Webcast Explores the 'Value' of Value-Added Assessment

On Friday, April 30, the American Association of School Administrators and ING kick off the first of a four-part webcast series exploring implementation issues related to the No Child Left Behind Act. The series, Moving All Students Toward Proficiency: Standing Up for Public Education, focuses on promising practices to help all students achieve at higher levels.

AASA's inaugural forum will focus on value-added assessment and accountability. In general, state tests provide a snapshot of student progress -- they show how students are performing at one point in time. These single assessments are often closely correlated to and sometimes confounded by social factors other than achievement.

A snapshot does not answer the critical question about how much progress students are making every year. In this riveting, interactive webcast, school administrators will learn how to use value-added assessment to accurately measure how much their students gain in specific content areas during one school year.

School administrators will have their questions answered by Ted Hershberg, professor of public policy and history at the University of Pennsylvania, about how value-added assessment is working in districts nationwide.

The two-hour forum on April 30 will be held at the San Antonio Westin Riverside's Hidalgo Ballroom and will begin at 2 p.m. ET. To register for the webcast, contact Ericka Turner, 703-875-0731 or eturner@aasa.org. On-site registration will also be available at the Westin Riverside.

ABOUT AASA

The American Association of School Administrators, founded in 1865, is the professional organization for more than 14,000 educational leaders across America and in many other countries. AASA's mission is to support and develop effective school system leaders who are dedicated to the highest quality public education for all children.

For more than 150 years, the focus for public education was one of creating opportunities for all students to have access to an education. The enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act marks the official national recognition of the shift in the mission of public education from one of universal access to one of universal proficiency for all students. In response, AASA has re-shaped itself to address a system of public education where all children reach high levels of achievement, while the core values of public education are preserved. AASA recognizes that such transformation necessitates a profoundly different system and, thus has shouldered a sharpened focus for its programs, "Stand Up for Public Education."

ABOUT ING

ING is a leading provider of retirement services to school systems and higher educational institutions throughout the country. ING's education programs include Unsung Heroes, a grant program for classroom teachers, and 2020 Green, a financial literacy program for high school students.

ING, through its family of companies in the U.S., offer a comprehensive array of products and services, including retirement plans, employee benefits, life insurance, fixed and variable annuities, investment advisory services and mutual funds, through a variety of distribution channels and affiliates. The ING family of companies in the U.S. are part of Amsterdam-based ING Groep N.V., one of the largest integrated financial services organizations in the world.

  ING and AASA are not affiliated companies.

  Contacts:
   AASA
   Barbara Knisely
   703-875-0723
   bknisely@aasa.org

   ING
   Caroline Campbell
   770-618-3801
   caroline.campbell@us.ing.com

SOURCE: ING Americas

CONTACT: Barbara Knisely of AASA, +1-703-875-0723, or bknisely@aasa.org;
or Caroline Campbell of ING, +1-770-618-3801, or caroline.campbell@us.ing.com

Web site: http://www.ing-usa.com/