Category Archives: Tests

PreK12 Plaza Launches Math Fluency App Mad Minute Plaza

mad-minute-plaza

Clifton Park, New York, September 29, 2016 — /EPR EDUCATION NEWS/ — PreK12 Plaza, a social impact enterprise working to ignite the genius in every child, today announced the launch of an updated bilingual math game app, Mad Minute Plaza for ages 6 and up.

“PreK12 Plaza is a comprehensive education platform and Mad Minute Plaza is one of multiple app offerings created by our outstanding team of developers and certified teachers to help students achieve their potential while making minute math fun,” said Ana Roca Castro, Founder and CEO of PreK12 Plaza.

Mad Minute Plaza works to improve math fluency. Research has demonstrated that the ability for students to respond automatically frees up cognitive resources that can be applied to more complex computation and concepts.

Mad Minute Plaza is a free app, available in English and Spanish, that provides students with the opportunity to respond to different level math quizzes for one minute – zapping as many space germs in the process. The game includes addition, subtraction, multiplication and division and more than 400 calculations.

The app is available for free at iTunes; Google Play and Amazon Marketplace. Additional information is available at www.prek12plaza.com/madminute.

About PreK12 Plaza
PreK12 Plaza is a digital education platform created to ignite the genius in every child. It is the first multicultural education platform that provides culturally relevant Math and Language Arts resources combined with research-based didactic approach and state of the art parent engagement tools in eight languages.

Media contacts:
Monica Talan
mtalan@prek12plaza.com
Phone: 518-280-9550 Ext. 24
Cell: 917-886-5978

Can You Pass the Civics Test That Those Seeking Citizenship Must Pass?

Asheville, NC, June 29, 2015 — /EPR EDUCATION NEWS/ — Newly released Civics Handbook presents you with the information and the test to examine your own civics proficiency, and provides a study tool assisting children, adults and all students to learn the material. And while learning, you might be inspired to visit and see where some of U.S. history unfolded as Historic Sites, Places, Parks, Battlefields, Sites of Remembrance and National Treasures are listed in the book. Americana A Civics Handbook Second Edition was released June 20, 2015 (ISBN# 978-1514221563) by Mary B. Mackley of Asheville, NC.

There has been an increased frequency and an almost urgent drumbeat of stories reporting a lack of knowledge of Civics and American History in our schools. Even comedians have highlighted this issue while embarking in random questioning of adults in various settings. When quizzed about American History and Civics….the answer given may be incorrect (and pretty funny), but the point is made…there’s a knowledge deficit and room for improvement! While this may seem amusing at first, when you really think about it, it’s not so funny.

Our Sixteenth President, Abraham Lincoln, said…”I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any National crisis.The great point is to bring them the real facts…” This book brings you the facts. The Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights; facts about Early America, the Original Thirteen Colonies, U.S. Presidents, the fifty states, National Symbols, U.S. Wars and more are included. Facts presented will help you have more understanding of the questions and answers on the topics covered by the civics test. Over 50 pages of historic sketches add an additional visual dimension in appreciation of our history.

Mary B. Mackley, a nurse for 30 years, embraced the role as teacher in working with her patients throughout the years. Her passion for History and Civics was formulated in her youth, in AP History classes through St. John’s University, and the time she spent providing interpretive guided tours and programs at a National Historic Site during and after college.

The book is available at Amazon, or through the website below. For more information about Americana A Civics Handbook Second Edition and the author, please visit www.civicshandbook.com. You can contact Mary B. Mackley at (828)606-7263 or civicshandbook@aol.com.

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Contact-Details: Mary B. Mackley
civicshandbook@aol.com
(828)606-7263

Via EPR Network
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QuestBase: Create Assessments and Quizzes in Minutes

SmartLite Software announces the release of the new QuestBase, a free and user-friendly on-line service for creating and developing web-based and printed assessments, surveys, questionnaires, tests and exams. Whether your needs are for education, business or entertainment, QuestBase is a real time saver when it comes to creating quick questionnaires or quizzes that are smart, sharply focused and effective.

