National Assesment of Education Progress (NAEP) 2002
Below basic reading results for 4th grade students.

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Get more results at  www.nces.ed.gov

Glossary

Basic: This level denotes partial mastery of prerequisite knowledge and skills that are fundamental for proficient work at each grade. Students performing at the basic level should demonstrate an understanding of the overall meaning of what they read. They should be capable of making relatively obvious connections between the text and their own experiences, and extend the ideas in the text by making simple inferences.

Proficient: This level denotes solid academic performance. Students have demonstrated competency over challenging subject matter, subject-matter knowledge, application of such knowledge to real-world situations and analytical skills appropriate to the subject matter. Students at this level should be capable of demonstrating an overall understanding of the text, provide inferential as well as literal information. They should be able to extend the ideas in the text by making inferences, drawing conclusions, and making connections to their own experiences.

Advanced: This level denotes superior performance. Students at this level should be able to generalize about topics in the reading selection and demonstrate an awareness of how authors compose and use literary devices, judge texts critically and , in general, give thorough answers that indicate careful thought.