In 2003 the first nationally-comparable science assessment was designed, developed and carried out under the auspices of the national council of education ministers, the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA). In 2006 a second science assessment was conducted and, for the first time nationally, the achievement of students has been compared over time and publicly reported. The National Assessment Program--Science Literacy is one of a suite of national assessments (with ICT and Civics & Citizenship) which are conducted with a random sample of students in three-yearly cycles. Development of these nationally-comparable assessments stands as one of the most notable recent achievements of MCEETYA. The assessments are a key result of a collaborative venture between the States and Territories and the Australian Government to measure and report on how our students are progressing towards the achievement of the National Goals of Schooling in the Twenty-First Century. This report on the 2006 National Year 6 Science Assessment provides the results from the national sample assessment. It provides a snapshot of student results against the national scientific literacy scale, and an analysis of various findings across States and Territories and student sub-groups. It also makes comparisons with the findings from 2003. Appended are: (1) National Year 6 Primary Science Assessment Domain; (2) Sampling; (3) Proficiency Levels, Assessment Strand Descriptors, Illustrative Items and Item Descriptors; (4) Sample Item Statistics; and (5) Performance by Geographic Location. (Contains 43 tables, 18 figures and 1 footnote.) [For school release materials, "National Assessment Program--Science Literacy Year 6 School Release Materials, 2006," see ED534661. For technical report, "National Assessment Program--Science Literacy Year 6 Technical Report, 2006," see ED534660.]