed to add a

unique and personal nature to the work. Intellectual/reflective

skills are needed to test different creative possibilities, solve

artistic problems, refine work, and help students to consider

dance in a thoughtful manner.

In dance, knowledge and skills are inextricably connected.

Students combine both to express themselves through movement and to create dance works that exist within larger cultural contexts.

Processes

Creating refers to generating original art. This may include,

but should not be limited to, the expression of a student’s

personal ideas, in the form of movement, choreography, or

improvisation. To convey ideas and feelings, students make

use of movement and elements of choreography. Through a

knowledge of vocabulary, improvisation, and compositional

structures, students are able to collaborate with others in the

shared expression and the creation of dance.

Performing means performing existing works, a process that

calls upon the interpretive skills of the student. Dance uses

Table 1.NAEP Guidelines for Dance Assessment

Dance assessment shall

• Affirm dance as a way of knowing with a unique capacity to integrate the intellect, emotions, and physical skills.

• Honor dance as a discrete art form, but also encourage students to

see the artistic experience as a unified whole.

• Examine and report on developing abilities of students.

• Connect with students’ real-life experiences of dance.

• Evaluate students primarily through performance.

• Go beyond quantification to include critical judgment.

• Use background variables to recognize differences and inequities in

school resources (large-scale assessments only).

• Address both the processes and products of dance, and expand

the public’s awareness of the importance of each.

• Employ a comprehensive vision of dance education, including

what ought to be in dance education, rather than simply what is.

• Produce information useful to a variety of audiencesstudents,

parents, teachers, administrators, policymakers, artists, and other

community members.

• Sample student performance separately for general and specialized dance programs (large-scale assessments only).

• Reflect a pluralistic view of dance education, both in terms of

individual products and the cultural bases of dance.

Source: NAEP 1997 Arts Education Assessment Framework, National Assessment Governing Board
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the human body both as instrument and thinking medium.

Students progressively develop dance knowledge, skills, techniques, and responses that allow them to use their bodies with

confidence, success, and insight. Physical skills required in

performing dance include coordination, agility, flexibility,

balance, strength, and control of movement. Through dance,

students gain spatial awareness, bodily awareness, musicality,

and an increased ability to observe and refine movement.

Dance also fosters an awareness of historical, cultural, and

stylistic elements involved in the creation and performance of

movement. In dance performance, thought, action, and emotion work together to achieve a single effect.

Responding to dance involves a level of perceptual or observational skill; a description, analysis or interpretation on the

part of the respondent; and sometimes a judgment or evaluation based on criteria that may either be self-constructed or

commonly held by a group or culture. Responding to dance

must include the vital dimension of experiencing, knowing,

and thoughtfully interpreting dance. Whether responding to

one’s own dance or to the dance of others, students should

develop new levels of understanding, insight, and perceptual

acuity as a consequence of interacting with dance.

The Field Test Samples

The fourth- and eighth-grade NAEP dance field tests were

conducted in February 1995. A general population of students

participated. Students were not required to have taken any

dance instruction. About 1,500–2,000 students participated in

each of the two field tests. The field test for grade twelve,

conducted in April 1997, called for a targeted population of

students. Only students who had taken an in-school dance

class during the 1996−97 school year were eligible. About

800 students in 68 public and private schools participated.

NAEP used a targeted sample for the twelfth-grade field test

to fairly assess the students and obtain results that resembled

the breadth of the dance standards. The twelfth-grade field

tests were held to evaluate the validity of the dance tasks,

even though NAEP had determined that it would not conduct

an assessment for twelfth-grade students.

In all three field tests, the dance background of tested students varied widely. The designers of the assessment framework wanted to be as inclusive as possible. However, the experience with the fourth- and eighth-grade field tests suggested that only students with in-school dance education

should participate. To fairly assess the students and obtain

results that resembled the breadth of the dance standards,

NAEP decided to sample only students who had had some

instruction in dance for the twelfth-grade field test. Even so,

students with a single dance course were assessed along with

students with four years of intensive in-school training.

Dance Tasks

NAEP used two types of assessment tasks in the field tests to

present an appropriate overview of dance: paper-and-pencil

tasks and performance tasks. Assessment tasks were prepared

by the Educational Testing Service, under the guidance of a

committee of dance education experts. The fourth-grade field

test devoted 50–60 minutes to the paper-and-pencil tasks and

20 minutes to the performance task, while the eighth- and

twelfth-grade field tests devoted about 50–60 minutes to the

paper-and-pencil tasks and 30 minutes to the performance

task. In all cases, times are approximate only, depending on

the specific tasks involved. The performance task assessed

creating or performing, while the paper-and-pencil tasks assessed students’ abilities to respond to dance.

Table 2.Dance Assessment Framework*

Processes

Creating Performing Responding

• Invent solutions to movement

problems, generating alternatives

and selecting from them.

• Accurately recall and reproduce

movements.

• Identify compositional elements and notice details.

