NAEP Technical DocumentationSample Design for the 2009 National Assessment

			Fourth- and Eighth-Grade Public School Assessments Twelfth-Grade Public School Assessment Private School Assessment Science HOT and ICT Assessments

The 2009 national assessment included five components:

• mathematics, reading, and science assessments of fourth- and eighth-grade students in public schools;
• mathematics, reading, and science assessments of twelfth-grade students in public schools;
• mathematics, reading, and science assessments of fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-grade students in private schools;
• science hands-on tasks (HOT), science interactive computer testing (ICT), and pilot study assessments of fourth-, eighth- and twelfth-grade students in public schools; and
• science HOT, science ICT, and pilot study assessments of fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-grade students in private schools.

The sample design aimed to achieve a nationally representative sample of students in the defined populations who were enrolled at the time of assessment.  

The  mathematics, reading, and science samples were based on a two-stage sample design:

• selection of schools within strata, and
• selection of students within schools.

The science HOT and science ICT samples were based on a three-stage sample design:

• selection of primary sampling units (PSUs),
• selection of schools within strata, and
• selection of students within schools.

The samples of schools were selected with probability proportional to a measure of size based on the estimated grade-specific enrollment in the schools.

For fourth- and eighth-grade public schools, the NAEP state student samples and assessments account for the NAEP national main student samples and assessments. For twelfth-grade public schools, the national student samples consisted of two parts: an eleven-state sample and a complement sample. Nationally representative samples were drawn for the remaining populations of private school students in fourth, eighth, and twelfth grades. In state samples, a small portion of students received the science assessment in states not participating in science to supplement the national science sample.

Printer-friendly Version