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.…

This bulletin has three purposes: (1) to discuss the variety of factors which should be considered in the development of a local testing program, providing a basic understanding of what is necessary to implement and maintain a testing program; (2) to suggest several of the significant elements related to the development and maintenance of a…

Intended to help secondary school students prepare for the New York Board of Regents competency tests in writing, this manual will enable students to use writing for effective communication of their needs and enjoyment of the pleasure of permanent self-expression. The first portion of the manual provides several introductory lessons and writing…

The District of Columbia's Student Progress Plan (SPP) was designed as the delivery system for the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), and regulates student promotions based on skill attainment and mastery of the instructional objectives. An evaluation of SPP was conducted in the second semester of school year 1985-86, and its findings are…

Scope and sequence key competencies are listed for a beginning native Spanish literacy course, a Level 2 literacy course, and a Level 3 literacy course. Competency criteria and curriculum guidelines in math, reading, and writing are presented for each of the three levels, and English-as-a-Second-Language guidelines and criteria are provided for…

The 1986 scores from the Statewide Student Assessment Test-II, a minimum-competency test required for high school graduation in Florida, were placed on the scale of the 1984 scores from that test using five different equating procedures: (1) linear method; (2) Rasch model; (3) three-parameter item response theory (IRT)--concurrent method; (4)…

It appears that, where there is standardized testing of teachers for certification, there is a decline of black teachers. Although tests can provide valuable information, states must be aware of limitations of such tests and have a clear understanding of what the tests can do. Using tests to say that a teacher is as qualified as another may be…

A study was conducted to assess the role of developmental work in preparing Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC) students for the College Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST). The study sample included all 808 MDCC students who took the CLAST in fall 1984 and had taken the Comparative Guidance and Placement Test (CGP) upon entering the college. Study…

Essential job competencies for curriculum materials center directors in teacher-education institutions were identified and analyzed through a questionnaire survey of 183 current center directors and 100 educators in the fields of educational media and technology. library and information science, or educational curriculum. Also investigated were…

The Registered Holistic Scoring Method, which has been used for one year to score the ninth grade writing test of the New Jersey High School Proficiency Test, is described. Registered Holistic Scoring was developed from the previous holistic approach in order to provide more reliable scoring guidelines year after year. Two trained evaluators…

This volume of the "Teacher Handbook," a product of the extensive audit and revision of curriculum carried out by the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction in 1984 in order to develop a basic education program for the state's public schools presents a competency-based curriculum in library/media and computer skills.…

These five papers describe the methods, results, and implications of a multimethod approach to the establishment of standards for the three subject areas of the Alabama High School Graduation Examination (AHSGE). James E. McLean introduces the problems and methods involved by identifying three general approaches to scoring procedures found in the…

Using data from three studies, this paper focuses on competency education trends in California in the area of writing. The studies reviewed in the paper examined (1) the competency examinations produced by students in one high school in 1980, (2) the various means employed in 1981 by five school districts in the San Francisco Bay area to implement…

On July 8, 9 and 10, 1981 the National Institute of Education (NIE) sponsored a "hearing" on minimum competency testing (MCT). The hearing, which was to clarify issues related to MCT, was modeled after adversarial and judicial evaluation approaches. The Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory was responsible for the overall evaluation…

Three aspects of the match between education and the demands of our changing economic situation are examined. First, the skills students will need for the future are identified. These skills included competencies in reading, writing, speaking and listening, mathematics, science, reasoning, basic employment, economics, and computer literacy.…