Raising Standards. Promoting Confidence.
At Open Assessment Technologies (OAT), we come to work every day with a vision to deliver advanced assessment solutions that guide teaching and empower learners to succeed. Because we’re serious about the possibilities of digital transformation in the assessment world.
Today’s eLearning landscape is continuously evolving. Everyone is guessing when it comes to technology—but not us. As the providers of the TAO assessment platform, we’ve worked with both independent organizations along with some of the world’s largest Departments and Ministries of Education for over a decade to pioneer innovative solutions and set the standard for the future of digital learning.
Our History
Powered by the OAT Open Source philosophy and driven with a commitment to the common good in education, TAO has evolved into the leading open source assessment solution for education and employment, with users in 194 countries. To date, TAO has delivered over 100 million in more than 30 languages tests worldwide.
2002
The initial concept for TAO is developed.
LIST (The Luxembourg Institute for Science and Technology) & The University of Luxembourg develop the concept for flexible, freely available computer-based adaptive testing based on web technologies, later to be known as TAO (Test Assisté par Orinateur).2004
The first prototype of TAO is released.
LIST (The Luxembourg Institute for Science and Technology) releases the first prototype of TAO.2005
TAO partners with DIPF.
TAO enters a strategic partnership with DIPF, the Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education2007
PISA selects TAO.
TAO is used for the first Electronic Reading Assessment option delivered on computers for the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) 2009 survey across 20 countries (consortium led by ACER).2008
PIAAC selects TAO.
OECD selects TAO to conduct its 2012 PIAAC (The Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies) study of adult skills across 20+ countries in 30+ languages (consortium led by ETS). TAO is granted strategic funding for DIPF for the refactoring of TAO core architecture.2009
The first public release.
TAO 1.0 is released to the public for the first time under the GPL 2 License. OECD selects TAO to conduct its 2012 PISA study across 60+ countries in 80+ languages (cosortium led by ACER).2011
TAO continues to support PISA.
The University of Szeged (Hungry) and Karolinska Institute (Stockholm, Sweden) contribute to TAO's Open Source. OECD selects TAO as its strategic platform to conduct the PISA 2015 study across 70+ countries (consortium led by ETS)2012
TAO continues to support PIAAC.
The OECD Selects TAO to expand its PIAAC study to 10 countries (consortium led by ETS)2013
TAO spins off.
Open Assessment Technologies S.A. was created in 2013, becoming the new home of TAO. Cito and LIST invest in OAT, enabling the team to accelerate product development and offer commercial services worldwide. The Swiss EDK selects TAO for monitoring student progress throughout the country. NCSE selects TAO to assess students with learning disabilities across 24 partner and affiliated states for K12 schools in the U.S.2014
Preparations for PISA.
The OECD continues to build on TAO for its next round of PISA testing, to be conducted in 2015.2015
TAO partners with ACT.
ACT announces TAO as their preferred supplier for digital assessment. Marc Oswald, Co-Founder & CEO, is named the chairman of the IMS Global Executive Board of Assesment (EBA).2016
Leadership grows.
Mark Molenaar joins OAT as CTO and is named the new Chairman of the Executive Board of Assessment (EBA)..2019
OAT opens their next global office.
Open Assessment Technologies Inc. opens its Boston, Massachusetts office.2020
TAO reaches new milestones.
TAO reaches 100 million test deliveries and counting worldwide. Open Assessment Technologies Inc. opens the Madrid office in Spain.2021
TAO’s solutions continue to evolve.
OAT unveils TAO Advance, a new platform user interface for enhanced accessibility, and TAO Grader, a solution for online manual scoring. TAO is recognized as a finalist at the IMS Awards in the category "Student Success and Outcomes-Based Learning Support Services Program" for helping Italy measure the COVID-19 learning loss. TAO is recognized as a finalist at the EdTech Awards in the "Trendsetter" category based on the platform's accessibility conformance.2022
TAO’s solutions continue to evolve.
OAT unveils TAO Advance, a new platform user interface for enhanced accessibility, and TAO Grader, a solution for online manual scoring. TAO is recognized as a finalist at the IMS Awards in the category "Student Success and Outcomes-Based Learning Support Services Program" for helping Italy measure the COVID-19 learning loss. TAO is recognized as a finalist at the EdTech Awards in the "Trendsetter" category based on the platform's accessibility conformance.2023
TAO wins the Edvocate Awards for "Best Assessment Tool" and "Global Leadership," and is recognized by EdTech Digest as a top assessment tool.
TAO accelerates global growth.
OAT is acquired by Uchida Yoko Co. Ltd, Japan's EdTech market leaders, to further expand OAT’s global customer base and to advance the development of its award-winning suite of integrated digital assessment products.TAO wins the Edvocate Awards for "Best Assessment Tool" and "Global Leadership," and is recognized by EdTech Digest as a top assessment tool.
2024
TAO is recognized by the eAssessment Association Awards for "Best Transformative Project" and "Best International Implementation."
Mack K. Machida joins OAT as Co-CEO.
OAT announces Mack K. Machida as Co-CEO to continue to drive the advancement of TAO's digital assessment solutions and strengthen OAT’s presence worldwide.TAO is recognized by the eAssessment Association Awards for "Best Transformative Project" and "Best International Implementation."
Building a Future for Better Education Opportunities
At Open Assessment Technologies, we are committed to organizations that want the freedom to control and own their assessment experience. From item creation to delivery and reporting, the TAO assessment platform delivers maximum flexibility, interoperability, and security. TAO is the only platform built on open standards for a reason: so we can be future-forward and collaborative, evolving as today’s learners do. Because ultimately, we believe in accelerating innovation in education.