Business managers and entrepreneurs can use QuestBase to create customer feedback surveys, market research surveys, and interactive questionnaires for engaging customers and raising brand awareness. The award-winning software has also been well received by the educational community as it can help teachers save time and assess students in a quick and easy way.

“When we were developing QuestBase, we tried most of its competitors to insure our program was better and easier to use,” said Paolo Mugnaini, SmartLite CEO, who founded the company in Milan, in 1997. “I realized that our software could be more accessible, more affordable and more user-friendly than what our competitors were offering.”

QuestBase is customizable to the needs of every teacher, educator, trainer or manager. The product supports several question types and options, and it can create highly interactive and self-evaluating assessments. Authors can add questions, pictures, equations, scores and feedbacks. Custom certificates can be automatically awarded when exams are passed, and QuestBase can also offer the ability to deliver secure exams, using QuestBase Secure Browser.

Simplicity of use is QuestBase’s main feature. Thanks to a streamlined interface designed to make the program immediate and intuitive, authors do not have to learn a lot of functions. They can easily create assessments in a few minutes even with no HTML knowledge, thus increasing the productivity and decreasing the learning curve.

Always Available, in the Cloud

There’s nothing to install, setup or configure: you simply use QuestBase and enjoy the benefits. QuestBase is offered as Software-as-a-Service (SAAS), in the cloud, and it is always available at http://www.questbase.com.

System Requirements

QuestBase is fully compatible with most browsers (Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, Safari), operating systems (Windows, Macintosh, Linux) and devices (iPad, Android tablets). For larger organizations, a licensed version is also available, requiring Windows Server 2008 or higher.

Price

QuestBase is available for free at http://www.questbase.com. Organizations and schools can also get Premium versions with additional features and personal support: prices start from US$ 49.95 and can be purchased directly on-line or by calling 1-866-933-4313 (US only). Multiple and Site licenses are available as well as special discounts to educational institutions.

More Information

For more information, please contact Paolo Mugnaini at paolo.m@smartlite.it. A press kit with screenshots is available athttp://download.questbase.com/company/press/20130702.zip

Via EPR Network
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CompTIA Testing Centers Moving Exclusively to Pearson VUE Testing Centers

Get Certified 4 Less, a provider of IT certification vouchers for students, IT professionals, and corporations alike, is announcing to its customers an upcoming change that will affect the testing exam center options for all CompTIA exams beginning July 9 th , 2012. Starting July 9, 2012, CompTIA exams will be held only with Pearson VUE and their worldwide network of over 5,000 testing centers. At that time CompTIA certification exams will no longer be held at Prometric testing centers.

Pearson VUE has been delivering the CompTIA exam since 2003 along with the Prometric Testing Centers. In order to simplify the overall testing experience, Pearson VUE will now be the exclusive deliver of CompTIA exams. This will provide all test takers with one point of contact for all of their CompTIA certifications.

“May 4 th will be the last day that customers will be able to buy CompTIA vouchers from Prometric, and July 8 th will be the last day to register or test for CompTIA certification at a Prometric Center,” said Danielle Spradlin, Marketing Director at Get Certified 4 Less. She continued, “Starting on July 9 th , all unused vouchers from Prometric that have not expired will have to be scheduled and used through Pearson VUE centers. As of today, customers can already purchase CompTIA exam vouchers for use at Pearson VUE exam centers.”

There are currently over 5,000 Pearson VUE exam centers in more than 165 countries. Several hundred of these testing centers are professionally run, full time centers that have the capacity to distribute hundreds of exams securely.

“All the details of the exam will stay the same,” said Danielle Spradlin. “The exams, the fees, and requirements will all be the same, so upcoming test takers need not worry about making any other last minute adjustments.”

