The Illinois Dissemination Research Project developed a public information brochure on Minimal Competency Testing for distribution to Illinois school boards, teachers and administrators. This method for transmitting research findings to policymaking audiences is called "targeted dissemination." It consists of: (1) translating relevant…

The implicit definition of competence and the inferential chain that links the standard-setting process to the decision outcomes of the method are considered for two classes of standard-setting procedures: those involving data-free judgments of items and those involving data-based judgment of items. The major underlying assumptions of competence…

The Degrees of Reading Power Test was developed to address some existing problems in testing comprehension. The test design reflects the need to consider problems of passage dependency, difficulty of questions, tests for continuous text, and sensitivity to gains. It emphasizes a set of response options controlled for familiarity, a text that is…

Competency in the three skills areas of reading, writing, and mathematics is a requirement for high school graduation in the state of New York. The writing competency requirement consists of two tests: the Preliminary Competency Test in Writing, given to students in the eighth or ninth grade, and the Regents Competency Test in Writing, given to…

An overview is presented of the current status of competency testing for teacher certification. The question of the effect of certification tests on the quality of hired teachers is briefly discussed. Statistics are presented on types of tests used by various states, with particular attention to differences in the cut-off scores for passage of a…

Thirteen alternatives to using competency based tests should be considered when diagnosing student competency in writing: teacher-made or departmental tests, teacher-student conferences, contractual grade agreements between student and teacher, student self-evaluation, individualized goal setting, keeping files or portfolios of student work,…

In order to establish competency based entrance requirements for freshman composition, a midwestern university sampled six freshman composition and four basic writing classes for errors in their essay writing. ACT English and social studies scores and several reading scores were also gathered. All this data was computer analyzed by the multiple…

The minimum competency movement's rationale can be reduced to four problem-laden propositions: the state through its schools owes every child an education; a high school graduate should be at least minimally competent; schools should be held accountable for seeing to it that every child meets this standard; and to assure this, every child must be…

Maryland is one of the states which recently developed new requirements for high school graduation. A preliminary evaluation of these new state standards has raised a number of issues about graduation standards and their assessment. The Maryland State Department of Education examined statewide policies and guidelines for high schools between 1982…

In 1978 the New York State Board of Regents initiated action to establish statewide high school graduation standards for reading comprehension. The process began by measuring the readability levels of materials used in core courses and materials that adults normally read (newspapers, news magazines, and feature magazines). To do this,…

Public distrust in schools should not be attributed to poorer schools or less able students; it exists because we have a different kind of parent and a different world ahead. Parents of today's children were trained not to accept the status quo, but to question; furthermore, underlying parents' concern about the schools is a fear that their…

This document presents a collection of materials on school performance in Maryland, especially as demonstrated in the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) and the Independence Mastery Assessment Program (IMAP) for some special needs students. The MSPAP is a testing program administered to third, fifth, and eighth grade students…

A study examined state-level policies and practices regarding competency testing of vocational education teachers. Data on the use of competency tests in determining which candidates are admitted to and graduated from vocational teacher education programs were collected from a mail survey of 740 beginning vocational teachers, and data regarding…

This research examined the results from direct and indirect writing assessments to determine the most effective method of discrimination. The New Jersey State Department of Education developed a test for ninth-grade students which was designed to measure the ability to apply writing mechanics to written text and to communicate effectively in…

This study explores the use of the modified caution index (MCI) for identifying judges whose patterns of recommendations suggest that their judgments might be based on incomplete information, flawed reasoning, or inattention to their standard-setting tasks. It also examines the effect on test standards and passing rates when the test standards of…