Can an academic institution be truly free if it relies on government funding? Federal dollars mean federal mandates, and those mandates grow increasingly draconian. More and more, they stifle debate on open questions, demand denial of verifiable scientific truths, eliminate due process for students accused of misdeeds by other students, or insist…

Competency-based education (CBE) is an approach to pedagogy that emphasizes the mastery of skills and concepts rather than credit hours or seat time. The assessment of mastery can take several forms, including formal assessments of prior learning (such as portfolio reviews or examinations) and automated evaluations of online coursework. Advocates…

This report provides information about the performance of Oregon's 2016 graduating seniors who took the ACT as sophomores, juniors, or seniors; and self-reported at the time of testing that they were scheduled to graduate in 2016. Beginning with the Graduating Class of 2013, all students whose scores are college reportable, both standard and…

An increasing number of state leaders have begun to grapple with one of the significant challenges of K-12 reform: how to substantially increase the percentage of young people graduating from high school while also continuing to bring academic standards into alignment with the skills and knowledge required for success in higher education and…

Annually, ACT provides a snapshot of the college and career readiness of ACT-tested high school graduates. This report is offered as a service to inform policymakers and practitioners about selected indicators of effectiveness and how that translates into readiness. It is designed to stimulate discussion, inquiry, and action. This report is…

This report provides information about the performance of Oregon's 2012 graduating seniors who took the ACT as sophomores, juniors, or seniors; and self-reported at the time of testing that they were scheduled to graduate in 2012 and tested under standard time conditions. This report focuses on: (1) Performance: student test performance in the…

By adding courses in math, science, English, foreign languages, and geography to their admission standards, colleges and universities in many states are fostering further fragmentation of high school curricula and forcing some schools to add class periods or short-change vocational, music, and art students. Michigan, Oregon, Colorado, and New York…

Describes Oregon's Proficiency-based Admission Standards System (PASS), a transition away from using Carnegie units and grade point averages in college admission decisions and toward use of the certificates of mastery implemented as part of Oregon's K-12 education reform efforts. (EV)

The Oregon Proficiency-Based Admission Standards System (PASS) is based on standards that describe the academic skills and knowledge students need to demonstrate for acceptance into any of Oregon's seven public universities. The Oregon University System (OUS) created PASS in 1993 for three reasons: (1) PASS aligns college admissions with Oregon's…

This paper examines the relationship between the grades teachers give their students and the scores external raters give the same students' work when using a common set of standards and criteria. Data were collected from 78 high school teachers participating in the Proficiency-Based Admission Standards System (PASS) project to establish standards…

This report summarizes findings on 26 National Teacher Examination specialty area tests provided by faculty reviewers from five Oregon institutions of higher education. Reviewers were asked to judge tests on the basis of: (1) whether students at the reviewer's institution would have the opportunity to acquire the knowledge measured in test items;…

This paper presents the current PASS (Proficiency-based Admission Standards System) Proficiency Standards in English and answers the question of what students should be able to do upon admission to the Oregon University System. The PASS standards in the paper are aligned with and complement the standards, scoring guides, and test specifications…

The Standards-based Education Project (STEP) was conducted as part of the Eisenhower Initial Teacher Professional Development Program in Oregon, under the Proficiency-based Admissions Standards System (PASS). STEP focused on the development of a framework of teacher knowledge, skills, and materials for pre-service and practicing teachers. High…

This treatise is a compilation of various educational malpractice cases as well as other references regarding educational malpractice and related malpractice cases from other professions, such as medicine, law and psychiatry, and is intended to serve as a source for understanding the complex and sensitive problems relating to educational…

The achiever is published monthly during the school year for parents and community leaders. Each issue contains news and information about school improvement in the United States. The following articles are contained in this issue: (1) Spellings Focuses on English Language Learners; (2) Around the Country--Maryland and Oregon; (3) Calendar; (4)…