Developed to provide Texas school districts with information about the scope of the spelling objective on the writing test of the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills, this list includes all spelling words eligible for testing at each specified level. The paper contains lists for students in grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and the exit level of…

The paper presents guidelines to assist Virginia's local education agency (LEA) personnel, particularly teachers, administrators, counselors, and test providers, in the implementation of the minimum competency program for handicapped students. An introduction traces the history of graduation requirements, outlines revised graduation eligibility,…

Raises philosophical and technical questions about the Tennessee minimum competency testing program, including: what subject and skills are basic; who determines what competencies are minimal; what should be the consequences of failure; who is responsible for remediation of failing students; do or should skills being taught match skills being…

Suggests that competency reading programs should be based on a definition of functional reading that applies reading skills to real-life tasks, that materials should be real and timely, and that activities should center on finding meaning. (MKM)

Alternative group judgment approaches to setting minimum competency standards were compared. Replication of results was possible for eight different tests (reading and mathematics, across four grade levels). The Kansas Competency Based Tests in reading and mathematics were administered statewide to students in grades two, four, six, and eight.…

There has been little examination of multicultural counseling competencies of rehabilitation counselor trainees. The current study examined competency development (knowledge, skills and awareness) of 68 rehabilitation counseling master's degree students across six universities. Results indicate that students did not demonstrate competence in…

Specific steps for applying the Angoff method are described. In the Angoff method, judges are asked to estimate the probabilities of minimally competent candidates' answering multiple choice test items correctly. Initial information must be obtained for designing the standard-setting process, beginning with the purpose of the examination and any…

The Austin Independent School District (AISD) requires that all graduates have skills in reading and mathematics equivalent to a ninth-grade level or above (based on scores on the Texas Assessment of Basic Skills). Of the 3,152 high school graduates in 1983-84, the percentage who met AISD's minimum competency requirement was 91 percent in reading,…

Discusses the following issues raised by competency-based education (CBE): (1) defining competency, (2) nonequivalent levels of competency, (3) monitoring student progress, (4) competency testing, (5) grouping for instruction, and (6) the legal implications of competency testing. Presents guidelines to reading teachers considering employment in a…

This paper discusses how certain recent technical advances might be extended to examine proficiency tests which are conceptualized as representing a variety of skills with one or more items per skill. In contrast to previous analyses, errors in the item level are included. (Author/BW)

This report offers advice on the issues to be considered and the steps to be taken when implementing a high school graduation test. The research was conducted, specifically, to address problems with Mississippi's high school exit test. An external panel, developed by Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), reviewed data obtained…

This booklet serves as an advisory reference to available software programs that address specific objectives for students in grades 1-8 in all three Basic Skills Assessment Program (BSAP) curriculum areas--language arts, mathematics, and science. A description of the basic skills objectives precede each curriculum section. Information provided for…

This paper compares and contrasts minimum competency testing and transferable skills in order to identify the important questions and issues to be considered by educational planners in developing programs intended to prepare students to meet the demands of both work and life. Each of the seven sections addresses a specific question related to…

Mastery of sixteen "life skills" tasks will be a Seattle Public Schools graduation requirement beginning in 1981. Five forms of the Minimum Competencies Performance Test, which will be used to measure mastery of those tasks, are presently being developed and field tested. This report presents the results of the analysis of the first…

Presents arguments by Robert Lowe and Matthew Arnold on the 19th century British "Payment by Results" Plan, whereby schools received funds for students who passed minimal competency tests. Emphasizes that the Victorian experience produced acrimonious teachers with low morale and encourages contemporary minimal testing advocates not to…