“There’s a huge amount of money to be made off of children who have to take high-stakes tests,” Hirschmann noted, and so the testing companies think nothing of spending a bit on politicians. “Pearson has been offering trips; David Steiner, the former [New York state] commissioner of education, went on one of these junkets and Pearson has the contract.”

Meanwhile in Texas, Rapoport reported that in the most recent legislative session, an unprecedented $5 billion was hacked from the public education budget. “Despite the cuts,” she noted, “Pearson’s funding streams remain largely intact.”

While public school (and charter school) students have to take test after test, it’s worth noting that often private school students have no such requirements, meaning that once again, the pressure of testing falls hardest on those who can’t buy their way out. Many of the very people making education policy (including President Obama) send their children to private schools, while mandating constant testing for other people’s children.