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##  The 2001 NAEP in U.S. History. ERIC Digest.                                  

Since its inception by the United States Congress in 1969, the                  National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has collected                information about what students in the United States know and can do            in core subjects of the school curriculum.  NAEP is administered by             the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) in the United             States Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and             Improvement (OERI). NAEPs in United States history were conducted in            1986, 1988, 1994, and 2001.  This Digest discusses (1) the framework            of the 2001 NAEP in U.S. history, (2) the assessment procedures,                and (3) the findings of this national assessment of achievement in              U.S. history by students at grades 4, 8, and 12. THE                          FRAMEWORK.The framework developed for the 1994 NAEP in U.S.                 history was used again in 2001.  Thus the findings of the 1994                  assessment can be compared with those of the 2001 NAEP in U.S.                  history.  A 22-member planning committee composed of historians,                teachers, and history educators took primary responsibility for                 developing a framework to guide the structure and content of the                1994 NAEP in U.S. history.  In addition, several hundred persons --             historians, history educators, school administrators,                           representatives of professional associations, and members of the                general public -- contributed to the framework development by                   participating in public hearings or writing critical reviews of                 drafts of the framework document.  This process yielded the "U.S.               History Framework for the 1994 National Assessment of Educational               Progress," which set specifications for the subsequent development              and administration of the background questions and test items that              constitute the assessment.  This framework also provided the                    structure for interpretation of the assessment results. 
The core              of the framework consists of four themes in U.S. history: 
* Change            and Continuity in American Democracy: Ideas, Institutions,                      Practices, and Controversies 
*  The Gathering and Interactions of             Peoples, Cultures, and Ideas 
*  Economic and Technological Changes            and Their Relation to Society, Ideas, and the Environment 
*  The              Changing Role of America in the World 
The four themes of the                  framework relate to each of the following eight periods of                      history: 
*  Three Worlds and Their Meeting in the                             Americas (Beginnings to 1607) 
*  Colonization, Settlement, and                Communities (1607 to 1763) 
*  The Revolution and the New                      Nation (1763 to 1815) 
*  Expansion and Reform (1801 to 1861) 
*              Crisis of the Union: Civil War and Reconstruction (1850 to                      1877) 
*  The Development of Modern America (1865 to 1920) 
*                 Modern America and the World Wars (1914 to 1945) 
*  Contemporary              America (1945 to Present) 
The framework specifies ways of knowing             and thinking about U.S. history.  Two cognitive levels were                     considered when developing the exercises for the national                       assessment: (1) a lower cognitive level involving recall and                    comprehension of knowledge and recognition of perspectives of                   different persons and groups in history and (2) a higher cognitive              level involving analysis and interpretation of issues and events and            use of evidence to make warranted generalizations about the                     past. ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES.Common test items of the 1994 and             2001 assessments in U.S. history measured the knowledge and                     cognitive skills components of the framework. The assessment                    included both multiple choice items and constructed-response items,             open-ended questions that challenge students to use information and             ideas to express in writing their thoughts on sources and events in             history.  In line with the framework, most of the assessment time               involved exercises that required students to use higher-level                   thinking skills. 
Comparable procedures were used to sample and                assess the student population in 1994 and 2001.  The 2001 NAEP, like            the 1994 national assessment, was administered to representative                national samples of both public and nonpublic school students.                  Approximately 29,000 students were sampled: 7,000 4th graders,                  11,000 8th graders, and 11,000 12th graders. The national sample                consisted of 1,108 schools: 365 at grade 4, 369 at grade 8, and 374             at grade 12. 
Students responded to U.S. history assessment items              and questionnaires about personal characteristics and experiences               possibly related to achievement in U.S. history.  Teachers of the               student respondents completed questionnaires about curricular                   content and classroom practices. FINDINGS.Results for each                grade -- fourth, eighth, and twelfth -- are reported according to               three achievement levels: Basic, Proficient, and Advanced. The Basic            level indicates partial mastery of knowledge and skills that are                prerequisites for competency in U.S. history.  The Proficient level             signifies competent academic performance in the knowledge and skills            of U.S. history.  The Advanced level designates superior performance            in U.S. history.  The particular knowledge and skills denoted by                each achievement level were determined and the distinctions between             achievement levels were set by broadly representative panels of                 experts (e.g., master teachers, historians, education specialists,              and members of the general public). Thus, the achievement levels                represent collective judgments about what students should know and              be able to do in U.S. history at grades 4, 8, and 12. 
Sixty-seven             percent of fourth graders, 64 percent of eighth graders, and 43                 percent of twelfth graders attained the Basic level.  Eighteen                  percent of fourth graders, 17 percent of eighth graders, and 11                 percent of twelfth graders achieved the Proficient level.  Two                  percent of fourth graders, 2 percent of eighth graders, and 1                   percent of twelfth graders reached the Advanced level.  The                     achievement of 4th and 8th graders rose slightly between 2001 and               1994.  At 12th grade average scores and achievement of students                 stayed the same in 2001 as in 1994. 
In general, the results of the            2001 NAEP in U.S. history are as disappointing as those of 1994.  A             striking indicator of disappointing performance is the high                     percentage of students in grades 4, 8, and 12 who did not reach even            the Basic level of achievement.  Thirty-three percent of fourth                 graders, 36 percent of eighth graders, and 57 percent of twelfth                graders were at the Below Basic level. 
Performances on both the               1994 and 2001 NAEP in U.S. history varied significantly by certain              group memberships.  At all grades, for example, students identified             as white and Asian/Pacific Islander tended to score higher than did             those identified as black or Hispanic; however, the gap in                      achievement between white and black 4th graders was smaller in the              2001 NAEP than it was in the 1994 assessment.  And the gap between              white and Hispanic 12th graders narrowed from the 1994 to the 2001              NAEP in U.S. history. 
