Proficiency, or competency, testing is a recent attempt to meet the public demand for accountability. But instead of placing the responsibility on the educational organization, competency testing appears to be a sophisticated approach to holding students and teachers accountable. Although some form of student assessment is needed, it is not yet…

An overview and critique, with special reference to independent schools, of the minimum competency testing movement as a solution to the political and educational furor over declining student achievement. (SJL)

In 1972, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia instituted the Regents' Testing Program (RTP) to provide systemwide information on the status of student competence in reading and writing and to provide a uniform means of identifying those students who fail to attain minimum levels of competence in these areas. Since 1972, some…

The Chancellor of the New York City Board of Education was required to set minimum standards of performance and establish the accountability plan for all schools in the city's decentralized school system. The system includes 32 community school districts. A 29-member commission, which held periodic one-day meetings, developed the standards for the…

The Associates Program of the Institute for Educational Leadership is a network of educational policy-makers in over 30 states. Each state's Associate conducts several seminars each year for the benefit of the state's key policy-makers. In 1977 these Associates (then numbering 23) and the participants in their seminars responded to questionnaires…

Acknowledges the need for state-level educational accountability, but argues that strategies for assessing educational outcomes should be an institutional prerogative and an integral part of the teaching/learning process. Criticizes assessment programs imposed by state governments, proposing instead a student-centered approach to the measurement…

The phenomenon of minimum competency testing (MCT) is explored, beginning with its origins in public concern for educational accountability. Three major themes appearing in the states enacting prescriptive legislation are described: state standards/state test (Florida); state standards/local test (Oregon); and local standards/local test…

The statewide implementation of the Georgia State Board of Education (GSBE) policy for high school graduation requirements was begun in September, 1980. It specifically stated that the GSBE would be responsible for assessing the basic skills, or learner skills, of students enrolled in public schools. It further stated that each local school system…

The Florida Statewide Assessment Program, defined by the 1976 Educational Accountability Act, collects and disseminates information on the effectiveness of its school systems to help its students achieve minimum performance standards (MPS) in mathematics, reading, and writing tasks. The 1980-81 regular assessment involved approximately 460,000…

The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) Task Force on Higher Education and the Schools calls for states "to consider the feasibility of developing a regional assessment of teacher selection techniques" (SREB, 1981). This recommendation reflects concerns about the need for: (1) more states to develop new teacher certification tests,…

The Florida Statewide Assessment Program, a result of the Educational Accountability Act of 1971, collects and reports information annually concerning student achievement in the basic skills areas of reading, writing, and mathematics. This publication was prepared for counselors and other school personnel as a resource manual with the following…

Describes two state-mandated programs for institutional accountability in New Jersey (i.e., Basic Skills Assessment Program and College Outcomes Evaluation Program), which function through cooperation between the state's higher education agency and its colleges and universities. Highlights research objectives, procedures, responsibilities,…

The results of a survey of 14 Minnesota school districts on the participation of students with disabilities in the Basic Standards Exams are examined in this report. Findings indicate that all 14 districts had at least 50 percent of all eligible students with disabilities participate in the April 1996 testing cycle. Ten districts indicated they…

This report discusses the results of two surveys that investigated the participation of students with limited English proficiency (LEP) in Minnesota's Basic Requirements Exams. In the first survey, 13 school districts answered questions about the participation of students with LEP in Minnesota's Basic Standards Tests. Ten of the districts reported…

Heightened demand for testing is seen as a function of public skepticism regarding the quality of public education. Discusses developments and trends in the following areas: (1) minimum competency testing versus higher order skills testing; (2) kindergarten and first grade readiness testing; (3) portfolio-based assessment; and (4) teacher…