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NAEP Instruments → Contextual Items (Survey Questionnaires) → Indices Based on Questionnaire Data → Development of the 2018 Grade 8 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Indices

NAEP Technical DocumentationDevelopment of the 2018 Grade 8 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Indices

For the 2018 grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) assessment, several indices of policy interest were developed that satisfied both theoretical criteria based on content analysis, and empirical criteria based on multivariate statistical techniques. This resulted in the creation of several new reporting elements. The development of the grade 8 TEL indices can be summarized in three main steps:

1. Question development. New sets of contextual items, such as those exploring students’ persistence in learning and their enjoyment of complex problems, were developed and included in the TEL student questionnaire. Through content analysis as part of the item development process, only sets of items that were theoretically interpretable and meaningful as a conceptual unit were included as potential indices to measure specific constructs of interest.

2. Examination of empirical relationships. Factor analysis was used to explore and verify the empirical properties of the data. Construct validity of the potential indices was evaluated through factorial validity with respect to the survey question responses, and the convergent and discriminant validity of the factor with respect to other factors. If the factor had the expected pattern of relationships and non-relationships, the construct validity of the factor as representing the intended index was supported.

3. Index scoring. The partial credit item response theory (IRT) model was used to scale the indices. Scaling of the index items was first conducted to get the item parameters and was based on marginal maximum likelihood methodologies. After the parameters were estimated, expected a posteriori (EAP) scores were calculated as the estimate of the index score. Then, the EAP scores were transformed to have a mean of 10 and a standard deviation of 2 on a scale from 0–20.

Index of Students' Persistence in Learning

The table below presents the items forming the index of students' persistence in learning. This index was designed to measure students' tendency to persevere and work hard in the face of challenges. Grade 8 students were asked to indicate how much each of the four statement items described a person like them (not at all like me, a little bit like me, somewhat like me, quite a bit like me, or very much like me).

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' persistence in learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
How much does each of the following statements describe a person like you? Select one answer choice on each row.
Response categories
Item			Not at all like me	A little bit like me	Somewhat like me	Quite a bit like me	Very much like me
B034901	a.	I finish whatever I begin.	A	B	C	D	E
B034902	b.	I try very hard even after making mistakes.	A	B	C	D	E
B034903	c.	I keep working hard even when I feel like quitting.	A	B	C	D	E
B034904	d.	I keep trying to improve myself, even when it takes a long time to get there.	A	B	C	D	E
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Index of Students' Academic Self-Discipline

The table below presents the items forming the index of students' academic self-discipline. This index was designed to measure students' tendency to pay attention and stay on task when learning. Grade 8 students were asked to indicate how often they have done each of the four statement items (never or hardly ever, less than half of the time, about half of the time, more than half of the time, or all or almost all of the time).

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' academic self-discipline, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
In this school year, how often have you done each of the following? Select one answer choice on each row.
Response categories
Item			Never or hardly ever	Less than half of the time	About half of the time	More than half of the time	All or almost all of the time
B035001	a.	I started working on assignments right away rather than waiting until the last minute.	A	B	C	D	E
B035002	b.	I paid attention and resisted distractions.	A	B	C	D	E
B035003	c.	I stayed on task without reminders from my teacher.	A	B	C	D	E
B035004	d.	I paid attention in class even when I was not interested.	A	B	C	D	E
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Index of Students' Enjoyment of Complex Problems

The table below presents the items forming the index of students' enjoyment of complex problems. This index was designed to measure students' enjoyment of problems and activities that challenge them to think. Grade 8 students were asked to indicate how much each of the four statement items described a person like them (not at all like me, a little bit like me, somewhat like me, quite a bit like me, or very much like me).

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' enjoyment of complex problems, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
How much does each of the following statements describe a person like you? Select one answer choice on each row.
Response categories
Item			Not at all like me	A little bit like me	Somewhat like me	Quite a bit like me	Very much like me
B035101	a.	I like complex problems more than easy problems.	A	B	C	D	E
B035102	b.	I like activities that challenge my thinking abilities.	A	B	C	D	E
B035103	c.	I enjoy situations where I will have to think about something.	A	B	C	D	E
B035104	d.	I enjoy thinking about new solutions to problems.	A	B	C	D	E
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Index of TEL Confidence

The table below presents the items forming the index of students’ TEL confidence. This index was designed to measure students’ belief in their abilities to do various technology and engineering-related tasks. Grade 8 students were asked to indicate their confidence in doing the task described in each of eight items (I definitely can’t, I probably can’t, maybe, I probably can, or I definitely can).

