Secretary Duncan Names Perdue to National Education Board
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today appointed to the National Assessment Governing Board Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue, who will serve until Sept. 30, 2012.
In his capacity, Perdue will work with the board to set policy for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), otherwise known as “The National Report Card.”
“Gov. Perdue will be a great addition to the board,” Secretary Duncan said in a statement. “During his two terms as governor, he has maintained and expanded on ambitious initiatives to improve education for children from the cradle to college. We look forward to his contributions to the board.”
The panel includes 26 bipartisan governors, state legislators, local and state school officials, educators, business representatives, and other citizens. Members are chosen by the secretary of education but the board remains independent of the department.
The NAEP conducts periodic assessments in math, science, reading, writing, arts, civics, economics, geography, and U.S. history. Duties include:
- Selecting subject areas to be assessed.
- Setting appropriate student achievement levels.
- Developing assessment objectives and test specifications.
- Developing a process for the review of the assessment.
- Designing the assessment methodology.
- Developing guidelines for reporting NAEP results.
- Developing standards and procedures for interstate, regional and national comparisons.
- Determining the appropriateness of all assessment items and ensuring the assessment items are free from bias and are secular, neutral, and non-ideological.
- Taking actions to improve the form, content, use, and reporting of results of the national assessment.
For more on the NAEP, click here. For more on the National Assessment Governing Board, click here.