The National Reference Test (NRT) is uniquely placed, as a Key Stage 4 assessment which directly measures performance over time, to contribute to the evidence on the impact disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study in the main report provides additional analysis of the NRT 2020 and 2021 data to explore whether different areas of the…

During the Great Recession, national public school per-pupil spend-ing fell by roughly 7 percent and persisted beyond the recovery. The impact of such large and sustained education funding cuts is not well understood. To examine this, first, we document that the recessionary drop in spending coincided with the end of decades-long national growth…

Ofqual has contracted the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) to develop, administer and analyse the National Reference Test (NRT) in English and maths. This report represents an overview of the findings of the 2019 testing process. In February/March 2019 a random sample of around 13,000 year 11 students from over 300 schools took…

This longitudinal case study examines reading difficulties identified in Grade 2 and Grade 6 national assessment test (NAT) scores in relation to Grade 9 NAT in Swedish (L1) and English (L2). A norm-referenced screening was used in Grade 2 to assess word reading and reading comprehension. In line with the simple view of reading, four subgroups…

This study provides an initial statistical approach as an alternative model to detect the fraudulent practice estimation of national examination (NE). Trends, patterns, and relationships were analysed from the national examination (NE) scores and the national examination integrity index (NEII) on pre-and post-computer-based national examination…

When an assessment undergoes changes to the administration or instrument, bridge studies are typically used to try to ensure comparability of scores before and after the change. Among the most common and powerful is the common population linking design, with the use of a linear transformation to link scores to the metric of the original…

We use data from the Stanford Education Data Archive to describe district-level trends in average academic achievement between 2009 and 2019. Although on average school districts' test scores improved very modestly (by about 0.001 standard deviations per year), there is significant variation among districts. Moreover, we find that average test…

The significant decrease in student achievement levels following the pandemic has become a pressing national problem, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts showed some of the sharpest academic achievement declines in the country. To assist schools in recovering from the pandemic, the federal government allocated three waves of funding through its…

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) conducted a special administration of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) long-term trend (LTT) reading and mathematics assessments for age 9 students in 2022 to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on student learning. This brief document highlights the score declines…

The design and psychometric methodology of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is constantly evolving to meet the changing interests and demands stemming from a rapidly shifting educational landscape. NAEP has been built on strong research foundations that include conducting extensive evaluations and comparisons before new…

In this statement to the Rhode Island State Legislature, Ian Rowe presents a case for education equality. He acknowledges that America is not perfect, but there is a need to confront the inequities faced united rather than divided. In preparing for this testimony, he pulled 8th grade NAEP reading proficiency scores for Rhode Island students since…

Ofqual has contracted the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) to develop, administer and analyse the National Reference Test (NRT) in English and maths. This report represents an overview of the findings of the 2018 testing process. In February/March 2018 a random sample of around 12,000 year 11 students from over 300 schools took…

The problem is that translations of language in standardized mathematics tests are not provided, which reduces the achievement scores of native-Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) in Grades 4 and 8. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore teachers' perceptions of language translation for the National Assessment of…

According to interpretations of results from the latest oral reading fluency (ORF) study conducted by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (White et al., 2020), fourth-grade students who score below the basic standard require interventions that focus on word recognition, phonological decoding, and fluency. Before such mandates for…

This study examined relations between intentional self-regulation (ISR) and executive functions (EFs) among 84 Icelandic youth in Grade 6 (mean age 11.7 years; 51% girls) and their contributions to healthy and problematic outcomes a year later. ISR was indicated by the Selection, Optimization and Compensation model (SOC) and Self-Regulated…