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' TEL confidence, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Do you think that you would be able to do each of the following? Select one answer choice on each row.
Response categories
Item			I definitely can't	I probably can't	Maybe	I probably can	I definitely can
D812201	a.	Create presentations with sound, pictures, or video	A	B	C	D	E
D812202	b.	Organize information into a chart, graph, or spreadsheet	A	B	C	D	E
D812203	c.	Compare products using the Internet	A	B	C	D	E
D812204	d.	Use tools or materials to fix something	A	B	C	D	E
D812205	e.	Take something apart in order to fix it or see how it works	A	B	C	D	E
D812206	f.	Describe how inventions change society	A	B	C	D	E
D812207	g.	Compare how different activities affect the environment	A	B	C	D	E
D812208	h.	Explain why people have different tools, machines, or devices in different parts of the world	A	B	C	D	E
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Indices of Technology and Society Related Learning

Two indices were designed to measure students’ learning of technology and society related topics. For the first index, grade 8 students responded to six items related to the frequency with which they learned about technology and society related topics in school (never, rarely, sometimes, or often). For the second index, students responded to four items related to the frequency with which they learned about technology and society related topics outside of school (never, rarely, sometimes, or often). The tables below present the items making up the index of students’ in-school learning and outside-of-school learning, respectively.

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' Technology and Society related in-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
In school, how often do you learn about or discuss the following? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never	Rarely	Sometimes	Often
D812001	a.	How to judge reliability of sources (for example, how a website might be biased or inaccurate)	A	B	C	D
D812101	b.	How to credit others for their ideas (for example, citing sources, using endnotes and footnotes in reports)	A	B	C	D
In school, how often have you learned about or discussed the following? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never	Rarely	Sometimes	Often
D805201	a.	Inventions that change the way people live	A	B	C	D
D805301	b.	Choices people make that affect the environment	A	B	C	D
D805401	c.	Conditions that influence the use or availability of machines or devices	A	B	C	D
D805501	d.	The ways people work together to solve problems in their community or the world	A	B	C	D
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' Technology and Society related outside-of-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Outside of school, how often have you learned about or discussed the following? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never	Rarely	Sometimes	Often
D805601	a.	Inventions that change the way people live	A	B	C	D
D805701	b.	Choices people make that affect the environment	A	B	C	D
D805801	c.	Conditions that influence the use or availability of machines or devices	A	B	C	D
D805901	d.	The ways people work together to solve problems in their community or the world	A	B	C	D
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Indices of Design and Systems Related Learning

Two indices were designed to measure students’ engagement in design and systems related learning activities. For the first index, grade 8 students responded to six items related to the frequency with which they engaged in design and systems related learning activities at school. (See the table below for response categories for the six questions.) For the second index, students responded to five items related to the frequency with which they engaged in design and systems related learning activities outside of school (never, once or twice, three to five times, or more than five times). The tables below present the items forming the index of students’ in-school learning and outside-of-school learning, respectively.

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' Design and Systems related in-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
In school, how often have you learned about or discussed the following? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never	Rarely	Sometimes	Often
D801601	a.	Designing or creating something to solve a problem	A	B	C	D
D801701	b.	Designing something when there is limited time, money, or materials	A	B	C	D
In school, how often have you ever done the following activities? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never	Once or twice	Three to five times	More than five times
D809301	a.	Used different tools, materials, or machines to see which are best for a given purpose	A	B	C	D
D809401	b.	Built or tested a model to see if it solves a problem	A	B	C	D
D809601	c.	Figured out why something is not working in order to fix it	A	B	C	D
D809501	d.	Taken something apart in order to fix it or see how it works	A	B	C	D
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' Design and Systems related outside-of-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Outside of school, how often have you ever done the following activities? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never	Once or twice	Three to five times	More than five times
D810001	a.	Used tools or materials to plan or design something (for example, cake recipe, party)	A	B	C	D
D810101	b.	Used different tools, materials, or machines to see which are best for a given purpose	A	B	C	D
D810301	c.	Built or tested a model to see if it solves a problem	A	B	C	D
D810201	d.	Figured out why something is not working in order to fix it	A	B	C	D
D810401	e.	Taken something apart in order to fix it or see how it works	A	B	C	D
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Index of Computer Use

The table below presents the items forming the index of students’ computer use. This index was designed to measure students’ use of computers or other digital technology for school work and not for school work. Grade 8 students were asked to indicate the frequency with which they use a computer or other digital technology for the activity described in each of six items (never or almost never, a few times a year, once or twice a month, once or twice a week, or every day or almost every day).