About Get Certified 4 Less: GetCertified4Less was established in 1994 and has since over 50,000 customers save money on their IT certifications. Whether it is a Microsoft certification, Cisco certification, or a CompTIA certification, GetCertified4Less helps you reach your goal for the lowest price possible.

About CompTIA: The CompTIA or Computer Technology Industry Association is a non-profit trade association for the computer industry. By taking this IT certification exam you become a member of the CompTIA and are associated with its other member group.

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Able Skills To Lead The Way In Electrical Training

Able Skills has announced a number of courses and evening classes available for those wishing to study electrical training including the new City and Guilds 2357 qualification.

The City and Guilds 2357 electrical qualification is set to be the only route into the electrical industry now that the C&G 2330 has reached the end of its registration period. This new qualification is designed to suit those who are new to the electrical industry as well as those who are existing practitioners, similar to the expired technical certificates (C&G 2330) and NVQs (C&G 2356).

Able Skills are one of the few training providers that offer evening classes in the City and Guilds 2357 qualification, allowing flexible hours for those studying and further displaying the company’s commitment to trades training.

As well as the new qualification, Able Skills are also offering courses in solar electrical training and courses for those wishing to become domestic installers and electricians, with the latter courses available to be studied at weekends for those who can’t study during the week.

Gary Measures, Able Skills director, said: “Able Skills are committed to providing the latest electrical courses at our dedicated training centres. We provide every accredited electrical qualification and our highly qualified and experienced instructors are among some of the best in the country.”

The new City and Guilds 2357 electrical qualification joins many other courses that are part of Able Skills training portfolio including electrical training, tiling training and plastering training.

Via EPR Network
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Able Skills To Open New Renewable Energy Centre In Bradford

Able Skills is to open its first training centre away from its headquarters in Dartford, Kent. The new centre is the first evidence of a national expansion from the company and the latest development in Able Skills’ partnership with Vokera.

The new centre, which will open on January 9th, 2012, will offer courses in ground source heat pump training, solar thermal training, a MCS workshop and a route to accreditation, product training on Vokera boilers, renewable energy awareness training, onsite and offsite support from design through to installation and commissioning and a route to the Vokera installer network with additional benefits and rewards.

With Able Skills’ firm reputation for renewable training and quality and Vokera’s excellent reputation established from its boiler production and sales, and their range of renewable technologies such as solar thermal kits and air to water heat pumps, the partnership provides excellent resources for those seeking to work in the renewable energy industry.

Jed Smith, Head of Renewables at Able Skills, said: “Both Vokera and Able Skills are forward thinking organisations, the partnership almost formed itself as both companies were aiming for the same levels of quality and services within the renewables industry. Vokera have good quality products and we have good quality training delivery and possibly the best training facility in the UK.”

Able Skills and Vokera will also exhibit at PHEX: The Plumbing and Heating Exhibition, which takes place on October 11th/12th at Old Trafford and on November 23rd at Stamford Bridge. Stamford Bridge is the largest and the most popular of the annual PHEX Exhibition venues where over 110 stands will feature the sector’s top suppliers and manufacturers will demonstrate their latest products and services. Old Trafford will feature over 80 stands displaying the latest industry products.

The announcement of the new centre in Bradford follows the news that Able Skills is to open a new solar PV centre at its Kent headquarters. The company also opened a renewable energy centre in November last year dedicated to delivering training in various aspects of Renewable Technology.

About Able Skills:
Able Skills was launched in 2002 and is now firmly established as one of the leaders in the delivery of Construction Training and is currently in the position of being able to offer qualifications in every subject it covers, right up to NVQ level 3. Programmes include electrical courses, intensive plumbing courses, painting and decorating courses and gas courses and commercial gas courses.

Via EPR Network
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Able Skills Opens New Solar PV Centre

Able Skills has opened a new solar photovoltaic (PV) centre at its headquarters in Dartford.

