As a consequence of the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990, which brought outcomes-based education to P-12 students, the Kentucky Professional Standards Board mandated a process by which teachers will receive state certification after successfully completing performance assessments. This article lists the eight teacher expectations and the…

A history of teacher testing in South Carolina was presented to serve as a context within which the current teacher evaluation system might be interpreted. Legislation in 1940 mandated that renewal of certificates and issuance of new certificates to teachers be predicated upon the applicant's completion of a comprehensive and objective…

This paper examines key points to consider in developing policy on teacher testing. A summary is presented of the four underlying purposes that may be served, in part, by testing: (1) limiting the number of incompetent teachers; (2) encouraging teacher professionalism; (3) promoting public confidence in teachers; and (4) promoting excellence in…

Based on 18 months of extensive research and study, the New Mexico State Department of Education developed the Staff Accountability Plan to address the issue of teacher accountability and certification. One of the provisions of the plan (a written assessment of general and professional knowledge for initial certification) will be fulfilled by…

In January 1986, the Texas State Board of Education established performance standards for the Texas Examination of Current Administrators and Teachers (TECAT), an examination resulting from the passage in 1984 of Texas House Bill 72. This Bill called for Texas public school educators to pass a test in reading and writing as a condition of…

This two-phase study was conducted to content validate through professional consensus the competencies for use in training and certifying prospective public school teachers in Connecticut. In phase one, a two round modified Delphi approach was used to bring a panel of outstanding Connecticut educators to consensus as to which competencies were…

This position paper summarizes the views of the 12-member Day Care Task Force to the Child Development Associate (CDA) Consortium, following a series of colloquies held by the task force on topics related to staff training and assessment in the day care field. Topics covered are: (1) definition of day care for children, (2) specific competencies…

In the past a person with 12 years of work experience in an occupational skill to be taught was considered more desirable than a person with six years. The question of whether there is a correlation between the length of occupational experience as a valid indicator of the quality of the teacher is examined. There are two ways whereby a person with…

A competency examination was developed to assist in certification as well as to increase the supply of vocational business and office education teachers. The rationale for the examination was derived from reviewing literature and gathering information from 12 states, 25 coordinators, special meetings, and before-and-after questionnaires completed…

The need for a revision of teacher evaluation standards is made clear, not only from the change in our society over the past 10 years but also from the new political and social demands placed on our school systems. Administrators, principals, and school officials are all experiencing this need for improving teacher evaluation. Because of…

Findings from this project suggest that (1) effective teaching can be predicted from observation in natural classroom settings and (2) a teacher can be trained in the use of observation instruments in order to assess another teacher's performance. (MM)

Explains the purposes, procedures, and standards associated with the National Science Teachers Association certification program. Describes the criteria used for the different grade levels and subject areas. Discusses future plans for the programs. (ML)

Presents an overview of litigation pertaining to the use of tests in public employment. Provides guidelines for the development of teacher testing programs within legal parameters. (KH)

Minimum standards were established for the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) by teacher educators instructed in the use of the Angoff, Nedelsky, or Jaeger procedures. The anticipated failure rates, the psychometric characteristics of the ratings, and other factors suggest the Angoff procedure yields the most defensible standards for the NTE area…

Within the education community there is a lack of consensus about how to define criteria to be used in assessing teacher qualifications. This report describes findings of a survey sent to all building administrators and district superintendents in the Kansas public schools (n=1,554). The survey elicited a total of 868 responses, 60 percent…