In 1988-89 the Connecticut Vocational-Technical School System initiated a program for the ongoing review and upgrading of all trade and academic curricula used in the system's 17 schools to insure that each curriculum is consistent with current standards. Every 3 years the Curriculum Steering Committee for the trade or academic subject conducts a…

At Amarillo College (AC) in Texas, academic advising is provided by certified counselors at the Advising and Counseling Center in conjunction with faculty and staff of the developmental studies department. In addition, all teaching faculty serve as student advisors. During the past 5 years, a number of factors have placed increased demands on the…

This document presents the findings of the Task Force on Technology Competence, which was formed to determine what every Minnesota high school graduate should know about technology and how technology education should be integrated into the elementary and secondary school curriculum. In chapter 1, technology competence (TC) is defined as…

A major initiative in Australia is a general and pervasive obsession with competency-based training and assessment. There is a real danger that the selling of competency-based training (CBT) and competency-based assessment (CBA) is greater than what it can offer. One criticism focuses on CBT, the other on CBA, although in most instances where CBT…

Assessment testing in California's community colleges (CCC) helps to identify entering students' goals and skills level and to ensure that the students are properly advised of appropriate courses and programs. The California Education Code requires that all assessment instruments be approved by the Office of the Chancellor of the California…

One of our nation's educational triumphs is that admission to college has been brought within the reach of a majority of our high school graduates. Yet inadequate preparation often deprives students of this opportunity. Their stunted hopes are a major reason for growing naitonal concern about the quality of education in our schools. The College…

Developed for the Duval County Public Schools (Jacksonville, Florida), this manual gives elementary school teachers information on instructional program procedures. Section one is about the reading program and deals with placement procedures and criteria for kindergarten and first grade students, initial placement procedures for grades two-six,…

The Skill Acquisition Measures (SAM) were designed by the Lancaster (Pennsylvania) School District as criterion referenced tests for mathematics. This manual consists of copies of the student test forms for level 6, with additional information for the teacher's use. Each of the test items is presented with the correct answers and the criteria for…

To assist Congress in preparing for the reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act, the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) examined the technical feasibility and utility of instituting specific requirements for performance measurement of secondary school vocational programs. The OTA examined two types of performance…

The Minimum Performance Test (MPT), Metropolitan Achievement Test, Sixth Edition (MAT6), and the new standards required by the 1983 Quality Education Act and their impact on teachers in Arkansas were assessed. A sample of 103 elementary school teachers from 39 school districts indicated that the tests and standards generally met with favorable…

Florida's Commissioner of Education recently appointed a task force to review current standards for the College-Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST) and the effect of raising the levels of passing scores that are proposed for 1989. There is now a sufficient history of the CLAST to provide an understanding of the program's benefits and liabilities.…

The Skill Acquisition Measures (SAM) were designed by the Lancaster (Pennsylvania) School District as criterion referenced tests for mathematics. This manual consists of copies of the student test forms for level 2, with additional information for the teacher's use. Each of the test items is presented with the correct answers and the criteria for…

The Skill Acquisition Measures (SAM) were designed by the Lancaster (Pennsylvania) School District as criterion referenced tests for mathematics. This manual consists of copies of the student test forms for level 4, with additional information for the teacher's use. Each of the test items is presented with the correct answers and the criteria for…

Characteristics that distinguish criterion-referenced tests from their norm-referenced counterparts are discussed, including: the purposes that they are designed to serve; the characteristics of the types of items that they contain; and the manner in which they are developed. More specifically, the distinguishing characteristics include: reference…

Adults in four North Carolina counties were surveyed to determine public attitudes about the high school minimum competency test (MCT) that determines which students receive a diploma. The interview form consisted of 18 questions with 5-point Likert response scale. Four additional questions requested specific responses. Interviewers were seven…