The new centre has bigger roofs and the latest technology, providing students with a more realistic learning experience and helping Able Skills deliver the latest solar PV qualifications. The investment in new solar PV centre demonstrates the company’s dedication to renewable energy training, with Able Skills committed to teaching the next generation of engineers.

With the growing popularity in renewable energies and the cost of such technologies becoming more and more affordable, the demand for Solar Photovoltaic installer and maintenance qualified electricians is forever increasing. Able Skills now provided two courses, one catering for fully qualified electricians and the other catering for fully qualified domestic electrical installers.

The City & Guilds 2399 (11-12) is a Photovoltaic training programme aimed at any qualified electricians. To apply for this course, applicants would be required to hold a C&G 2330 Level 2 & 3 with the 2391 Inspection & Testing or a City & Guilds NVQ Level3 or a Term served validation from a company stating their work and time served as a qualified electrician.

Alternatively, interested parties can undertake the NICEIC route which is aimed towards Domestic Electrical Installers. Able Skills currently offers a package deal that will take applicants from the very beginning, right the way through to becoming a fully domestic Solar PV installer.

Gary Measures, Director of Able Skills said: “Able Skills are proud to open this new cutting-edge centre which demonstrates our commitment to renewable energy training. With bigger roofs and better facilities, students will benefit from a more realistic learning experience.”

As well as the solar PV courses, Able Skills offers a number of other programmes for those interested in working within the renewable energy industry. With a purpose built Renewable Technology centre, Able Skills is perfectly equipped to demonstrate every aspect of renewable technology for those on electrical courses or plumber courses, including ground source and air source heat pumps, underfloor hot water heating systems, rainwater harvesting and wind turbines among others.

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Mimi Jett Joins Avant Assessment as VP Business Development for K-12 Education

Avant Assessment, pioneer in web-based proficiency assessment, announces the appointment of Mimi Jett as Vice President of Business Development for K-12 Education.

Avant Assessment is pleased to announce the addition of Mimi Jett as Vice President of Business Development for K-12 Education to its leadership team. Ms. Jett brings more than 25 years of educational technology and corporate leadership experience to Avant as it expands its efforts in the personalized learning arena with new, authentic-evidence, competency-based learning support systems.

As VP of Business Development, Ms. Jett will focus on building channel partners, strategic partnerships, and alliances that promote Avant’s products and services in the K-12 market. As a member of the Executive Team, she will collaborate with product, marketing, sales, and technology teams on strategy and operational implementation of initiatives to bring competency focused solutions to the education market.

Prior to joining Avant, Ms. Jett was the General Manager of netTrekker, a leading provider in the organization and delivery of digital K-12 educational content and tools, where she led the development of new products and services. Her record of success also includes strategic management positions with Renaissance Learning and IBM Research, where she was appointed to the elite Institute for Advanced Learning leadership council. As an entrepreneur, Mimi Jett was the founder and CEO of Electronic Technical Publishing, leading delivery of advanced technology solutions to higher education publishers in the fields of mathematics and engineering. Ms. Jett was an elected delegate to the White House Conference on Small Business and served as the Technology Advisory Committee Chair for the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Ms. Jett serves on the Software & Information Industry Association’s Education Division Board of Directors, is co-chair of the Global Strategies working group, and a member of the Open Educational Resources working group. In addition, she sits on several industry advisory boards and acts as a mentor for innovative entrepreneurs.

“Ms. Jett has an extraordinary talent of expanding the impact of a company’s work through development of key partnerships”, said Mike Patterson, CEO, “and we at Avant are excited to apply that talent to our efforts in bringing a more personalized learning environment to every student.”

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Avant Assessment leaders’ experience on national language standards and assessment committees will support U.S. interests at the international level

Avant Assessment CEO Mike Patterson has been appointed to lead U.S. delegates to the International Standards Organization TC232/WG2 (learning services for non-formal education and training technical committee workgroup focused on language learning services) meetings in Beijing, China this week.

