New York Coop Deploys Discovery Assessment

• By David Nagel
• 03/11/08

New York's Eastern Suffolk Board of Cooperative Educational Services (ESBOCES)--an educational cooperative comprising 51 individual school districts in Long Island--has signed on with Discovery Education to launch its Discovery Education Assessment system.

The move, according to Discovery, is part of an effort to improve student achievement for meeting state standards in reading and language arts, math, and science. Discovery Education Assessment provides academic monitoring to help identify problem areas, reporting to help educators tailor instruction based on student needs, and professional development to help teachers "focus instruction during the school year and improve student test scores on high-stakes examinations."

"After looking at several other products, the ease of use and effectiveness of Discovery Education Assessment made this product our first choice in the world of online assessment," said Andrew Setzer, divisional administrator at ESBOCES, in a statement released last week. "The alignment to New York state standards and the backing by Discovery Education were important factors for us. Since our districts are responding so quickly and favorably, it seems we certainly made a good choice."

ESBOCES serves 51 school districts in New York with a combined enrollment of more than 169,000 students. It's the largest K-12 educational agency in the state outside of the five major cities of Buffalo, New York City, Rochester, Syracuse, and Yonkers. In 2006/2007, it had a combined educational, administrative, and capital budget of nearly $294 million, with funding provided in large part by its component districts. (Other revenues come through adult education fees, grants, gifts, and other sources.)

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About the Author

David Nagel is editorial director, education for 1105 Media's Public Sector Media Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal. A 22-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art and business publications.

He can be reached at dnagel@1105media.com. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at or follow him on Twitter at @THEJournalDave (K-12) or @CampusTechDave (higher education).