How much do 17-year olds know about U.S. history and literature? The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has been gathering information about the educational attainment of American students in a variety of subject areas, but no study had focused solely on students' basic knowledge of American history and their familiarity with major authors, themes, and characters of Western literature. An assessment probe was designed to supply systematic information about the extent to which this knowledge is acquired by students in American schools. An initial draft of the assessment probe, developed by staff members of NAEP, was reviewed by almost 100 educators to ensure that the assessment topics did not diverge from current teaching practice. The final draft reflects the suggested changes. An assessment of the literacy of 17-year-olds included U.S. history and general literature because it was felt that literacy includes not only communication skills but also knowledge about the variety of topics that form the basis of dialogue and information sharing. The National Commission on Excellence in Education named history and literature among its new basics. The U.S. history topics are arranged by chronological periods: before 1763; 1763-1815; 1815-1877; 1877-1920; 1920-1945; and 1945-present. Care was taken to address topics relevant to political history, women's history, Black history, labor history, technology, geography, immigration, and foreign policy. Criteria for considering certain works of literature as fundamental to our culture are given for the following genres: (1) novels, short stories, and plays; (2) myths, epics, and Biblical characters and stories; (3) poetry; and (4) nonfiction. (GDC)