NAEP Technical Documentation2019 Fourth- and Eighth-Grade Private School National Science Assessment

The fourth- and eighth-grade private school samples for the national science assessment were designed to produce nationally representative samples of students enrolled in fourth and eighth grades in private schools in the United States and to accommodate the administration of the assessment in two modes: digitally based assessment (DBA) on tablets and paper-based assessment (PBA) using paper and pencil. The target sample size for the private school science sample was 2,800 (1,900 DBA and 900 PBA) assessed students at grade 4 and 2,900 (1,900 DBA and 1,000 PBA) at grade 8. Prior to sampling, the target sample sizes were adjusted upward to offset expected school and student attrition due to nonresponse and ineligibility.

Samples were selected using a two-stage probability-based design that involved selection of schools from within strata and selection of students within schools. The first-stage samples of schools were selected with probability proportional to a measure of size based on estimated grade-specific enrollment in the schools.

The sampling of students at the second-stage involved three steps: (1) sampling of students in the targeted grade (fourth or eighth) from each sampled school, (2) assignment of assessment mode (DBA or PBA), and (3) assignment of assessment subject (science) to the sampled students.

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