R&D Hub

On June 21–23, the NAEP Research and Development Program hosted its first NAEP High School Transcript Study (HSTS) Data Training Workshop at the headquarters of the American Institutes for Research (AIR) in Arlington, VA. In this post, we will share some highlights from the three eventful days of data training using large-scale assessment data from the HSTS.

The first NAEP High School Transcript Study (HSTS) Data Training Workshop hosted by the NAEP R&D program will take place on June 21–23, 2023, in Arlington, VA. If you’re interested in learning more about the HSTS special study and conducting analyses using HSTS data, check out the workshop and consider applying before the deadline on May 14!

This month, the NAEP R&D team had a chance to catch up with 2019 NAEP Data Training Workshop participant Kenneth Elpus to learn about his research in music education using NAEP data. Elpus spoke with us about his 2022 paper in the Journal of Research in Music Education, “Middle School Music Uptake and Achievement: Evidence From the 2016 Arts National Assessment of Educational Progress,” as well as his experience in the NAEP Data Training Workshop and how it informed and aided his research.

The American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting is taking place in Chicago this year on April 13–16. If you’re looking for a better understanding of the relationships between noncognitive constructs (often referred to as “soft skills”) and achievement, check out the “Noncognitive Constructs and Academic Outcomes: Using NAEP Data to Understand Differences in Achievement” symposium on Saturday, April 15, from 10:50 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. ET at AERA 2023.

In October 2022, NAEP Validity Studies (NVS) panelist Dr. Lorrie Shepard of the University of Colorado Boulder published a white paper making recommendations for a more “incremental and evolutionary approach” to updating assessment frameworks.