11 States Poised to Pilot National Test for 12th Graders

Seven more big-city school districts are to be added to the trial urban NAEP.

For the first time, a select group of states is expected to take part in a 12th grade version of the National Assessment of Educational Progress in reading and mathematics, a move that could lay the foundation for even greater state participation at that grade level on the heavily scrutinized test.

The board that sets policy for NAEP, known as “the nation’s report card,” has approved tentative plans to have 11 states voluntarily participate in the exam.

Each of those states would have a representative sample of its high school seniors take part in a reading and math NAEP beginning in 2009, a process that would eventually allow for state-by-state comparisons of...