CTB/McGraw-Hill Launches Series of K-12 Digital Assessment Solutions at Annual ISTE Conference

PHILADELPHIA, June 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- ISTE Conference (Booth #915) – June 27, 2011 – June 29, 2011 – Today at the International Society of Technology in Education's (ISTE) annual conference, CTB/McGraw-Hill, one of the country's leading educational assessment developers, launched a series of digital K-12 assessment programs designed to meet schools' demand for innovative assessment solutions in areas of Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and English language proficiency.

The products are designed to help schools individualize instruction and improve student performance through better data-driven decision making. They include:

• Acuity for High School: The first high school assessment product to emerge directly from the CCSS, the Acuity^® InFormative Assessment™ solution for high school helps teachers gauge student performance and deliver tailored instruction for every student. Acuity for High School goes beyond simple Common Core State Standards alignment to reflect the new way that the standards will ask 21^st century learners to think, emphasizing skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, logical reasoning, communication and team work. Launching in the subject areas of English and math, and created to be used within typical high school courses including Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, and English 1 – 4, the program contains four elements of a comprehensive assessment system: ongoing skills measurement, in-depth reporting, data analysis and resources for individual instruction and intervention. With Acuity for High School, teachers can use Acuity's prebuilt diagnostic assessments, or build tests according to their own scope and sequence utilizing the CCSS item bank to be administered in print, online or using student response devices. The program will be available for classroom use beginning in August.

• Acuity for the Common Core State Standards (Grades 3-8): The award-winning Acuity InFormative Assessment system delivers a powerful solution designed to help schools strategically transition their assessment and instruction to the CCSS. The trusted Acuity solution for Grades 3-8 offers diagnostic assessments, item banks and instructional resources for English/language arts and math — all aligned to the CCSS. The program includes prebuilt diagnostic assessments using a blend of items emerging directly from the CCSS, allowing districts to use Acuity as a tool for transitioning to the increased rigor required by the new standards. The Common Core component of Acuity for Grades 3-8 will be available to customers in August.

• LAS Links Online: The first K–12 standards-based, standardized English language proficiency assessment program to offer a truly digital experience, LAS Links Online captures students' spoken and written responses electronically, allowing teachers to score responses anytime, anywhere. The all-digital, online environment of LAS Links Online provides a standardized, comfortable testing experience that allows all students to do their best. LAS Links Online provides teachers with immediate access to informative diagnostic reports, allowing them to quickly determine vital information about a student's English language proficiency, as well as rubrics and exemplary responses to help ease the scoring process and promote professional development. The program will be available for Grades 2-12 beginning in August with K-1 release to follow.

"We're excited to offer innovative assessment solutions that prepare our students for success by integrating the latest digital technology and aligning to the Common Core State Standards," said Ellen Haley, president of CTB/McGraw-Hill. "CTB has deep experience in helping teachers better focus their instruction through data-driven decisions, and the products launching today are reflective of our ongoing commitment in this area."

The International Society for Technology in Education is the premier membership association for educators and education leaders engaged in improving teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in PreK–12 and teacher education, representing more than 100,000 professionals worldwide. For more than three decades, ISTE's annual conference has been the world's premier educational technology event, featuring hands-on workshops, lecture-format and interactive concurrent sessions and discussions with industry leaders.

CTB/McGraw-Hill will be conducting product demonstrations at its booth throughout the ISTE conference. Conference attendees who visit the McGraw-Hill booth can enter a drawing to win an iPad as well as one of six Powermats. Several prize drawings also will be made available to McGraw-Hill Education's followers on Twitter, where the company will be posting live tweets from the conference under the hashtag #ISTE11. The company's Twitter account (@MHEducation) can be found at (http://twitter.com/MHEducation).

About CTB/McGraw-Hill

CTB/McGraw-Hill has an 85-year record of innovation and excellence in assessment, and serves more than 18 million students in all 50 states and in 49 countries. One of the first American publishers to introduce objective, standardized achievement tests to schools, today CTB/McGraw-Hill is a leader in testing with recognized products for online interim and formative, adult, and language proficiency assessment. Dedicated to advancing the use of student performance data to inform instructional decision making, CTB/McGraw-Hill's innovation continues today with technologies that include Web-based assessment and reporting, student response device (clicker) software, and artificial intelligence for automated scoring of student essays. CTB/McGraw-Hill is part of McGraw-Hill Education, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP). McGraw-Hill Education is a leading global provider of instructional, assessment and reference solutions that empower professionals and students of all ages. For more information, visit CTB.com.

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SOURCE CTB/McGraw-Hill