In 2001 as in 1994, students in nonpublic               schools tended to perform better than did students in public                    schools.  And students in Catholic schools scored higher than                   students in other nonpublic schools and students in public                      schools. 
At all three grade levels, students who qualified for the            federally funded free or reduced-price school lunch program tended              to score lower on this assessment than students ineligible for this             program.  This finding suggests there may be a general relationship             between lower socioeconomic status and lower achievement in U.S.                history. 
Certain instructional activities and classroom                       experiences were related to achievement in U.S. history as measured             by the 2001 national assessment.  For example, a negative general               relationship existed between daily general use of computers in                  social studies or history classes and student achievement; however,             relatively few students reported using a computer in social studies             or history classes. A positive relationship emerged when 8th and                12th graders used computers for specific instructional activities               such as conducting research and writing reports on topics in U.S.               history. 
There was a positive relationship between more time spent            in 4th grade classrooms on the teaching and learning of history and             student achievement.  Further, 4th graders who spent more time                  reading and learning from a textbook achieved higher assessment                 scores than those who spent less time in this kind of instructional             activity. 
Eighth graders who used primary source materials weekly             earned higher average national assessment scores than those who                 experienced less or no use of this kind of instructional material.              Twelfth graders who read biographies and other kinds of stories in              history performed better than those who never experienced this kind             of classroom assignment. SOURCES OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE NAEP IN             U.S. HISTORY.Information in this Digest is from "The Nation's               Report Card: U.S. History 2001."  To order this publication or any              other NAEP-related products, contact Education Publications                     Center (ED Pubs), U.S. Department of Education, P.O. Box 1398,                  Jessup, MD 20794-1398; toll-free 877-433-7827; FAX 301-470-1244.                This publication is also available from the ERIC Document                       Reproduction Service (EDRS), 7420 Fullerton Road, Suite 110,                    Springfield, VA 22153-2852; toll-free 800-443-3742. 
The NAEP Web              site contains information about the NAEP in U.S. history and general            information about assessment, publications, and analysis tools used             by various NAEP projects                                                        http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard. REFERENCES AND ERIC                     RESOURCES.The following list of resources includes references               used to prepare this Digest.  The items followed by an ED number are            available in microfiche and/or paper copies from the ERIC Document              Reproduction Service (EDRS).  For information about prices, contact             EDRS, 7420 Fullerton Road, Suite 110, Springfield, Virginia                     22153-2852; telephone numbers are (703) 440-1400 and (800)                      443-3742.  Entries followed by an EJ number, annotated monthly in               CURRENT INDEX TO JOURNALS IN EDUCATION (CIJE), are not available                through EDRS.  However, they can be located in the journal section              of most larger libraries by using the bibliographic information                 provided, requested through Interlibrary Loan, or ordered from                  commercial reprint services. 
Beatty, Alexandra S., and Others.                NAEP 1994 U.S. HISTORY REPORT CARD: FINDINGS FROM THE NATIONAL                  ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS. Washington, DC: U.S. Department             of Education, 1996.  ED 398 139. 
Hammock, David C., and Others.               HISTORY REPORT CARD: THE ACHIEVEMENT OF FOURTH, EIGHTH, AND TWELFTH             GRADE STUDENTS IN 1988 AND TRENDS FROM 1986 TO 1988 IN THE FACTUAL              KNOWLEDGE OF HIGH SCHOOL JUNIORS.  Washington, DC: U.S. Department              of Education, 1990.  ED 315 377. 
Jones, Lyle V.  "A History of the            National Assessment of Educational Progress and Some Questions about            Its Future."  EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER 25 (October 1996): 15-22.  EJ              537 026. 
Lapp, Michael S., Wendy S. Grigg, and Brenda S. H.                   Tay-Lim. THE NATION'S REPORT CARD: U.S. HISTORY 2001.  Washington,              DC: U.S. Department of Education, 2002. 
NAEP U.S. History                     Consensus Project.  THE U.S. HISTORY FRAMEWORK FOR THE 1994 AND 2001            NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS. Washington, DC:                    National Assessment Governing Board, 2000.  ED 444 928. 
Reed,                 Elaine Wrisley.  HELPING YOUR CHILD LEARN HISTORY.  Washington, DC:             U.S. Department of Education, 1993.  ED 364 442. 
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This                 project has been funded at least in part with Federal funds from the            U.S. Department of Education under contract number ED-99-CO-0016.               The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the                views or policies of the U.S. Department of Education nor does                  mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply             endorsement by the U.S. Government.  ERIC Digests are in the public             domain and may be freely reproduced and disseminated. 
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John            J. Patrick is Director of the ERIC Clearinghouse for Social                     Studies/Social Science Education, Director of the Social Studies                Development Center, and Professor of Education at Indiana                       University.  He was a member of the Planning Committees for the 1994            and 2001 NAEP U.S. History Projects.  He is a member of the NAEP                U.S. History Standing Committee.                                             **Title:** The 2001 NAEP in U.S. History. ERIC Digest.                                  **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education, 2805            East Tenth Street, Suite 120, Bloomington, IN 47408. Tel:                       800-266-3815 (Toll Free); Fax: 812-855-0455; e-mail:                            [email protected]; Web site: http://ericso.indiana.edu/.                    **Descriptors:** Elementary Secondary Education,  Evaluation Methods, Grade 12, Grade            4, Grade 8,  National Competency Tests, Performance, Social Studies,             Student Evaluation,  United States History                                  **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests,  National Assessment of Educational Progress                   
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