NAEP and the California Standards Tests: A Case of Apples and Oranges
May 2008
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results indicate that in 2007 only 22% of California’s 8th graders scoring proficient or advanced in reading. But California Standards Tests (CST) results for that same year show that 41% of 8th graders scored proficient or above in English language arts.
How can the results of these tests be so different? It turns out that comparing NAEP and the CSTs can be like comparing apples and oranges because they:
- Do not necessarily measure the same content.
- Do not assess the same students.
- Do not determine proficiency in the same way.
This report looks into the differences and similarities between the NAEP and the CSTs and some of the factors that explain how the tests can both yield different but valuable portraits of student achievement. It also touches on California’s performance on the NAEP and clarifies some of the conclusions people may draw about California student achievement based on the state’s NAEP results. And it offers some useful points to keep in mind when interpreting NAEP results.
Table of Contents:
- How NAEP and the CSTs Differ
- Interpreting NAEP Results
- Both Tests—NAEP and CSTs—Help Illuminate a Complex Subject
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