Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 102 Part 1.djvu/382

 102 STAT. 344 20 USC 4843.

PUBLIC LAW 100-297—APR. 28, 1988

SEC. 3243. DEFINITIONS.

For the purpose of this part— (1) the term "at risk" means students who, because of learning deficiencies, lack of school readiness, limited English proficiency, poverty, educational or economic disadvantage, or physical or emotional handicapping conditions face greater risk of low educational achievement and have greater potential of becoming school dropouts; (2) the term "Board" means the Fund Board established under section 3231; (3) the term "Fund" means the Fund for the Improvement and Reform of Schools and Teaching established under section 3202; and (4) the term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Education. National Assessment of Educational Progress Improvement Act. 20 USC 1221 note. 20 USC 1221e-l note.

PART C—NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS SEC. 3401. SHORT TITLE.

This part may be cited as the "National Assessment of Educational Progress Improvement Act". SEC. 3402. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

The purpose of this part is to improve the effectiveness of our Nation s schools by making objective information about student performance in selected learning areas available to policymakers at the national, regional. State, and local levels. To enhance its utility, such information shall be both representative and comparable and shall be maintained in a manner that ensures the privacy of individual students and their families. It is not the purpose of this Act to authorize the collection or reporting of information on student attitudes or beliefs or on other matters that are not germane to the acquisition and analysis of information about academic achievement. SEC. 3403. NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS. (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Section 406 of the General Education

20 USC 1221e-l. Grants, contracts.

Provisions Act (hereafter in this part referred to as "the Act" and as amended by section 3001 of this title) is amended by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection (j) and by inserting after subsection (h) the following: "(i)(1) With the advice of the National Assessment Governing Board established by paragraph (5)(a)(i), the Commissioner shall carry out, by grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements with qualified organizations, or consortia thereof, a National Assessment of Educational Progress. The National Assessment of Educational Progress shall be placed in the National Center for Education Statistics and shall report directly to the Commissioner for Educational Statistics. The purpose of the National Assessment is the assessment of the performance of children and adults in the basic skills of reading, mathematics, science, writing, history/geography and other areas selected by the Board. "(2)(A) The National Assessment shall provide a fair and accurate presentation of educational achievement in skills, abilities, and knowledge in reading, writing, mathematics, science, history/geography, and other areas specified by the Board, and shall use sampling techniques that produce data that are representative on a

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