Items in the index of eighth-grade students' computer use in TEL, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
For school work, how often do you use a computer or other digital technology for the following activities? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never or almost never	A few times a year	Once or twice a month	Once or twice a week	Every day or almost every day
D803701	a.	Create, edit, or organize digital media	A	B	C	D	E
D803901	b.	Create a presentation	A	B	C	D	E
D804001	c.	Create a spreadsheet (a table or grid that displays data into columns and rows and may be used to create charts and graphs)	A	B	C	D	E
In this question, please think about activities you do that are not related to your school work. How often do you use a computer or other digital technology for the following activities not for school work? Select one circle in each row.
Response categories
Item			Never or almost never	A few times a year	Once or twice a month	Once or twice a week	Every day or almost every day
D804301	a.	Create, edit, or organize digital media	A	B	C	D	E
D804501	b.	Create a presentation	A	B	C	D	E
D804601	c.	Create a spreadsheet (a table or grid that displays data into columns and rows and may be used to create charts and graphs)	A	B	C	D	E
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Index Item Scoring

For each index item, the response categories were scored as numerical values (e.g., for an item with five response categories, category A was scored as 1, B was scored as 2, C was scored as 3, D was scored as 4, and E was scored as 5). For three of the 2018 grade 8 TEL indices, item response categories were collapsed; scores for a five-category item thus became 1, 2, 3, and 4 after collapsing. The table below describes the treatment of the index items.

Recoding of polytomous items for scaling, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by index: 2018
Item	Index	Reason for decision	Disposition
B034901	Persistence in learning	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B034902	Persistence in learning	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B034903	Persistence in learning	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B034904	Persistence in learning	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035001	Academic self-discipline	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035002	Academic self-discipline	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035003	Academic self-discipline	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035004	Academic self-discipline	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035101	Enjoyment of complex problems	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035102	Enjoyment of complex problems	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035103	Enjoyment of complex problems	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
B035104	Enjoyment of complex problems	To improve model-data fit	Collapse categories: 1,2,3,4,5 becomes 1,1,2,3,4
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT Parameters

The partial credit IRT model was used to scale the indices. Scaling of the index items was first conducted to get the item parameters and was based on marginal maximum likelihood methodologies. The following tables show the IRT parameters for the 2018 grade 8 TEL indices.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' persistence in learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
B034901	-0.32	0.92	0.10	-1.02	†	†
B034902	-0.59	0.75	0.08	-0.83	†	†
B034903	-0.39	0.74	0.00	-0.74	†	†
B034904	-0.84	0.60	0.04	-0.65	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' academic self-discipline, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
B035001	0.05	0.74	-0.03	-0.72	†	†
B035002	-0.15	0.93	0.06	-0.98	†	†
B035003	-0.42	0.72	0.00	-0.72	†	†
B035004	-0.23	0.69	0.07	-0.76	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' enjoyment of complex problems, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
B035101	0.52	0.76	0.00	-0.77	†	†
B035102	0.01	0.71	0.01	-0.72	†	†
B035103	0.04	0.74	0.03	-0.77	†	†
B035104	-0.08	0.63	0.01	-0.64	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' TEL confidence, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
D812201	-1.00	0.36	0.71	-0.27	-0.79	†
D812202	-0.97	0.72	0.55	-0.30	-0.97	†
D812203	-1.10	0.67	0.56	-0.34	-0.89	†
D812204	-0.93	0.84	0.63	-0.38	-1.10	†
D812205	-0.68	0.83	0.54	-0.39	-0.98	†
D812206	-0.67	0.90	0.57	-0.38	-1.09	†
D812207	-0.77	0.87	0.67	-0.36	-1.17	†
D812208	-0.70	0.82	0.57	-0.33	-1.07	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' Technology and Society related in-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
D812001	-0.24	0.89	0.25	-1.14	†	†
D812101	-0.69	0.62	0.16	-0.78	†	†
D805201	-0.34	0.92	0.27	-1.19	†	†
D805301	-0.60	1.00	0.22	-1.22	†	†
D805401	-0.17	1.13	0.17	-1.31	†	†
D805501	-0.53	0.93	0.19	-1.11	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' Technology and Society related outside-of-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
D805601	-0.04	1.11	0.05	-1.17	†	†
D805701	-0.26	1.10	0.10	-1.20	†	†
D805801	0.06	1.16	0.06	-1.22	†	†
D805901	-0.18	1.06	0.05	-1.12	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' Design and Systems related in-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
D801601	-0.37	1.11	0.14	-1.25	†	†
D801701	-0.02	1.03	0.10	-1.13	†	†
D809301	0.10	1.05	-0.19	-0.85	†	†
D809401	0.22	0.96	-0.16	-0.80	†	†
D809601	0.06	0.83	-0.13	-0.70	†	†
D809501	0.49	0.62	-0.15	-0.48	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' Design and Systems related outside-of-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
D810001	-0.51	0.71	-0.23	-0.49	†	†
D810101	-0.08	0.83	-0.16	-0.67	†	†
D810301	0.25	0.75	-0.13	-0.62	†	†
D810201	-0.45	0.77	-0.15	-0.61	†	†
D810401	-0.11	0.62	-0.21	-0.42	†	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

