This document contains the proceedings of a conference on improving the academic skills of urban students. Titles and authors of the twelve included papers are: (1) "Academic Skills and the SAT," George H. Hanford; (2) "New York City Promotional Gates Program: Implications for Instruction of Academic Skills," Charlotte Frank;…

The purpose of this paper is to present a case study of the context and process by which the Board adopted a policy, came to question that policy, and ultimately rescinded that policy, while maintaining legitimacy within its environment. In 1977, the Board of Directors of a large urban school district adopted a policy establishing successful…

The trend toward establishing minimal competency requirements for high school graduation led the Speech Communication Association to establish a task force that would recommend what speaking and listening skills should be required of high school graduates in the United States. This paper describes the work of that task force, indicating the…

Individual state projections of the number of public high school graduates from 1979 through 1995 are presented for each of thirteen western states--Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. For each state, a four-page section presents detailed historical data,…

The College Level Examination Program (CLEP) had a substantial impact upon the Florida State University System. Over 42% of the beginning freshmen in 1972 took CLEP examinations and over 38% received credit for passing one or more examinations with a score above the national 50th percentile. These freshmen received an average of 27 quarter-hours…

THIS ARTICULATION STATEMENT IS IN THREE PARTS--(1) GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON INCLUDES ADMISSION CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES, TRANSFER POLICIES, STUDENT AID, AND ARTICULATION PROCESSES. (2) PROGRAMS AND COURSE REQUIREMENTS ARE DESCRIBED FOR EACH OF THE UNIVERSITY'S COLLEGES, SCHOOLS, INTERDEPARTMENTAL PROGRAMS, AND…

The Regents Competency Testing Program has been designed to assure that all students develop adequate skills in reading comprehension, writing, and mathematics before graduation from high school in New York. This bulletin provides information on two of the program's three basic elements that contribute to the accomplishment of this goal. First,…

A district-wide language arts program for grades 9 through 12 that emphasizes aesthetic expression in addition to a basic skills component is described in this booklet. A foreword discusses at length the curriculum guide on which the program is based and outlines the potential for the guide's use and modification, the relationship of the state and…

Information regarding state minimum competency testing programs was requested from the 50 state departments of education in the United States in the spring of 1979. The following questions were asked: (1) Do you have a testing program? (2) If you do, what tests are being used? (3) Do you have a testing program in the planning stages? (4) Are there…

A VISIT TO 200 FRENCH SCHOOLS AND DISCUSSIONS WITH MANY STUDENTS AND SOME 500 TEACHERS SERVED AS THE BASIS OF THIS REVIEW OF THE TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF FRENCH SECONDARY EDUCATION. COMMENTARIES AND EXAMPLES ARE GIVEN OF HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS, REPORT CARDS, AND STUDENT AND TEACHER SCHEDULES. THE THREE "CHANNELS" OF STUDY OPEN TO STUDENTS AT…

Seven guidelines for setting minimum competency standards for high school graduation are presented: (1) Competency standards for the diploma should be developed by a process that gives major attention to the needs of students yet recognizes an institutions's responsibility to societal needs. (2) Competency standards should be developed using good…

This information package has been designed for teachers, administrators, school boards, and legislators who are interested in exploring the area of competency based education (CBE). The first section briefly reviews why there is interest in CBE, how it is currently defined, and some of the major issues it raises (including definition of what…

In 1971, the History, Government, and Geography Service of the Division of Secondary Education, Virginia State Department of Education, conducted a survey of social studies programs, kindergarten through grade twelve, in the fifty states. The responses from forty-one of the fifty states are presented in alphabetical order. For each grade level in…

Describes statewide results on minimum competency testing (MCT) programs newly implemented in Texas, and discusses initial efforts to predict the impact of a specific statewide MCT program on retention and graduation in Houston. Suggests that the new MCT requirements, by discouraging high risk students who previously might have stayed in school,…

The use of competency-based transcripts is favored over differentiated diplomas to designate differences in student performance. Issues discussed surrounding the use of differentiated diplomas for high school graduation include the actual importance of functional literacy level for job success, the failure of prospective employers to verify…