File under "teaching to the test," companies roll out new tests

Under the "teaching to the test department," the Education Week for 5/25/05 also reports that various testing companies are creating new tests to provide schools with tests that are linked to state standards in order to inform their classroom practice. If this does not sound like more teaching to the test, I am not sure what is. The article, "Publishers Roll Out Classroom Tests," is a brief report. Here is the abstract from Academic Search Premier, which I think gives a good sense of what this signifies:

"This article informs that publishers continue to respond to demands for tests that are linked to state standards but can better inform classroom teaching. The San Antonio-based Harcourt Assessment Inc. introduced Stanford Learning First, a flexible, Web-based classroom assessment system for grades 3-8. Focused on reading and mathematics, the two subjects in which schools must make yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, the system has two components, periodic assessments called ClassLinks that are guided by each state's academic-content standards, and annual tests called ClassViews that are guided by the blueprints for state accountability tests. Harcourt will offer six to eight ClassLinks tests per grade and content area, designed to give teachers immediate feedback about where students are struggling."