Several members of the governing board and consultants to the board also warned that translating the NAEP reading test into Spanish could set off debates over whether the test should be an option for all test-takers across the United States whose primary language is Spanish.
But Mr. Haertel cautioned that should a Spanish- language version be developed for Puerto Rico, the test still might not be appropriate for other Spanish-speaking students because the language differences between Spanish-speakers on the island and in the United States are considerable.
