This article provides general background on the competency-based movement with special reference to New York State and presents information on both the political and educational dimensions of the movement in its present stage of development.

TODAY education is being appraised critically. In many instances the appraisal is in the form of an attack and consequently accentuates the negative. This is true of current evaluation of public education at the elementary and secondary school levels, where critics present a series of generalizations on what's wrong with the schools. Some of these generalizations are based on evidence; others are not.