The North Carolina End-of-Grade Testing Program is based on the assessment of higher level skills in the context of specific subject-area content. These tests inform students, parents, the community, and educators about the achievement of North Carolina students in grades three through eight in given areas. This report describes the development and psychometric properties of the end-of-grade tests in Reading Comprehension and Mathematics. The value of these tests lies primarily in the fact that the scores provide a common yardstick that is not influenced by local differences. The reading comprehension tests assess a student's ability to comprehend written material that is appropriate for the grade level and the ability to use strategies to enhance reading comprehension. The mathematics tests assess computation and mathematics applications. The tests described in this publication are administered during the last 3 weeks of the school year. For both sets of tests, the report describes: (1) item development; (2) test development; (3) scores and scales; (4) descriptive statistics and reliability; and (5) validity. Six appendixes provide sample test items and discuss aspects of test construction and scoring in detail. (Contains 26 tables, 25 figures, 20 appendix graphs, 12 appendix tables, and 37 references.) (SLD)