Workgroup delegates to ISO TC232/WG2 represent over a dozen countries and have the task of ensuring that the views and positions of their country are known and understood by the committee. The goal of the international committee is to develop consensus and an international standard for providers of language learning services in the non-formal sector (outside the mainstream school and higher education curriculum).

Mike and Avant Vice President of Research and Assessment, Paul Tucker, have participated in three previous international meetings and have been delegates to the workgroup since its inception. Both bring critical experience to the U.S. delegation having served on the Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) Testing Committee which is a network of Federal, academic, private business and NGO language specialists and managers who share a common goal of improving the nation’s capacity to learn, teach and effectively use foreign languages in the national interests.

Additionally, Paul Tucker served as the Lead Writer for the ASTM Standards of Practice for language education and now chairs the testing subcommittee (F43.04) which is looking at differentiating standards per testing purpose. Mike Patterson served as a committee member at the U.S. Department of Education National Educational Technology Planning Sessions in 2003 and 2004, and has been actively involved with SIIA, CoSN, SIF, Software Association of Oregon and other industry organizations where he has served as a presenter and panelist at national and regional conferences.

“It is an honor to represent the interests of our country in the field of language acquisition” says Mike Patterson, Avant’s CEO. “As a country, we are a leader in developing thorough and rigorous standards on language training. It is important to the future of global communication that international standards meet or exceed those same standards. I look forward to these experiences working with colleagues from around the world on common goals. They are as rewarding as they are educational and challenging.”

Via EPR Network
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uCertify’s Big Spring Sale – Save Upto 43%

uCertify, is offering truly green savings in honor of St. Patrick’s Day and Spring! Get any 3 IT certification test PrepKits for just $219.99.

This offer is valid upto 21st March, 2011. All PrepKits are backed by our 100% money back guarantee.

Any 3 PrepKits for $219.99

Join the celebration! Choose from over 300 test prep software for IT certifications from CompTIA, Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, Cisco, CCNA, & many more. Nobody beats our breadth and depth of experience. 100% guaranteed!!!

Click here to save! https://www.ucertify.com/cart/todays-deal.php

Take advantage of an additional discount by joining us on Facebook! All you have to do is to like our page to be entitled to this private discount.
http://www.facebook.com/Certifications?v=app_4949752878

Our mantra is ‘Learn Smarter Not Harder’. There are a number of reasons why you should choose uCertify for your exam preparation. To list a few:

· Outstanding pass rate of over 97%
· Over 300 test preparation products covering all major vendors
· In business for over 15 years – not a fly-by-night shop
· Free Upgrades for an entire year
· Unlimited Support for an year
· 100% money-back guarantee – the best in the business. See for yourself at: http://www.ucertify.com/about/guarantee.html
· Unique learning platform. Get a Guided Video Tour of our Prepkit: http://ucertify.com/
· A company committed to high quality products and outstanding support.

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Tutor4exam Launches New Sections

Tutor4exam has been here for everybody to help enhance the knowledge in key sections of SSAT and ISSE. Its approach is unique and invaluable in the SSAT and ISSE exam preparation. It helps to eliminate all major mistakes made in all sections of these exams by test takers and it also helps to create a bigger student’s confidence in school studies giving more understanding to the logic of math and English. Tutor4exam has been working hard to give test takers an opportunity to practice their skills in all sections of SSAT and ISSE. Thus, some sections are still developing. The English section has been added to assist students in mastering vocabulary, analogy and grammar questions in the SSAT and ISSE. If you sign up for the Tutor4for exam COMPLETE TEST PREPARATION today, tomorrow you will have better grades both at school and on SSAT and ISSE exam!

