The table below shows the percentage of eighth-graders within each achievement level whose responses were rated as "Excellent." For example, 4 percent of students performing at the Proficient level were able to write developed and well-organized essays with well-chosen details, using transitions to lead the reader from one part of the essay to another. These students also consistently varied their sentence structure and made good word choices, doing so with minimal errors. Less than 1 percent of the students at the Basic level were able to do so.

See additional student responses and the scoring criteria used for this writing prompt in the NAEP Questions Tool. See an illustration of each rating level plotted on the NAEP scale in the writing item maps.

Percentage rated as "Excellent" for eighth-graders at each achievement level
in 2007

Overall	Below Basic	At Basic	At Proficient	At Advanced
2	#	#	4	38

# Rounds to zero.

The response shown below was rated "Excellent" because it is well-organized, using descriptive details and transitions to lead the reader from one piece of information to another: "A backpack is a bag with a rounded top and a flat bottom. It unzips around the top to reveal a spacious pouch. In this pouch you might keep..." The response also sustains variety in sentence structure throughout and exhibits good word choices (reveal, vertically, flexible).