2017 Mathematics Process Data: grade 8

As schools in the United States are increasingly using digital technology in the classroom to teach and assess students, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has moved forward to align with these practices. NAEP’s transition from paper-based to digitally based administration provides an engaging assessment experience for students and aligns with the delivery mode of many other large-scale assessments. Importantly, this transition to digitally based assessment (DBA) also allows NAEP to use tools available in digital platforms to measure content in new ways; to use assistive technology to provide enhanced accommodations for students with special needs; and to collect new types of data that deepen our understanding of what students know and can do, including how they engage with new technologies to approach problem solving.

In 2017, the NAEP mathematics assessment was administered for the first time as a DBA at grades 4 and 8. The digital platform allowed for the collection of new data within the testing system, including information on how students used onscreen tools to develop their responses to the assessment questions. These new data are called response process data. To further enrich our understanding of what students know and can do in the digital environment, response process data from the 2017 NAEP grade 8 mathematics assessment are now available for secondary analysis.

NAEP DBAs offer far more flexibility in meeting the needs of different students. The DBAs include Universal Design Elements, or built-in features that make it possible for more students to participate without special accommodation sessions. Onscreen tools are also available for students to use in their problem solving. The goal is for all students to have a seamless assessment administration, regardless of their ability.