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Table E-19-1.  Percentage distribution of students at National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) science achievement levels, by race/ethnicity, sex, grade, and achievement level: 2009

Grade and
achievement level
Total1   Race/ethnicity
  White   Black   Hispanic   Asian/Pacific Islander2   American Indian/Alaska Native   Two or more races
Total Male Female   Total Male Female   Total Male Female   Total Male Female   Total Male Female   Total Male Female   Total Male Female
4th grade                                                      
Below Basic 28 27 28   13 13 14   53 54 53   47 46 48   19 20 19   43 43 44  
At or above Basic 72 73 72   87 87 86   47 46 47   53 54 52   81 80 81   57 57 56  
At or above Proficient 34 35 32   47 49 45   11 10 11   14 15 13   45 44 45   17 17 17  
At Advanced 1 1 1   1 1 1   # # #   # # #   2 2 2   # # #  
8th grade                                                      
Below Basic 37 35 38   22 21 24   67 67 67   57 54 61   27 26 28   52 47 57  
At or above Basic 63 65 62   78 79 76   33 33 33   43 46 39   73 74 72   48 53 43  
At or above Proficient 30 34 27   42 46 37   8 9 8   12 15 10   41 44 37   17 22 12  
At Advanced 2 2 1   2 3 1   # # #   # # #   3 4 2   # # #  
12th grade                                                      
Below Basic 40 37 42   28 26 31   71 69 73   58 53 63   27 29 26   47  
At or above Basic 60 63 58   72 74 69   29 31 27   42 47 37   73 71 74   53  
At or above Proficient 21 24 18   27 32 22   4 5 4   8 11 6   36 32 39   13  
At Advanced 1 2 1   2 3 1   # # #   # 1 #   4 5 4   #  
— Not available.
# Rounds to zero.
‡ Reporting standards not met (too few cases).
1Total includes other racial/ethnic groups not shown separately in the table.
2Separate estimates for Asians and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders were not available.
NOTE: NAEP achievement levels define what students should know and be able to do. Basic denotes partial mastery of knowledge and skills that are fundamental for proficient work at a given grade. Proficient represents solid academic performance. Students reaching this level have demonstrated competency over challenging subject matter. Advanced signifies superior performance. NAEP reports data on student race/ethnicity based on information obtained from school rosters. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2009 Science Assessment, NAEP Data Explorer.