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…

Two years after the implementation of Florida's Educational Accountability Act, which mandates statewide competency testing in reading, writing, and arithmetic, the author cites the advantages of the program, refutes criticisms of it and reviews the challenge to it in Federal District court, the Debra P. V. Turlington case. (SJL)

An historical sketch of minimum competency testing programs and issues is presented. Among the state and local programs briefly described are: 1960, Denver Public Schools, CO; 1976, Richmond Public Schools, VA; 1977, Kern Union High School, CA; 1977, Berea High School, OH; 1977, Westside High School, NE; 1973, Oregon; 1975, California (High School…

Describes (1) the rapid growth in the number of states requiring teacher competency testing prior to certification and (2) variations in teacher testing for other purposes. Discusses the perceived need for teacher testing and outlines some consequences of the testing movement. Widespread testing of school administrators may be next. (IW)

Remarks made at the conference are summarized in seven sections of this narrative report: (1) update: recent events concerning testing,--representing the viewpoints of school districts, professional associations, government agencies, and research organizations; (2) National Institute of Education (NIE) study of school districts' use of test and…

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has had a competency-based vocational instructor approval process for more than two and one-half decades. Perhaps the most important element in this process has been the vocational competency testing. Although some say that Massachusetts is out of step, others feel that Massachusetts has a well-established testing…

This report provides Minnesota legislators with background information on establishing state educational standards and periodic testing to measure student progress. Scientific management, the accountability movement, and the basic education movement were educational trends of the 1970's providing pressure on states to set standards to improve…

To portray the status of minimum competency testing programs nationwide; as of June 30, 1979, on-site visits were conducted with directors of all 31 state programs and 20 local district programs. Most programs were developed since 1976; 14 state and 13 local programs are fully implemented. The state board of education mandated 16 state programs;…

Legal issues of minimum competency testing derive from federal and state constitutional, statutory, and regulatory provisions, and from common law. Constitutional provisions for equal protection, due process, and freedom of belief and privacy, are primarily federal; education provisions are state mandated. Only four court cases have directly…

New minimum high school graduation standards were mandated for 1978-79 graduates, by Florida's Educational Accountability Act of 1976. Requirements included mastery of basic skills, completion of minimum course credits, and satisfactory performance on functional literacy tests. The literacy test was the primary criterion for graduation. On its…

The status of minimum competency testing programs, as of June 30, 1979, is given through descriptions of 31 state programs and 20 local district programs. For each program, the following information is provided: legislative and policy history; implementation phase; goals; competencies to be tested; standards and standard setting; target groups and…

About half the states in the U.S., either by legislative or administrative action, have moved toward the imposition of statewide performance standards in their elementary and secondary schools. Typically these standards pertain to the basic skills--reading, mathematical computation, and written and oral expression. Almost all of these programs…