Tutor4exam has been offering invaluable help in the SSAT and ISSE exam preparation for more than 2 years now and has gained a lot of supporters and success. The sections in maths have prepared the students not only for exam but also for all sorts of school math tests and assignments. Besides, the weak and strong points of all students have been carefully examined and the major common mistakes were given special attention so that the students could avoid them right from the beginning. The students develop high skills in math and logic, which helps them become more confident and fast in dealing with all topics in school math.

Here is the great news! Never do we stop advancing the aid you get on the site. The English section has been added to assist students in mastering vocabulary, analogy and grammar questions in the SSAT and ISSE. Some of questions are easier than others, just as they are on actual exam, and some of them are really tough! Doing Tutor4exam practice tests and solving the problems of different levels of difficulty will immensely contribute to improving students’ ability to analyze what sections of the English language should be improved and work on before doing the real exam. The time pressure is added, and to succeed in real test, you have to not only know the material well but also choose the right exam strategy. And it is here for you to train.

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uCertify’s SPOOK-tacular Halloween Sale: Save 50%

The full moon has cast a spell on us! uCertify is offering Un-BOO-lieveable, SPOOK-tacular savings on ALL our IT certification exam Prepkits Oct 23 – Oct 31, 2010! In celebration of this season, uCertify is offering an amazing discount of upto 50%! Check out the offer!

Join the party! Choose from over 300 test prep software for CompTIA, Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, Cisco, CCNA & many more. Nobody beats our breadth and depth of experience. 100% guaranteed!

Click here to save! https://www.ucertify.com/cart/selectadeal.php

Take advantage of an additional discount by joining us on Facebook! All you have to do is like our page to be entitled to this private discount.
http://www.facebook.com/Certifications?v=app_4949752878

You can select from over our extensive range of more than 300 PrepKits to help you prepare for any certification from Adobe, Cisco, Microsoft, IBM, Oracle (including Sun), Linux and many more! Our mantra is ‘Learn Smarter Not Harder’. There are number of reasons why you should choose uCertify for your preparation and few are listed below:

  • Outstanding pass rate of over 97%
  • Over 200 test preparation products covering all major vendors
  • In business for over 14 years – not a fly-by-night shop
  • Free Upgrades for an entire year
  • Unlimited Support for a year
  • 100% money-back guarantee – the best in the business. See for yourself at: http://www.ucertify.com/about/guarantee.html
  • Unique learning platform. Get a Guided Video Tour of our Prepkit: http://ucertify.com
  • A company committed to high quality products and outstanding support.

To download a PrepKit, click the link below:
http://www.ucertify.com/download.html

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Promethean Introduces ActivEngage To Its Range Of Learner Response Systems

Promethean, a global leader in interactive learning technology, has launched ActivEngage, a new software version of its market leading Learner Response System*. This new application enables laptops or desktop computers to act as personal response devices, meaning schools can provide voting capability in classrooms via individual student computers instead of specific handsets.

Computer-per-pupil initiatives are increasingly being promoted by governments as a means of underpinning schools’ ICT strategies. That, along with schools focus on developing problem-solving and technology skills makes these a valuable classroom resource. The introduction of this software only version of Promethean’s Learner Response System has been designed to complement these initiatives and widen access to their assessment and engagement capabilities.

Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland has welcomed the development of the new software application, becoming the first local authority in the UK to adopt ActivEngage. It plans to introduce the software to primary and secondary schools across the region, following an initiative to ensure all pupils in its 122 schools have access to their own laptop, netbook or PC.

John Tait, Education Officer for Dumfries and Galloway local authority, explained: “It is vital that ICT is embedded into the teaching and learning process. Having enjoyed previous success with Promethean’s handheld voting systems, we wanted to maximise our ICT investment by providing all schools in Dumfries and Galloway with access to this assessment and opinion-gathering capability, without having to purchase additional hardware devices. ActivEngage was the perfect solution.”

Schools using ActivEngage can use the technology in a single classroom or across an entire campus. The voting interface floats over other software applications, enabling it to be deployed at any point in a lesson.

