This paper traces the evolution of the statutory reforms passed by the Illinois General Assembly to upgrade the quality of those entering the teaching force in Illinois. Part one briefly examines the national trends in testing for admission into teacher education programs prior to certification. Part two focuses on the Illinois movement to test…

Observing that an undesirable byproduct of competency testing for teacher certification has been a nationwide decrease in the number of Blacks entering teaching, this article analyzes Louisiana data on race of National Teacher Examinations takers and declining percentages of Blacks entering the profession. (MJL)

This report was developed in the Test Use Project at the Center for the Study of Evaluation. The general goal of the project is to examine and describe the features and applications of tests and other assessment methods that contribute to the improvement of instruction. It is, therefore, examining the nature of current assessment practice, the…

This bulletin provides information about the Florida Teacher Certification Examination. It describes the development of the examination and presents the specifications for each of the subtests. Competencies and subskills are tested in the areas of reading, writing, mathematics, and professional education. The tentative examination schedule is…

The four position statements included in this occasional paper are the products of a conference involving the New York State Association of Teacher Educators and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education--New York State, on "Who Will Be the Teachers of the Future.""Entry Level Testing in New York State,"…

Equal educational opportunity is the springboard for equal opportunity and is the hope of blacks, other minorities, and whites for fair participation in the economic marketplace. Standardized tests frequently contain a cultural bias that mitigates against black students, thus presenting a barrier to higher education. In many places, competency…

The issues of competency testing, standardized testing, and new measures of achievement and competency in college are discussed. Attention is directed to the following questions: what skills and subjects are basic, how can schools enhance and measure competence, and who is responsible for setting higher standards? Considerations of the National…

Criteria for the selection of judges (evaluators) for setting item-based standards involved in tests for which cutting scores must be established are investigated. Focus is on cases in which test standards are based on specialists' judgments concerning the difficulty of test items in tests used to determine who will be awarded a diploma, admitted…