• Follow improvisational and compositional structures.• Demonstrate physical technique. • Identify contexts (stylistic, cultural, social, historical) of

the dance.

• Collaborate to achieve solutions. • Communicate through movement. • Make informed critical observations about the dance’s

and the dancer’s technical and artistic components.

Content

Knowledge Skills

• Understanding of context (personal, social, cultural, and historical) • Perceptual

• Aesthetics • Technical

• Form and Structure • Expressive

• Technical Processes • Intellectual/reflective

*Used in field test only. SOURCE: 1997 NAEP Arts Education Assessment Framework, National Assessment Governing Board
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The NAEP performance tasks are designed to be as authentic

as time and resources permit. However, the tasks must also

offer the same opportunities and the same challenges, in the

same circumstances, for all the students assessed. No comparison across students is possible without such standardization. In the dance field test, such standardization necessitated

limiting “choice” among tasks. For example, within a group

of tasks about a series of dances, students were asked to analyze the same dance for a given question, rather than being

able to choose to analyze a particular dance from the series.

In the performance tasks, all students were asked to engage in

the same dance task for the same period of time.

The dance performance tasks, especially the creating tasks,

differentiate between students at both the low and high ends

of the achievement spectrum. At the low end, it is possible to

measure the difference between students with no training and

those with a little training. At the high end, the tasks provide

sufficient richness and depth so that those with greater skills

can demonstrate the extent of their accomplishments. This

discussion of dance tasks will refer to the twelfth-grade field

test exclusively, since it is the most recent. NAEP plans to

make available to the public all tasks, for all three grades,

both paper-and-pencil and performance, that are not covered

by copyright.

1. Paper-and-Pencil Tasks

The NAEP field test of students’ ability to respond to dance

asked students to observe videotaped dance performances and

answer written questions about them. Questions were multiple

choice, short written response, and extended written response.

Twelfth-grade students were given four different pen-andpencil tasks, or blocks. (Any individual student took two such

blocks.) Each block consisted of approximately five or six

multiple-choice questions and five to seven open-ended

(“constructed-response”) questions.

NAEP allows both partial and full credit for answers to constructed-response tasks. For example, scoring guides for the

field test might give the following criteria for evaluating answers to a short constructed-response question like the one

given in table 3:

Unacceptable: Response provides no correct uses of the costumes.

Partial: Response provides either one specific use of the costumes or one or two general uses of the costumes.

Acceptable: Response provides two specific uses of the costumes.

2. Performance Tasks

The NAEP dance field test used separate tasks to measure

creating and performing. For both tasks, students were led

through an eight-minute warm-up. Warm-ups for the two

tasks differed; the creating warm-up gave the students tasks

emphasizing self-directed movement explorations (“move

your body like a flag in the wind”). A special performance

area was marked out, which allowed the students’ performance to be videotaped in its entirety. Performances were all

taped twice. When four students were being taped (during the

performing task), students switched positions for the second

taping, to ensure visibility of each student’s performance, and

to test students’ ability to remember the dance well enough to

repeat it.

Creating. The creating task for the twelfth-grade field test

gave paired students ten minutes to create a brief dance on the

theme of metamorphosis. Samples of metamorphosis given to

the students included a caterpillar changing to a butterfly, ice

melting to water, fire burning to ashes, and (from films) depictions of humans changing to animals.

Students were asked to begin their dance in one particular

section of the performance area and end it in another, in order

to demonstrate movement that travels to different spots. They

were also given the following additional requirements:

• Begin with a clear, still pose

• Develop using

Two different shapes (using the whole body)

Three different levels (high, middle, low)

Two different movement types (sharp and smooth)

• End in a clear, still pose

Students selected such examples of metamorphosis as seeds to

grain, eggs to birds, and mother caring for child to child caring for mother.

Students who performed the creating task were evaluated on

the following points:

• Did their dance demonstrate smooth or sharp qualities?

• Did their dance demonstrate fast or slow timing?

• Did the dance demonstrate two or more levels?

Table 3. Twelfth-Grade Dance Field Test Scoring

Guide for Paper-and-Pencil Task

Multiple Choice

The movements performed by the dancers in Dance 1 can best be

described as: a) flowing; b) sharp; c) heavy; d) slow

Which of the following technical skills are most often demonstrated by the dancers in Dance 2?

a) abdominal control; b) fluidity of the spine; c) the use of muscular tension; d) high kicks.

Short Constructed-Response

Describe two specific ways in which costumes are an important

part of Dance 1.

Extended Constructed-Response

Compare the way the feet of the dancers are used in Dance 1 and

Dance 2.
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• Did one movement travel at least halfway across the

performance space?

• Did the dance have a clear beginning and a clear ending?

• Was the dance performed smoothly without interruptions?

Performing. The performing task was presented to students

by professional dancers serving as demonstrators. Students

were taught a brief jazz dance, taken at a moderate tempo.

Students learned the dance in pieces, then performed it once

through with the facilitator, and finally performed twice on

their own. These two performances were videotaped.

