Basic motor competencies (in German: Motorische Basiskompetenzen; MOBAK) are motor performance dispositions formulated as minimum standards that empower children to participate in the culture of human movement. In opposition to movement-specific and process-oriented fundamental movement skills assessing the quality of movement execution, basic…

Both testlet design and hierarchical latent traits are fairly common in educational and psychological measurements. This study aimed to develop a new class of higher order testlet response models that consider both local item dependence within testlets and a hierarchy of latent traits. Due to high dimensionality, the authors adopted the Bayesian…

In this article, the author presents the story of Hope--an education student who, despite many successes, was consistently unable to pass the reading portion of a screening test (Praxis I) that is a prerequisite to student teaching in her home state of Georgia. Hope's only trouble was the fact that she was a slow reader due to attention deficit…

Barbara Jordan served as the hearing officer for three-day adversary evaluation hearings about the pros and cons of minimum competency testing (MCT). This report is the complete transcript of the first day of proceedings. James Popham and George Madaus presented the opening arguments for the pro team and con team, respectively. Michael Scriven,…

A brief report on status of state mandates for teacher testing considers: (1) the number of states that have or are establishing testing programs; (2) the type of competency testing being conducted by each state; (3) whether currently employed teachers should be tested; (4) whether such tests discriminate against minority group members; and (5)…

Legal decisions from the past 20 years that have been influential on the direction of the competency-based and teacher certification testing movement are described. Suggestions for test developers are made to guide them in developing tests that are fair and that comply with legal precedents. (JL)

The performance of various ethnic groups on teacher competency tests in several states are reported. The data indicate that disproportionate numbers of minority candidates are being screened out of teaching. Implications for the national teaching force are examined. (Author/MT)

This essay looks at the background of teacher competency testing and the conditions contributing to dissatisfaction with the educational system. Short-term consequences of testing are described. (MT)

Instructional validity indicates that a district is testing what is taught. Minimum standards of fairness in pursuing educational equity are proposed. The standards include efforts to remediate students who fail competency tests, use instructional validity studies; present an adequate opportunity to learn, make an appropriate use of results, and…

As more states adopt minimum competency testing (MCT) programs, MCT is becoming the subject of much debate among educators and in the courts. MCT has been attacked by those who claim it discriminates against Blacks and non-English-speaking minorities. Also raised in the MCT debate is the question of educational malpractice. (RLV)

The imposition of minimum competency testing in high schools must be seen in a social and political context. Since many minority students have received an inferior education, minimum competency tests may be seen as a means of preventing these students from receiving their high school diplomas. (Author/RLV)

Conceptual issues arising from the use of minimum competency tests with mildly handicapped and at-risk students are examined, especially in regard to states with a policy of local option. Considered are possible bias in modifying testing procedures, reciprocity among districts, and the unknown consequences of specific modifications. (Author/DB)

This paper examines the major issues to be faced and the decisions to be made in the development and administration of basic competency tests used for the certification of teachers. The focus is on the use of competency tests as criteria in determining the initial certification of teachers, as differentiated from the ongoing observation and…

Establishment of the new Law and Education Center (LEC) at the Education Commission of the States is announced in this document. It notes that the LEC offers preventive legal assistance to state educational programs and that it will focus on a limited number of specific legal issues. The central topic of this initial newsletter is competency…

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…