This annual report complies with the requirements of Tennessee's Public Education Governance Reform Act of 1984, which directs the State Board of Education and the Tennessee Higher Education Commission to prepare a report on: (1) the extent of duplication in elementary-secondary and postsecondary education in Tennessee; (2) the extent to which…

This report contains aggregate and disaggregated state-level results from administrations of North Carolina's computer skills tests (performance and multiple choice) in 2000-2001. The report also provides limited information about the performance of school districts and charter schools. Additional data are included in this report about the…

This report discusses outcomes of a study of assessment directors and transition specialists from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia on exit documents available to and graduation requirements for students with and without disabilities. Results indicate: (1) approximately 80 percent of the states have alternative exit documents for…

This paper discusses the national movement toward increasing high school graduation requirements and the development of alternatives to the standard high school diploma for students with disabilities. Findings from a review of state policies indicate: (1) 38 states and territories apply some graduation requirements to students with disabilities;…

This manual contains a description of the procedures to be used when administering the Nevada High School Proficiency Examination in mathematics, reading, and writing. Test administrators should read and understand these instructions thoroughly before testing sessions. The parts are: (1) "General Instructions"; (2) "Instructions for…

All students can learn, including all students with disabilities. High expectation of learning for all students is essential for the success of any student's post school outcomes, whether work or education. Participation in statewide assessments is crucial in determining success and demonstrating equal opportunity and access to education.…

High school graduation requirements vary from state to state and district to district across the United States. These requirements establish criteria that students must meet in order to obtain diplomas or certificates of completion. An increasingly common graduation requirement is the achievement of a passing score on an exit exam, a practice…

In more than 90 percent of the American colleges the prevailing method of transfer from secondary school to college is by certification, based on the pupil's record in secondary school. In the large majority of cases a record of graduation from an accredited secondary school is required to every student admitted to college. When it is considered…

Discusses the external master of science degree program conducted jointly by the Center for Community College Faculty Development and by the School of Applied Science. These two Rochester units are aimed at educating the technical faculty and graduates of the community junior colleges. (CC)

"A laboratory, a studio, and a forum, a place where the rational and the romantic can exist side by side, is the way the author describes the social studies classroom he wishes to see evolve. His provocative article discusses concrete ways of educating prospective teachers to become a vital part of this setting. (Editor)

In setting performance standards for schoolchildren, the school system not only announces what students must know; it specifies what it presumes it can teach. Tests of competency should be merely a monitoring device to indicate whether the system is meeting its obligation to students. (Author)

To investigate the status of foreign language studies at the middle school and high school levels in Tennessee, 1000 questionnaires were sent to Tennessee Foreign Language Association members and to foreign language departments. Information obtained from the 156 valid responses emphasized funding as the critical issue in foreign language programs.…

This article examines the program planning implications of specific advantages and disadvantages to competency testing which have been cited by lawyers and educators. Part of a theme issue on student assessment. (SJL)

Describes admissions procedures, graduation requirements, curriculum, and achievement of students in the Science/Math Mini-School Program, housed at F.W. Ballou Senior High School in Washington, D.C. The program is especially designed for talented minority students who show promise in the fields of science and technology. (Author/GC)

Two years after the implementation of Florida's Educational Accountability Act, which mandates statewide competency testing in reading, writing, and arithmetic, the author cites the advantages of the program, refutes criticisms of it and reviews the challenge to it in Federal District court, the Debra P. V. Turlington case. (SJL)