A new assessment in reading and mathematics assessment will be given to third and fifth graders March 3 - 6, 2003 building on the state's decade-long school improvement program.  Like the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP), which it replaces, the new test will provide an assessment of school-wide progress, but it also will produce individual student scores. The new testing program responds to the recommendations of Maryland's Visionary Panel for Better Schools and meets the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Both the panel's "Achievement Matters Most" report and the new federal law placed a new spotlight on individual results, as well as strengthened accountability for schools. To learn more about the Maryland School Assessment, visit marylandpublicschools.org.