Florida Department of Education Awards Juvenile Justice Education Assessments Contract to Pearson Assessments; BASI Assessment Will Measure Progress of Students Served by 163 Juvenile Justice Centers

Business Wire, April 19, 2006

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. & BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- Pearson Assessments today announced that the Florida Department of Education selected its BASI(TM) (Basic Achievement Skills Inventory) series of assessments as the common assessment for the state's juvenile justice education programs. The BASI series is a versatile, multi-level, norm-referenced achievement test that measures math, reading and language skills of both children and adults.

The Florida Department of Education will use the test to measure academic progress of students involved in juvenile justice education programs, guide teachers as they plan instruction and to provide a measure for system accountability.

"The BASI assessment will provide our educators with an efficient and effective tool for measuring the progress of students in our juvenile justice education programs," said Karen Denbroeder, senior educational program director, Bureau of Exceptional Student Education & Student Services, Florida Department of Education.

BASI assessment series yields standard scores, national percentile rankings, grade equivalency, age equivalency, and performance classification by learning objective for math, reading and language arts --without requiring individual administration or lengthy testing.

"At Pearson Assessments, we are committed to providing our education customers with flexible, reliable tools for measuring academic achievement," said John Harnett, president, Pearson Assessments. "By choosing the BASI series, the Florida Department of Education has the ideal assessment to measure the progress of students in its juvenile justice programs and with which to access the data needed to ensure that those students receive a high quality education."

More information about the BASI series of assessments is available at www.PearsonAssessments.com/tests/basi.htm

About Pearson Assessments

Pearson Assessments provides assessment instruments and data capture tools and technologies for use in education, business and health care settings. Backed by a half century of knowledge and expertise, Pearson Assessments -- integrating Pearson NCS and the assessment division of AGS Publishing with the original Pearson Assessments business -- offers products and services to deliver the accurate, reliable and usable information that professionals seek. Pearson Assessments is a business of Pearson Education, the world's largest integrated education company, which in turn is part of Pearson (NYSE: PSO), the international media company. Pearson's other primary operations include the Financial Times Group and the Penguin Group.