This document provides the framework to guide the development of the assessment instruments for the 2010 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in geography. Altogether, four documents will be designed to guide the geography assessment and this Assessment Framework is the first. This framework is designed to assess the outcomes of students' education in geography in grades 4, 8, and 12 as part of the NAEP. It melds key physical science and social science aspects of geography into a cohesive and topical whole. It focuses on what geography students should know to be competent and productive 21st century citizens, and uses three content areas for assessing the outcomes of geography education. These content areas are Space and Place, Environment and Society, and Spatial Dynamics and Connections. Space and Place, which encompasses geography's basic fundamentals, should be assessed by 40 percent of the questions at grades 4, 8, and 12. The other content areas, which are more sophisticated, should be assessed by 30 percent of the questions at each of the three grade levels. This document contains four chapters: (1) The Nature of Geography Education and the Geography Curriculum; (2) Overview of the Framework for the 2010 NAEP Geography Assessment; (3) Specifics of the Framework for the 2010 NAEP Geography Assessment; and (4) Characteristics of the Assessment. Appendices include: (1) The Framework Development Process; and (2) NAEP Geography Framework Project Team, Steering Committee Members, and Planning Committee Members. (Contains 2 figures, 2 tables, and 3 footnotes.) [This document was developed for the National Assessment Governing Board under contract number RN 91073001 by the Council of Chief State School Officers.]