ERIC Number: ED340883
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1991-Oct
Pages: 11
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
The Once and Future Thing: Credit-by-Examination in Adult Education.
Donlon, Thomas F.
In the 1960s, credit-by-examination was promoted as a way to broaden access to college. In 1971, Ewald Nyquist, Commissioner of Education in the Regents system of New York, proposed that the Educational Testing Service offer a degree based entirely on performance on examinations. Although a few institutions theoretically offer such degrees, in practice very few students would ever find sufficient course coverage to meet the requirements for their intended degree by taking and passing examinations. The promising prospects for credit-by-examination in the 1960s proved difficult to realize. The College Level Examination Program, the largest program, showed declining annual "enrollment" from 1975 to 1990. Other test services also showed declines in numbers of persons taking tests for college credit after a surge in military personnel took the tests in the 1970s following the Vietnam War. Only American College Testing's Proficiency Examination Program, which focused on registered nurses who needed bachelor's degrees, showed increased numbers of test-takers. This program may foreshadow the future uses of credit by examination, which may target the increasingly diverse educational needs of students returning for further education. The testing programs will need to examine ways to help students prepare for the examinations in conjunction with colleges. (KC)
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: College Level Examination Program
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A