The dance offered a variety of movements, some sharp and

abrupt, and others extended and flowing. The dance offered

rhythmic variety as well. The dance challenged students’ balance and extension with a sustained leg lift. Students were

told to dance with “focus and expression” for both tasks.

Students’ performance of the dance was evaluated according

to the following criteria:

• Did students reproduce the movement phrase accurately

when the dance facilitator was not demonstrating the

phrase?

• What was the level of students’ movement skills in the

following areas:

• Balance

• Extension of limbs

• Vertical alignment during leg extension

• Clarity in body facings

• Demonstration of movement qualities required in

script

• Did students demonstrate awareness of rhythm of the

phrase by moving on the pulse of the music?

• Did students demonstrate the concept of isolating body

parts?

• Did students accurately repeat the sequence of the entire

movement phrase, moving without hesitation?

• Were students able to connect the phrases and individual

movements of the dance?

The creating task gave students the opportunity to use their

own movement vocabulary, allowing students to display the

full range of their movement ability. For example, in a creating task students can show the flexibility of their spine even

though the task does not specifically call for it. The performing task, in contrast, tested students’ ability to learn and

memorize movements that did not give a complete test of

exceptional students’ abilities, even though beginning students found them demanding.

Field Test Issues

Use of videotape in dance assessment. There are two possible applications of video technology in assessing dance. First,

videotape is a way to provide a stimulus for paper-and-pencil

assessments. (The 1995 field test found video prompts to be

ineffective as stimuli for performing tasks; students with live

facilitators did significantly better than students trying to

perform a dance from a video.) Second, videotape is a reasonably reliable and cost-effective means of recording student

performances. However, certain problems must be addressed.

In the collection of data:

• the presence of the camera may change student responses.

• subtlety and nuance of behavior may be lost in the translation from three to two dimensions.

• it is difficult to position video cameras accurately enough

to see and record every student throughout the entire

task.

As a stimulus for student response, video prompts must be of

good quality and the playback equipment must project an

image large enough to be seen clearly by the students. If

slides or color reproductions of various dance styles can be

used, they would likewise need to be of appropriate size for

individual examination.

Privacy. Precautions should be taken to ensure student privacy. In particular, videotapes of students should be secured

to prevent their viewing by any unauthorized personnel.

Space: Dance assessments require a quiet space for watching

and responding to videotapes. For the performance tasks, a

gym or other spacious, well-lighted room free from obstructions is necessary.

Performance Task Setup. Students should be notified in

advance so that they have time to prepare properly for tasks.

In order to put students at ease, group size for movement activities should be no fewer than three students (although

grade twelve dance-educated students were comfortable in

pairs) and no more than six. Students should be arranged

with adequate space to perform the tasks safely. The arrangement of students should be changed at least once to allow everyone to be observed and to assess student performance independently.

Footnotes

1. For details on the Arts Education Consensus Project, see the Arts Education

Assessment Framework for the 1997 National Assessment of Educational

Progress (1994), the National Assessment Governing Board.

2. In its survey, NAEP identified only nine schools in the nationally representative sample with significant dance programs at the eighth-grade level. At least 50

were needed for a statistically valid survey.

For Further Information

Arts Education Assessment Framework for the 1997 National

Assessment of Educational Progress. Single copies are available free from the National Assessment Governing Board,
6

800 North Capitol Street, NW, Suite 825, Washington, DC

20002–4233. Copies may also be obtained at

http://www.nagb.org/pub.html.

National Standards for Arts Education. Copies available for

$20 from the Music Educators National Conference, 1806

Robert Fulton Drive, Reston VA 20191, 800−336−3768.

Arts Education in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools,

NCES 95−082, provides data obtained from questionnaires

sent to the principals of nationally representative samples of

public schools. It is not in print, but is available over the

NAEP web site at http://nces.ed.gov/NAEP/.

The following Focus on NAEP publications are also available

free from the National Center for Education Statistics, U.S.

Department of Education, Washington, DC 20208−5653.

Copies may also be accessed over the World Wide Web at

http://nces.ed.gov/NAEP/.

The NAEP Arts Education Framework, Field Test, and Assessment, NCES 98−527

NAEP and Music: Framework, Field Test, and Assessment,

NCES 98−529

NAEP and Theatre: Framework, Field Test, and Assessment,

NCES 98−528

NAEP and the Visual Arts: Framework, Field Test, and Assessment, NCES 98−526

The Focus on NAEP series briefly summarizes information

about the ongoing development and implementation of the

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). This

series is a product of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Pascal D. Forgione, Jr., Commissioner, and

Gary W. Phillips, Associate Commissioner for Education

Assessment. This issue was written by Sheida White, of

Education Assessment, and Alan Vanneman, of the Education Statistics Services Institute. For more information, contact Sheida White at 202–219–1675. To order other NAEP

publications, call Bob Clemons at 202–219–1690, or e-mail

bob_clemons@ed.gov.

Information on NAEP may also be obtained over the World

Wide Web at http://nces.ed.gov/NAEP/ .