National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data show that children in grades 4, 8, and 11 whose mothers work outside the home read better than children whose mothers do not work outside the home--but the difference is small. This conclusion represents one segment of the findings of the 1983-84 National Assessment, which focused on reading and writing and was administered to approximately 100,000 students across 30 states, and which for the first time asked students if their mothers worked outside the home. The findings were consistent with previous research studies indicating that children's reading achievements are unaffected by maternal employment alone. Related factors found to affect the reading performance of students included mother's level of education, amount of household income, and early education. Specifically, assessment results indicated that (1) more than half of the students reported their mothers worked outside the home; (2) students with mothers working outside the home performed better in reading, possibly due to the relationship between mothers who work outside the home and traditional socioeconomic advantages, for example, higher education and income; (3) mothers who work outside the home have higher levels of education and students whose parents have more education achieve higher reading scores; and (4) more students whose mothers work outside the home attended nursery school, which is associated with better reading performance. (JD)