The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is administered periodically to a sample of students at grades 4, 8, and 12 in core subjects.  As the only nationally-representative, continuing assessment of what America’s students know and can do, NAEP results provide uniquely valuable information on student performance for both the nation and the states.

The NAEP assessments are a continuing and nationally representative measure of achievement in various subjects over time. NAEP scores are communicated in what is commonly known as The Nation’s Report CardTM which informs the public about the academic achievement of elementary and secondary students in the United States.

NAEP is congressionally mandated by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) within the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education. The Commissioner of Education Statistics is responsible for carrying out the NAEP project. The National Assessment Governing Board oversees and sets policy for NAEP.

Since 1969, NAEP assessments have been conducted periodically in reading, mathematics, science, writing, U.S. history, civics, geography, and other subjects. NAEP collects and reports information on student performance at the national, state, and local levels, making the assessment an integral part of our nation’s evaluation of the condition and progress of education. Only academic achievement data and related background information are collected. The privacy of individual students and their families is protected.

•  2022 Highlights  (PDF)
•  2018 TEL Highlights (PDF)
•  AR NAEP 2022 Mapping (PDF)

•  NAEP Resources AR (PDF)
•  Inclusion on NAEP (PDF)
•  Focus on NAEP Sampling (PDF, video overview)

Researcher and educator resources: 

•  NAEP Data Explorer - explore and compare NAEP data 
•  NAEP Questions Tool - search related questions and create tests 
•  NAEP Item Mapping - sample questions mapped to released questions