This review critiques the highly-praised and influential 2001 study, "Getting Tough? The Impact of High School Graduation Exams," which concluded that "minimum competency," or high school "graduation exams," had no effect on student achievement. The review compares the test classifications of "Getting…

In 1996 the Council of Chief State School Officers proposed and adopted via the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC), six overarching leadership standards for both building and district level administrators, which were then revised in 2008 (CCSSO, 2008). These standards have influenced the licensing and certification process in a…

Raising the level of academic achievement of all students in New Jersey has been a major goal since 1982. As a part of that effort, the focus has changed from the low expectations of the Minimum Basic Skills program to the more rigorous demands of the High School Proficiency Test. This report includes background information on the effort to…

The State of New Jersey has proposed moving its competency test of basic skills from the 9th to the 11th grade, in order to allow for more content learning, more maturity, and more test-taking skills on the part of students. Since vocational students are more likely than other students to score low on the basic skills competency test, having the…

Cut-off scores from two approaches for setting standards are examined. Standards determined from judgments about groups and from inspection of test content are compared. Results indicate that there was neither consistency nor pattern to cut-off scores set from the two procedures. (Author/RD)

This report presents Fall, 1991 results of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Testing which tests incoming college students and evaluates collegiate remedial courses. A summary of the findings notes that freshmen recorded poorer results on every section of the test compared to 1990 results, that in verbal skills 42 percent lacked…

This booklet describes the test development process used to upgrade New Jersey's basic skills competency test, the High School Proficiency Test (HSPT). Ninth-grade students in New Jersey public schools must pass this test of reading, writing, and mathematics skills in order to receive a state endorsed high school diploma. Test development…

This document contains entry-level practical nursing competencies arranged in eight categories. Each competency appears on a separate sheet on which is included a list of points of knowledge the student should possess in order to meet the competency and a statement regarding evaluative criteria for the competency. Competencies in the following…

This study identifies and evaluates changes in secondary schools not meeting the minimum standards required by New Jersey as tested on the Minimum Basic Skills Test. The study identified the deficiencies in three urban high schools and evaluated the progress toward meeting the standards. All but 2 of the 76 recommendations made were implemented.…

A policy statement by the New Jersey Education Association on the high school graduation requirements adopted by the New Jersey State Board of Education on March 5, 1980. (SJL)

This paper attempts to explain the educational and legal implications of New Jersey's 1975 Public Education Act, which was designed to meet the New Jersey Supreme Court's mandate in the landmark case of Robinson v. Cahill. Because the state constitution requires establishment of a "thorough and efficient" educational system, the court…

One purpose of this paper is to describe how the concept of statewide minimum standards has been used in other states and to suggest precisely how it should be used in New Jersey. Current New Jersey law requires districts to establish pupil proficiency levels in basic skills, to identify children who fall below them, and to provide those children…

The State of New Jersey has established core proficiencies for those courses most high school students take to meet state graduation requirements. The purpose of the core course proficiencies is to assure that students throughout the state taking similar courses are acquiring the same essential knowledge and skills. This document presents the core…

The primary objective of this project was to provide a more detailed description along with "real time" information to the community of educational administration preparation programs in the State of New Jersey as to what are considered to be the critical elements, skills and competencies current Chief School Administrators (CSA) in the…

Completed in 1982-83, this is a manual of science competencies and proficiencies for the Moorestown Public Schools, New Jersey. The document's seven major sections include: (1) a statement of philosophy of the science department stressing science education's role as the link between science, technology, and society; (2) suggested science…