Promethean’s Head of European Education Strategy, Margaret Allen, commented: “Learner Response Systems have proved invaluable for providing teachers with flexible and exciting opportunities to engage, motivate and assess learners. Teachers gain instant insight into students’ understanding and can use the self-paced learning mode, whereby students work through different levels of question sets, to personalise learning to the capabilities of different individuals.”

Students are able to respond to a wide range of questioning formats using numbers, free text, symbols, or likert scales. Responses can be instantly displayed on an Interactive Whiteboard laptop or desktop computer and saved by the teacher for later analysis.

Promethean is also offering schools the chance to ‘try before you buy’, by enabling trial copies of ActivEngage to be downloaded and used free of charge from PrometheanPlanet.com, the world’s largest online interactive whiteboard community. This will give schools the opportunity to explore the benefits of ActivEngage and Learner Response Systems before purchasing the programme.

Via EPR Network
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Promethean Brings World’s Fastest Car To Maidenhead

Promethean, the interactive learning technology provider, organised a rare opportunity for pupils from Maidenhead and Reading to see a life size replica of the Bloodhound Supersonic Car. They were also able to meet and question Richard Noble OBE about the Bloodhound project, and its attempts to set a new World Land Speed Record and exceed the 1,000mph milestone for the first time.

The event was organised by Promethean to mark the official opening of its new offices in Maidenhead. The company is the Bloodhound project’s official interactive education technology partner and aimed to create a genuinely exciting educational opportunity in the area to mark the occasion.

Promethean’s President of European Sales and Marketing, Paul Berry, commented: “Through our partnership with Bloodhound, we are working to give young people access to inspiring content, resources and tools to help engage them in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects that will improve their life chances. This is an ideal way to give pupils a day to remember, and set them thinking about the exceptional things that can be achieved through science and technology.”

Pupils representing Wessex Primary in Cox Green, Maidenhead; Cranbourne Primary in Winkfield; Emmbrook in Wokingham; Ranelagh in Bracknell; and Maiden Erlegh in Earley had the chance to see the 13.4m long Bloodhound replica and take part in interactive sessions involving rocket power, distance, time and speed using Promethean classroom technologies.

Building of the actual Bloodhound car is underway in Bristol. Powered by both a rocket and a jet engine, it has been designed to achieve speeds of up to 1,050mph, and is expected to become the world’s fastest car when it makes a new attempt on the World Land Speed Record in South Africa in 2012.

Along the way, the team behind the project also hope to foster a lifelong interest in science, technology, engineering and maths in young people and help develop a pipeline of talent for the future.

Via EPR Network
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Promethean Launch ‘Give Every Child A Voice’ Recycling Campaign

Promethean, the interactive learning technology business, is launching ‘Give Every Child a Voice’, a recycling campaign among Scottish schools to support the NSPCC’s ChildLine, the 24 hours-a-day helpline for children and young people.

Promethean is bringing together schools across Scotland to help raise funds for ChildLine by recycling old or unwanted mobile phones. For every 250 mobile phones a school collects, Promethean will donate £500 to ChildLine in Scotland and an ActivExpression Learner Response System will be awarded to the school.

The ActivExpression Learner Response System is a set of handheld pupil devices which allow every child to respond to questions by texting their responses.

All schools are encouraged to participate in the campaign and can sign-up via www.giveeverychildavoice.com, a dedicated campaign website.

There are around 2,150 primary and 375 secondary schools in Scotland, and Promethean hopes to enrol as many schools as possible to help generate a target of £250,000 for ChildLine in Scotland.

Once signed-up, schools will be provided with collection bins, literature and resources to help promote recycling, fundraising and awareness for ChildLine in Scotland.

X Factor finalists John and Edward Grimes, aka Jedward, are lending their support to the campaign by making a school appearance in Scotland where they will discuss recycling and raising awareness of ChildLine’s service.

