The Kentucky Competency Education & Assessment Consortium (KCEAC) consists of districts across the state interested in providing their students with the option of a competency pathway toward graduation. The KCEAC vision is to create a collaboration among districts committed to a systemic approach to competency education and assessment and, with the support of the Kentucky Department of Education, design and implement a competency education and assessment system. KCEAC began in 2018 as a pilot program but has since taken on a consortium approach modeled after the New York Performance Standards Consortium.
Why competency education?
Competency education is a flexible method of teaching that
enables students to progress as they demonstrate mastery of academic content,
regardless of time, pace, or place of learning. Competency education is part of
a system of personalized learning and centers around a common set of beliefs:
Competency education allows students to demonstrate deeper learning on dimensions (skills and dispositions) not captured in current assessments that result in outcomes of success that extend beyond traditional academic performance.
Competency education supports the success of all students, especially those who are less likely to perform well in the current assessment and accountability system.
Competency education shows more evidence of stronger student engagement than do more traditional approaches.
Competency education allows (through student choice) the opportunity for students to make interdisciplinary connections across the curriculum through authentic projects and assessments.
Competency education can be implemented in a wide variety of districts and customized as needed.
Competency education provides additional measures of success beyond traditional academic performance.
A competency-based
system includes the following:
Students advance upon mastery.
Competencies include explicit, measurable, transferable learning objectives that empower students.
Assessment is meaningful and a positive learning experience for students.
Students receive timely, differentiated support based on their individual learning needs.
Learning outcomes emphasize competencies that include application and creation of knowledge, along with the development of important skills and dispositions.
How can I join?
Districts interested in joining KCEAC can contact David Cook, Director, Division of Innovation. Districts participating in KCEAC commit to a shared set of beliefs around competency education and to using a set of shared anchor competencies. The benefits of joining KCEAC include access to expert partners contracted by KDE. KCEAC districts worked with Alcine Mumby of Envision Learning Partners to create a set of performance outcomes during the 2018-2019 school year, and sent teams through a summer competency workshop facilitated by Chris Sturgis of LearningEdge (formerly of iNACOL) during summer 2019.
Where can I learn more about competency education?