This article examines pedagogical shifts in art history teaching that have developed as a response to the implementation of a standards-based assessment regime. The specific characteristics of art history standards-based assessment in the context of New Zealand secondary schools are explained to demonstrate how an exacting form of assessment has led teachers to transform their practices to target precise assessment outcomes. The article also examines the complexities of facilitating effective learning for a skills-focused assessment programme alongside an existing and demanding art history content prescription, and discusses how assessment has, unintentionally, created shifts in the knowledge expectations of both students and teachers. Learning activities are included to illustrate how a high level of precision in alignment between assessment and pedagogy has the potential to enhance understanding in relation to standards-based achievement. (Contains 10 notes, 3 tables and 4 figures.)