IRT parameters for items in the index of eighth-grade students' computer use in TEL, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment: 2018
Item	b_j	d_j1	d_j2	d_j3	d_j4	d_j5
D803701	0.22	0.54	0.30	-0.14	-0.70	†
D803901	0.11	1.51	0.45	-0.75	-1.21	†
D804001	0.56	0.87	0.17	-0.29	-0.75	†
D804301	0.42	0.29	0.18	-0.10	-0.38	†
D804501	0.81	0.54	0.42	-0.29	-0.68	†
D804601	0.93	0.38	0.28	-0.14	-0.52	†
† Not applicable. NOTE: The number of dji parameters is one less than the number of categories for the item. For items scaled with the partial credit model, parameters a and c are not estimated. The a parameter value is exactly one and the c parameter is exactly zero. For item j, bj represents a location parameter related to item difficulty, and dji represents the category threshold parameter for category i of item j; dji may not sum to zero because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response Averages and Transformed Scores

After the parameters were estimated, EAP scores were calculated as the estimate of the index score, and transformed to a reporting scale of 0–20. The tables below show the response averages and transformed scale scores for each of the grade 8 TEL indices. Note that response averages represent the average scored responses after score collapsing (if there was any collapsing). Each response average corresponds to one transformed score. The increment used for increases in the response average is determined by the number of items that form an index. For example, an index with four items would have response averages that increase by an increment of 1 / 4 or 0.25, while an index with five items would have response averages that increase by an increment of 1 / 5 or 0.20.

As a reporting aid, index scores were divided into a range of categories or classifications (e.g., low, moderate, high; never, rarely, sometimes, often). The cut points selected to divide the index scores into meaningful categories were based on the distributions of the response average of each index.

As an example, for the index of TEL confidence, grade 8 students were classified as follows:

