Legislation dealing with competency testing in general falls into the following categories: (1) mandating uniform statewide minimum competency testing, to which high school diplomas and/or grade promotion is related; (2) mandating uniform statewide minimum competency testing to be used for improvement of instruction but not tied to grade promotion…

This annotated bibliography of 66 resources was developed as part of a federally funded project in Minnesota to promote the participation of students with limited English proficiency (LEP) and students with disabilities in the Minnesota Graduation Standards. Specifically, the project is encouraging participation in the Basic Standards Exams of…

This article addresses an important problem that faces educators in assessing students' competence levels in learned tasks. Data from 165 students from Massachusetts and Minnesota in the United States are used to examine the validity of five assessment modes (multiple choice test, scenario, portfolio, self-assessment and supervisor rating) in…

This booklet contains the 14 exercises that are used in the Bloomington, Minnesota, school system's writing assessment program. Depending on their applicability, the exercises may be used to assess the writing performance of fourth-, eighth-, or eleventh-grade students. Thirteen of the exercises are from the National Assessment of Educational…

This summary of the Bloomington, Minnesota, public schools writing assessment program includes background information about the selection of exercises that assessed fourth-, eighth-, and eleventh-grade students' writing abilities, a list of these exercises that were used, and information about the students who were assessed. The results of the…

This report provides Minnesota legislators with background information on establishing state educational standards and periodic testing to measure student progress. Scientific management, the accountability movement, and the basic education movement were educational trends of the 1970's providing pressure on states to set standards to improve…

This study surveyed special education teachers teaching eighth and ninth grade students in 27 Minnesota school districts to determine how decisions were made on the inclusion of children with disabilities in the 1997 administration of Minnesota's Basic Standards Test and what accommodations were provided and desired. Analysis of the 259 responses…

The Pre-Professional Skills Tests (PPST) of reading, mathematics, and writing are three separate tests designed to measure basic proficiency in these areas. In response to a mandate from the State Legislature, the Minnesota Board of Teaching adopted these tests, developed by the Educational Testing Service. An evaluation of the 3 years of…

This study examined issues concerned with the participation of students with disabilities or with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) in Minnesota's Profile of Learning, a taxonomy of learning expectations covering 13 different curricular areas across four different developmental levels (grades 3, 5, 8, and graduation level). Representatives…