This article presents a reply to "Edison Is the Symptom, NCLB Is the Disease" by Peter Campbell--a critique that portrayed the school as an exploitative environment, a veritable plantation subjugating poor minority children through mind-numbing, compliance-inducing drills. The author refutes the specific charges leveled against Confluence and the Edison Schools model. Campbell's most strenuous objections to Confluence concern the school's formative assessment system. Like schools with which Edison works, Confluence employs Edison's monthly online diagnostic testing system to track student progress toward state academic standards. The Benchmarks, as the system is formally known, provide brief monthly tests in reading and math. By analyzing Benchmark data, teachers can determine the specific strengths and weaknesses of their instruction and of their individual students.