This article reviews the development of, and controversy behind, minimum competency testing at the state and national levels. (WI)

The Italian educational system's experiences with national examinations might help United States educators understand the impact of state tests on students, schools, and education in general. (JT)

In this report four educators discuss the issues which they see to be most current in the fields of testing, measurement and evaluation. The first section discusses the mastery of basic skills, defined by minimum levels of competence. Factors such as accountability, social policy, instructional implications, and psychometric issues are brought to…

Public distrust in schools should not be attributed to poorer schools or less able students; it exists because we have a different kind of parent and a different world ahead. Parents of today's children were trained not to accept the status quo, but to question; furthermore, underlying parents' concern about the schools is a fear that their…

The effort to institute minimum competency testing (MCT) is nearly universal despite the need to debate its basic definitions, implications, and consequences beforehand. There are seven distinct reasons for the MCT movement: (1) legislative zeal; (2) unfavorable allegations by local and national press; (3) economic accountability; (4) the…