Competencies, Inequities, and Contradictions: The Rise of Minimum Competency Testing Movement, 1970s–1980s

• In Event: From Eugenics to Standardized Testing: Histories of Educational Assessment

Abstract

This paper examines the rise and consequences of Minimum Competency Testing (MCT) in U.S. public schools during the 1970s-80s. We frame our analysis by focusing on a unique, three-day quasi-judicial hearing, held in July 1981, sponsored by the National Institute of Education (NIE). With former congressional Representative Barbara Jordan as the presiding officer, this public inquiry heard testimony from fifty-seven witnesses with the goal of determining whether MCT programs were benefiting or harming students, curriculum, and teachers. Witnesses included state leaders, practitioners, and parents, along with a host of national figures such as Ralph Nader and Representative Shirley Chisholm. Using transcripts, published, and unpublished materials we analyze the role that MCT played in providing or subverting opportunities for equitable education.

Authors

• David A. Gamson, Pennsylvania State University
  Presenting Author

• Laura E. Pirkle Howd, Pennsylvania State University
  Presenting Author