Higher education's ability to retain students through to graduation appears to be an international challenge. This is also the case in South Africa where only 27% of student complete their studies in minimum time and where 55% are unlikely to ever graduate. These challenges have meant that extended degree programmes, where degrees are formally…

The Detroit (Michigan) High School Proficiency Program emphasizes instruction as well as testing. (Author)

A test of skill in reading electrocardiographs (ECGs) was developed as a physician competence (PC) test. The criterion-referenced test ranked 1,825 persons taking the 1983 Certifying Examination in Cardiovascular Diseases (CECD) as expected on the basis of prior education and examination scores on the CECD. The ECG test modestly correlated with…

Some general questions about minimum competency tests are discussed, and various methods of setting standards are reviewed with major attention devoted to those methods used for dichotomizing a continuum. Methods reviewed under the heading of Absolute Judgments of Test Content include Nedelsky's, Angoff's, Ebel's, and Jaeger's. These methods are…

Standards-based score reports interpret test performance with reference to cut scores defining categories like "below basic," "proficient," or "master." This article first develops a conceptual framework for validity arguments supporting such interpretations, then presents three applications. Two of these serve to introduce new standard-setting…

The New Mexico High School Proficiency Examination covers five general content areas: (1) Community Resources; (2) Occupational Knowledge; (3) Consumer Economics; (4) Mental and Physical Health; and (5) Government and Law. Skills measured by the test are: Identification of Facts and Terms; Reading; Writing; Computation and Problem Solving. These…

An historical and philosophical perspective on the setting of standards for criterion-referenced testing is presented. The author suggests that performance standards are more symbolic than substantive. (JKS)

The fundamental Reading Competencies Test assesses proficiency with respect to well-defined functional reading skills of high school students. Validity and reliability data for the test are presented. (Author/JKS)

Intended to assist those working in the field of occupational competency testing, this report summarizes major milestones in the history of competency measurement in vocational education and overviews the current state of the art. To provide an orientation to the environment that stimulated the current interest in occupational competency testing,…

An outcome of the excellence movement has been an increase in state control of education, especially through state-mandated testing, as testing has become the preferred means of trying to effect change in education following the popularity of accountability and minimum competency testing. Suggestions for using tests prudently are listed. (DCS)

Explores the many meanings of the minimal competency testing movement and the more recent mobilization for educational excellence in the schools. Argues that increasing the value of the diploma by setting performance standards on minimal competency tests and by elevating academic graduation standards may strongly conflict with policies encouraging…

The Maryland State Department of Education issued a request for proposals to develop a score reporting system for the Maryland Functional Testing Program. RMC Research Corporation conducted a literature review of extant literature and developed a national survey of non-norm-referenced test score reporting practices. This comprehensive analysis of…

This exercise set provides access to the 134 items released from the first National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading assessment conducted in 1970-71 with students aged 9, 13, and 17. The exercises are intended for use by state and local education agencies who may want to build their own assessment instruments. An overview of the…

States that teachers must evaluate not only cognitive and psychomotor skills but also attitudes and perceptions. Cites five factors contributing to improved testing: (1) criterion-reference evaluation, (2) school effectiveness research, (3) minimum competency testing, (4) new concepts of student evaluation, and (5) better teacher-made tests. (CH)