Glossary: What Does It Mean?

Assessment—Assessments are used to evaluate a student’s mastery of the instructed curriculum. Assessments can be paper and pencil tests, demonstrations, projects, or other performances.

Articulation—Articulation is an agreed-upon alignment between courses and levels of academic instruction. For example, some Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs have articulation agreements with community colleges and universities through which specific CTE courses serve as prerequisites for college courses.

Carnegie Unit—The Carnegie Unit was developed in 1906 as a measure of the amount of time a student has studied a subject. For example, a total of 120 hours in one subject (i.e., meeting four or five times a week for 40 to 60 minutes, for 36 to 40 weeks each year) earns the student one “unit” of high school credit. Fourteen units constitute the minimum amount of preparation that may be interpreted as “four years of academic or high school preparation.” Although many school districts may continue to offer graduate credit based on this traditional vehicle, new legislation no longer presumes time in the classroom to be a sufficient measurement of credit.

Credits/Courses—The new Michigan legislation defines credit/course requirements as a specific set of content expectations for which a student may receive credit. They are not defined by “seat time,” known as Carnegie Units, or semesters. They are defined by meeting the content expectations defined by the state.

Educational Development Plan—The Educational Development Plan is a tool that students use beginning in middle school to explore careers and the educational requirements for achieving a career goal.

Grade Level Content Expectations—Grade Level Content Expectations (GLCEs) state in clear and measurable terms what students in each grade are expected to know and be able to do in a specific curriculum area like math or English language arts.

High School Content Expectations (HSCE)— HSCE state in clear, measurable, terms what students should know and be able to do by the end of high school.

High Stakes Testing—High stakes testing is a term used to describe a variety of assessments. The term usually refers to statewide assessments that have a serious impact on students, schools, and school districts. For example, some states require students to pass a statewide assessment in order to move to the next grade or to graduate from high school.

Satisfactory Performance—Satisfactory performance is performance that displays achievement of grade level content expectations.

Standard—A standard is a uniform metric or statement against which academic performance can be measured.

Time-on-Task—Time-on-task is time spent teaching, learning, investigating, and demonstrating.

Universal Design for Learning—The design of instructional materials and activities for individuals with wide differences in their abilities to see, hear, speak, move, read, write, understand English, attend, organize, engage, and remember. Universal design for learning is achieved by means of flexible curricular materials and activities that provide alternatives for students with differing abilities. These alternatives are built into the instructional design and operating systems of educational materials; they are not added on “after-the-fact.”

Virtual Learning—Demonstrated content and skill development through the medium of technology.

Source: Adapted from the Michigan Department of Education’s Presentation of Proposed High School Graduation Requirements, November 2005.