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-------- ACHIEVEMENT INDICATORS -------- International Achievement in Mathematics and Science Reading Achievement Mathematics Achievement -------- OTHER INDICATORS -------- Dropout Rates Public School Revenues and Expenditures School Crime and Safety High School Transcripts, 2005 Bachelor's Degree Recipients, 10 Years Later -------- PAST INDICATORS -------- Dropout Rates, 2005 International Performance of U.S. 15-Year-Old Students in Science and Mathematics Literacy Public School Revenues and Expenditures Mathematics Achievement Reading Achievement Dropout Rates Computer and Internet Use High School Career and Technical Education (CTE) Students Food and Exercise in Elementary Schools Trends in Adult Literacy First Generation Students in Postsecondary Education Mathematics Achievement Reading Achievement The High School Senior Class of 2004 Trends in Academic Progress Dropout Rates 2002 Dual Credit in U.S. Public High Schools Gender Differences in Postsecondary Education School Crime and Safety, 2002 International Comparisons in Science and Math Trends in Education Equity of Girls and Women Full-day and Half-day Kindergarten Reading Achievement Mathematics Achievement Dropout Rate 2001 Trends in Academic Progress International Comparisons in Reading Literacy Postsecondary Enrollment of Language Minorities Volunteer Service Civics Achievement Geography Achievement History Achievement Science Achievement Writing Achievement The High School Transcript Study Postsecondary Remedial Education Student Victimization Out-of-Field Teaching Postsecondary Attainment School Crime and Safety, 2001 Internet Access

History Achievement

Average Scale Score Results

In 2001, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) conducted a national U.S. history assessment of fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-grade students. In the figures below, student performance is described by average scores on the NAEP U.S. history scale, which ranges from 0 to 500. The results show improvement in student performance over the 1994 results at grades 4 and 8, but do not show a statistically significant change at grade 12. Figure 1 presents the average U.S. history scale scores for the nation for fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-graders attending both public and nonpublic schools in 1994 and 2001.

Figure 1. Average U.S. history scale scores, grades 4, 8, and 12: 1994 and 2001

Significantly different from 1994.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education. Office of Educational Research and Improvement. National Center for Education Statistics. The Nation’s Report Card: U.S. History 2001, NCES 2002-483, by M. S. Lapp, W. S. Grigg, & Brenda S.-H. Tay-Lim. Washington, DC: 2002.

View Table 1.

Scale Scores by Percentile

One way to view students' scale score performance on the U.S. history assessment is by looking at the scale scores attained by students across the performance distribution. The percentile indicates the percentage of students whose scores fell below a particular average score. The advantage of looking at the data this way is that it reveals changes in performance for both lower- and higher-performing students. Figure 2 presents the U.S. history scale scores for grades 4, 8, and 12 at the 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, and 90th percentiles for both the 1994 and the 2001 assessments.

At grade 4, the scale scores at the lower percentiles (10th and 25th) were higher in 2001 than in 1994. At the other percentiles for grade 4, apparent changes since 1994 were not statistically significant. Increases in average scores at grade 8 were evident among students at both the lower percentile (25th) and the upper percentiles (75th and 90th). At the 10th and 50th percentiles, however, apparent changes since 1994 were not statistically significant. There were no statistically significant changes in average scores when viewed across the score distribution at grade 12.

Figure 2. U.S. history scale scores percentiles, grades 4, 8, and 12: 1994 and 2001

Significantly different from 1994.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education. Office of Educational Research and Improvement. National Center for Education Statistics. The Nation’s Report Card: U.S. History 2001, NCES 2002-483, by M. S. Lapp, W. S. Grigg, & Brenda S.-H. Tay-Lim. Washington, DC: 2002.

View Table 2.

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