Students with a response average less than 2.13 were classified as can't on the index. That is, students who on average responded closest to I definitely can't on a question with the five response options I definitely can't, I probably can't, maybe, I probably can, and I definitely can were classified as having a low level of TEL confidence.
Students with a response average greater than or equal to 2.13 to less than 4 were classified as maybe on the index and having a moderate level of TEL confidence.
Finally, students with a response average greater than or equal to 4 were classified as can on the index. That is, students who on average responded closest to definitely can were classified as having a high level of TEL confidence.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' persistence in learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Low	1.00	5.8	2
	1.25	6.6	2
	1.50	7.2	3
	1.75	7.7	4
Moderate	2.00	8.2	6
	2.25	8.6	6
	2.50	9.0	9
	2.75	9.5	9
High	3.00	9.9	12
	3.25	10.4	11
	3.50	11.0	12
	3.75	11.8	11
	4.00	12.8	13
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' academic self-discipline, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Low	1.00	6.3	3
	1.25	7.2	3
	1.50	7.8	4
	1.75	8.3	6
Moderate	2.00	8.8	9
	2.25	9.2	9
	2.50	9.7	10
	2.75	10.1	10
High	3.00	10.5	10
	3.25	11.0	10
	3.50	11.6	9
	3.75	12.3	7
	4.00	13.2	7
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' enjoyment of complex problems, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Low	1.00	6.8	12
	1.25	7.7	7
	1.50	8.4	6
	1.75	8.9	7
Moderate	2.00	9.4	10
	2.25	9.8	7
	2.50	10.2	8
	2.75	10.6	8
High	3.00	11.0	8
	3.25	11.5	6
	3.50	12.0	6
	3.75	12.7	5
	4.00	13.6	8
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' TEL confidence, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Can't	1.00	4.4	1
	1.13	4.9	#
	1.25	5.3	#
	1.38	5.7	#
	1.50	5.9	#
	1.63	6.2	#
	1.75	6.4	#
	1.88	6.6	#
	2.00	6.8	1
Maybe	2.13	7.0	1
	2.25	7.2	1
	2.38	7.4	1
	2.50	7.5	1
	2.63	7.7	1
	2.75	7.9	1
	2.88	8.1	2
	3.00	8.3	5
	3.13	8.4	3
	3.25	8.6	3
	3.38	8.8	4
	3.50	9.0	4
	3.63	9.2	5
	3.75	9.5	5
	3.88	9.7	6
Can	4.00	9.9	8
	4.13	10.2	6
	4.25	10.4	5
	4.38	10.7	6
	4.50	11.1	6
	4.63	11.5	5
	4.75	11.9	5
	4.88	12.6	4
	5.00	13.4	9
# Rounds to zero. NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' Technology and Society related in-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Never	1.00	5.4	1
	1.17	6.1	#
	1.33	6.7	1
Rarely	1.50	7.1	1
	1.67	7.5	2
	1.83	7.8	2
	2.00	8.2	3
	2.17	8.5	4
	2.33	8.8	6
Sometimes	2.50	9.2	7
	2.67	9.5	9
	2.83	9.9	9
	3.00	10.3	13
	3.17	10.7	11
	3.33	11.1	10
Often	3.50	11.6	7
	3.67	12.2	6
	3.83	12.9	4
	4.00	13.9	3
# Rounds to zero. NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' Technology and Society related outside-of-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Never	1.00	6.0	9
Never	1.25	7.0	2
Rarely	1.50	7.7	3
	1.75	8.3	3
	2.00	8.9	12
	2.25	9.4	7
Sometimes	2.50	9.9	10
	2.75	10.4	9
	3.00	11.0	17
	3.25	11.6	7
Often	3.50	12.2	7
	3.75	13.0	4
	4.00	14.0	9
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' Design and Systems related in-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Never	1.00	6.0	2
	1.17	6.8	2
	1.33	7.5	3
Rarely	1.50	8.0	4
	1.67	8.5	5
	1.83	8.9	6
	2.00	9.2	8
	2.17	9.6	8
	2.33	9.9	9
Sometimes	2.50	10.3	9
	2.67	10.6	9
	2.83	10.9	8
	3.00	11.2	7
	3.17	11.5	5
	3.33	11.9	4
Often	3.50	12.3	3
	3.67	12.8	3
	3.83	13.3	2
	4.00	14.2	2
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' Design and Systems related outside-of-school learning, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Never	1.00	6.0	5
	1.20	6.9	3
	1.40	7.5	4
Once or twice	1.60	8.0	5
	1.80	8.5	5
	2.00	8.9	9
	2.20	9.2	7
	2.40	9.6	8
Three to five times	2.60	9.9	8
	2.80	10.2	7
	3.00	10.5	9
	3.20	10.9	6
	3.40	11.3	5
More than five times	3.60	11.8	5
	3.80	12.4	4
	4.00	13.3	10
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Response averages and transformed scores for the index of eighth-grade students' computer use in TEL, grade 8 technology and engineering literacy (TEL) national assessment, by classification: 2018
Classification	Response average	Transformed score	Percentage of students
Never	1.00	6.7	2
	1.17	7.6	3
	1.33	8.3	5
A few times a year	1.50	8.8	6
	1.67	9.2	8
	1.83	9.5	7
	2.00	9.8	9
	2.17	10.0	7
	2.33	10.2	8
Once or twice a month	2.50	10.4	7
	2.67	10.6	7
	2.83	10.8	5
	3.00	11.0	7
	3.17	11.2	4
	3.33	11.4	4
Once or twice a week	3.50	11.6	3
	3.67	11.8	2
	3.83	12.0	2
	4.00	12.2	2
	4.17	12.5	1
	4.33	12.7	1
Daily	4.50	13.1	1
	4.67	13.4	#
	4.83	13.9	#
	5.00	14.6	1
# Rounds to zero. NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2018 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment.

Last updated 31 March 2025 (SK)

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​​​​​​​​​​NAEP Technical DocumentationDevelopment of the 2018 Grade 8 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Indices

NAEP Technical DocumentationDevelopment of the 2018 Grade 8 Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Indices