Dr. Cheryl Thiele, curriculum staff, briefed the board on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), explaining how NAEP works and summarizing recent national and Tennessee results. She said NAEP uses a random sampling process to compare district and state performance to national benchmarks and highlighted that five Dixon County schools were selected in the previous cycle.

Thiele explained the sampling cadence and accommodations: NAEP tests sample students in grades 4, 8 and 12 on a two-year rotation and provides accommodations for students with IEPs or 504 plans when those students are randomly selected. She told the board that, in the 2023–24 cycle, five Dixon County schools were chosen to represent Tennessee; she listed Charlotte Elementary, Vanler Elementary, Burns Middle, Dixon Middle and William James (as provided in the handout). Thiele also said Dixon County High School has been selected for testing in the current window and that NAEP staff bring equipment and administer the test on district-provided schedules.

On outcomes, Thiele summarized trend lines included in her handout and said the state’s aggregate scores showed recovery toward pre-COVID results in both ELA and math, noting particular improvement in eighth-grade math and fourth-grade ELA when compared with the most recent national reporting. She emphasized NAEP’s role as a national comparison point distinct from Tennessee’s TCAP/EOC state assessments.

Board members asked how NAEP selections are made and whether district results are reported at the district level; Thiele and Dr. Sutherland explained that NAEP performs random sampling and that the published results are state- and national-level aggregates rather than district-by-district scores.

Clarifying details: Thiele described NAEP as a random sampling that does not generate district-level public scores; she said approximately 1,800 Tennessee students participated in math and roughly 1,700 in reading in the referenced cycle, and that Dixon County was represented among those sampled. Thiele presented a handout with trend graphics and school lists; she stated Dixon County High’s testing date would be in April.