As the ongoing national indicator of what American students know and can do, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in Reading regularly collects achievement information on representative samples of students in grades 4, 8, and 12. The information that NAEP provides about student achievement helps the public, educators, and policymakers understand strengths and weaknesses in student performance and make informed decisions about education. The 2009 NAEP Reading Assessment will measure national, regional, state, district, and subgroup achievement in reading but is not designed to report individual student or school performance. The assessment will measure the reading comprehension of students and their ability to apply vocabulary knowledge to assist them in comprehending what they read. This document provides information to guide passage selection, item development, and other aspects of test development. It accompanies the "Reading Framework for the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress" (ED502953), which presents the conceptual base for the assessment.