1996 Science Performance Standards Foreword

				As citizens across the nation grapple with the difficult problems of how to improve the country’s schools, the information they want from student achievement tests has changed. No longer is it enough just to compare who’s high and who’s low on an exam -- regardless of whether average performance is satisfactory or inadequate. Instead, in state after state and for many commercial tests, performance standards are now being set describing what students should know and be able to do at various grades. Results from these standards-based tests tell whether students have reached the standards, not simply whether they know more or less than their classmates. Since 1988, the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) has been required by law to set performance standards called achievement levels, for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The 26-member Board includes state and local officials, teachers, testing and curriculum experts, members of the public, and business representatives. We are a bipartisan citizens group appointed by the Secretary of Education, but we carry out our responsibilities independently of the Department of Education. In this report, the Governing Board presents results for the 1996 National Assessment in Science, reporting the outcomes primarily in terms of achievement levels. We believe this approach shows as clearly as possible what the levels are and how well our students are learning the science they need to know. The levels were adopted by the Board after careful deliberation. We listened to a great deal of advice from panels of teachers, science experts, and members of the public from across the nation. The achievement levels represent the Board’s best judgment of "how good is good enough" on the NAEP 1996 Science Assessment at grades, 4, 8, and 12, the three grades tested in NAEP’s representative sample exams. For each grade tested, the Board has adopted three achievement levels. The Proficient level is central, defining solid grade-level performance that demonstrates "competency over challenging subject matter." Defining achievement of the Proficient level as mastery of challenging knowledge and skills is in accord with the fourth National Education Goal: "American students shall be first in the world in mathematics and science by the year 2000." The definition of Proficient enhances NAEP’s usefulness for tracking progress toward that goal. The Basic level means partial mastery of fundamental knowledge and skills. The Advanced level signifies superior performance. Having three benchmarks per grade, rather than just one, helps NAEP monitor achievement across the range of student performance. Measuring performance against three different achievement levels can clearly show improvements or problems that might well be hidden by focusing only on average scores. Detailed definitions of the science achievement levels are presented in this report. They are illustrated by sample test questions and student work. For each level, we report the percentages of students that meet or exceed the standards. The Board recognizes that setting achievement levels is an ongoing process and that the levels are used on a developmental basis. We have confidence in the value of these levels in reporting the 1996 science results. The NAEP achievement levels are standards for judgment and encouragement, not edicts or commands. We believe they make national assessment results far more understandable to the public and serve to focus efforts and spur reform that will improve our schools. William T. Randall, Chair National Assessment Governing Board