A study was conducted to determine the effects of implementing the Ohio policy of permitting credit-deficient students to enroll in two-year vocational education job training programs. At issue were the perceived benefits to 16-year-old students permitted to enroll in two-year vocational job training programs, even though the students have not…

The report documents the evaluation of a New York City program, the State Incentive Grant to Improve Pupil Performance, in which high school special education teachers received training in general education curriculum and instructional techniques to fulfill a new regulation allowing high school special education students to meet general education…

College programs in the arts are described, and an essay on the role of the arts in liberal education is presented. In the essay, "Windows and Doors," Thomas K. Hearn, Jr. suggests that imagination is the primary agent of the educational process and is basic to moral development and moral thought. He argues that the arts have an…

The sources of variability in the Angoff standard-setting procedure, when applied to the Alabama High School Graduation Examination (AHSGE), were examined. The sources of variability examined are judges, rounds (replications), competencies (items), and interactions among these three sources. After training, the judges were given a statement of a…

Increasingly involved in curricular concerns, boards of education can determine the educational goals of the community by using the Educational Goals Assessment (EGA) and thus set priorities when cutbacks are necessary. The EGA is composed of four questionnaires listing 275 learning goals describing knowledge, attitudes, or physical skills and…

Project Basic is a program developed by the Maryland State Department of Education to assure that students attain basic skills in a variety of areas. Two levels of tests are given in grade 7 to monitor progress, and in grades 9 to 12 to determine whether each student has met the state minimum competency level. Students must pass the higher level…

A study was conducted at Piedmont Virginia Community College (PVCC) to examine occupational/technical programs with respect to student enrollment, program completion, and occupational opportunities for graduates. Study findings included the following: (1) during any particular academic term, occupational/technical students constituted…

A discussion focusing on whether American Sign Language (ASL) should be accepted in fulfillment of university foreign language requirements attempts to dispel misconceptions about the language; and to show that ASL can provide the same benefits as the study of more traditional foreign languages, including the opportunity to communicate in another…

The report of the National Longitudinal Transition Study presents initial findings on characteristics of school dropouts since 1985-86 among more than 8,000 youth (ages 13 to 23) with disabilities. The report also addresses characteristics of schools or programs that may affect the decision to drop out among disabled youth. The first section…

The appearance of a graduation requirement in the arts has focused attention on public school systems to provide comprehensive music education coursework. As a result, this report discusses trends in secondary music education course requirements, suggests strategies for implementing a meaningful music curriculum, cites obstacles to expanding music…

This brief overview of minimum competency testing and disabled high school students discusses: the inclusion or exclusion of handicapped students in minimum competency testing programs; approaches to accommodating the individual needs of handicapped students; and legal issues. Surveys of states that have mandated minimum competency tests indicate…

The implicit definition of competence and the inferential chain that links the standard-setting process to the decision outcomes of the method are considered for two classes of standard-setting procedures: those involving data-free judgments of items and those involving data-based judgment of items. The major underlying assumptions of competence…

An analysis is provided of patterns of community college enrollments between 1970 and 1980, with particular emphasis on variations among the states in enrollment and completion rates. Section I looks at recent trends in community colleges, focusing on enrollment, numbers of degrees conferred, vocational enrollments, curriculum changes, and the…

Intended for use by school administrators, guidance counselors, teachers, and proctors, this manual contains general information on Regents examinations and competency tests. Specifically, the regulations and procedures for ordering, administering, rating, and reporting results of these examinations are described. Information is also included…

Discusses the problems of foreign language requirements and foreign language student dropouts from an anthropological viewpoint. Proposes solutions which stress both the intrinsic and extrinsic values of learning a foreign language. (PM)