Notice2026-02980

Seeking Initial Public Comment Prior To Updating the Civics Assessment Framework for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)

Primary source

Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.

Published
February 13, 2026

Issuing agencies

Education DepartmentNational Assessment Governing Board

Abstract

The National Assessment Governing Board (Governing Board) is seeking initial public comment prior to updating the Civics Assessment Framework for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Full Text

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 30 (Friday, February 13, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 30 (Friday, February 13, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6832-6833]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-02980]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

National Assessment Governing Board


Seeking Initial Public Comment Prior To Updating the Civics 
Assessment Framework for the National Assessment of Educational 
Progress (NAEP)

AGENCY: National Assessment Governing Board, U.S. Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Notice of opportunity for initial public comment prior to 
updating the Civics Assessment Framework for the National Assessment of 
Educational Progress (NAEP).

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SUMMARY: The National Assessment Governing Board (Governing Board) is 
seeking initial public comment prior to updating the Civics Assessment 
Framework for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

DATES: Comments must be received on or before 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on 
Friday, March 27, 2026.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments via email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9ef0fff9fcdefbfab0f9f1e8"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f49a959396b49190da939b82">[email&#160;protected]</span></a> with the 
subject line ``NAEP Civics Framework.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharyn Rosenberg, National Assessment 
Governing Board, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20202, 
telephone: (202) 245-6249, email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#97c4fff6e5eef9b9c5f8e4f2f9f5f2e5f0d7f2f3b9f0f8e1"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="52013a33202b3c7c003d21373c303720351237367c353d24">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Governing Board is responsible for 
developing and updating NAEP frameworks, which guide the content of 
NAEP assessments. Section 302(e)(1)(c) of Public Law 107-279 specifies 
that the Governing Board determines the content to be assessed for each 
NAEP Assessment. Each NAEP subject area assessment is guided by a 
framework that defines the scope of the domain to be measured by 
delineating the

[[Page 6833]]

knowledge and skills to be tested at each grade and subject, the format 
of the assessment, and the achievement level descriptions--guiding 
assessments that are valid, reliable, and reflective of widely accepted 
professional standards.
    In preparation for a potential update, the Board is initiating a 
preliminary review of the current NAEP Civics Assessment Framework. 
This initial gathering of public comment is the first stage in a 
comprehensive multi-year process that, if the Board decides framework 
revisions are needed, will later involve multiple iterations of 
stakeholder feedback and an expert panel to guide the development of 
assessment questions and recommendations for contextual questionnaires 
administered to students, teachers, and schools.
    Individuals and organizations are invited to provide written 
comments and recommendations relative to the current framework. 
Comments should specifically address three questions:
    <bullet> Does the NAEP Civics Assessment Framework need to be 
updated?
    <bullet> If the framework needs to be updated, why is a revision 
needed?
    <bullet> What should a revision to the framework include?
    Your name and affiliation may be shared and discussed publicly with 
your comments in upcoming Governing Board meetings and materials unless 
you indicate that your comments can only be shared without attribution.
    If the Governing Board decides that an update is needed, the charge 
to launch the revision process for the NAEP Civics Framework is 
anticipated to be adopted at the May 2026 quarterly Board meeting. Each 
NAEP framework development and update process considers a wide set of 
factors, including but not limited to reviews of recent research on 
teaching and learning, changes in state and local standards and 
assessments, and the latest perspectives on the nation's future needs 
and desirable levels of achievement.

Resources

NAEP Civics Framework
NAEP Civics Specifications
Board Policy on Assessment Framework Development

    Electronic Access to this Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. Internet 
access to the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations is available via the Federal Digital System at: 
<a href="http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys">www.gpo.gov/fdsys</a>. At this site you can view this document, as well as 
all other documents of this Department published in the Federal 
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF, 
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the 
Adobe website. You may also access documents of the Department 
published in the Federal Register by using the article search feature 
at: <a href="http://www.federalregister.gov">www.federalregister.gov</a>. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

(Authority: Pub. L. 107-279, title III, section 301--National 
Assessment of Educational Progress Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 
9621).)

Lesley Muldoon,
Executive Director, National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), U.S. 
Department of Education.
[FR Doc. 2026-02980 Filed 2-12-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P


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Indexed from Federal Register on February 13, 2026.

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