The NAEP reading framework specifies the particular dimensions of reading literacy to be measured, as well as the percentage of assessment questions that should be devoted to each. The target percentage distribution for the two types of reading—literary and informational—and the cognitive targets in the assessment are presented in the tables below.
| Reading Type | Grade 4 | Grade 8 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Target | Actual | Target | Actual | |||
| Literary | 50 | 51 | 45 | 46 | ||
| Informational | 50 | 49 | 55 | 54 | ||
| SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2011 Reading Assessment. | ||||||
The proportion of items related to each cognitive target changes from grade to grade to reflect the changing demands made of students as they mature.
The tables above show the percentage of time students in a given grade would spend on NAEP items that measure each reading type (literary and informational) if they responded to all items in the NAEP reading assessment.