Via EPR Network
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Peoples Education Measuring Up Worktexts for Mathematics Match the Latest NYS Test

Peoples Education, a leading provider of supplemental educational material for the K–12 school market, is pleased to announce the relaunch of Measuring Up® to the New York State Learning Standards for Mathematics, Grades 3–8. These worktexts address recent changes to the Grade 3–8 Mathematics Testing Program and include special May/June Review lessons from the prior year to prepare students for the NYS Test.

“Peoples Education has a history of responding to New York educators’ needs promptly and with high-quality NYS Learning Standards and NYS Test–customized content,” commented Brian T. Beckwith, the company’s president and CEO. “These revised worktexts will help build students’ test-taking confidence and ensure standards mastery.”

The Measuring Up® Mathematics program can be incorporated into any year-round curriculum, or in areas where students need extra instructional support. Measuring Up® lessons can be selected as intervention for an entire class, small groups, or individuals.

“The instructors at Mechanicville Middle School have successfully used the Measuring Up® series to accommodate various classroom situations,” commented Maria Fusco, a retired Mechanicville Middle School teacher. “The versatility of the materials and alignment to state standards allows the instructor and the students to manage the skills that have either been mastered or need further attention.”

The complete Measuring Up® program includes instructional worktexts and Diagnostic Practice Tests, which are sold separately. Measuring Up Express® for the NYS Test, which debuted in spring 2010 and focuses on the tested NYS Learning Standards, is also available separately. This diagnose-prescribe-instruct model in the Measuring Up® program has helped over 1.4 million New York students master the NYS Learning Standards and boost their test-taking confidence.

Via EPR Network
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Promethean And BrainPOP Announce Integrated Assessments For Learning

BrainPOP, the award-winning creator of animated, educational resources, is pleased to announce that its curriculum-based quizzes are now fully integrated with Promethean’s learner response systems, ActiVote and ActivExpression.

The integration of ActiVote and ActivExpression, the industry-leading learner response system, with BrainPOP’s quizzes – including all BrainPOP Jr. (K-3) topics – makes it easier than ever for teachers to improve learning outcomes by providing highly individualized instruction and assessment. Linking BrainPOP’s content to learner response devices opens the door for increased student participation and higher academic achievement.

Earlier this year, educators in Georgia’s Forsyth County Schools piloted the functionality, which is powered by Promethean’s software developers’ kit.

“The ability to gather formative and immediate student responses while using BrainPOP’s dynamic content adds a new dimension to classroom instruction. The integration of these learner response systems with BrainPOP’s quizzes has been incredibly well-received by both teachers and students,” said Jill Hobson, Director of Instructional Technology for Forsyth County Schools in Atlanta, Georgia.

Administering BrainPOP quizzes with ActiVote or ActivExpression not only engages students but also helps teachers quickly identify who is struggling and might need extra assistance. By fully integrating BrainPOP quizzes into Promethean’s software development kit, teachers can work assessments into their lessons in just a few easy steps. The reporting functions allow teachers to see individual student progress and to view responses in a number of formats. Student and class results can be printed or downloaded, and then incorporated into grade books and learning management systems.

“BrainPOP’s collaboration with Promethean on the engineering of this new capability exemplifies our commitment to 21st century learning,” said Avraham Kadar, M.D., CEO and Chairman of BrainPOP. “The pairing of our quizzes with learner response systems brings a new level of engagement to the classroom, one that is sure to have a tremendous impact on student performance going forward.”

“Our partnership has provided an unprecedented opportunity to demonstrate how interactive technologies and rich digital content can help real teachers in the classroom with real education improvement,” commented Mark Elliott, President of Promethean North America. “A digital learning environment empowers teachers with the tools and resources they need to support today’s student, and, in turn, boost participation and overall academic achievement.”

Via EPR Network
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Peoples Education Measuring Up® Worktexts for Reading and Science Revised to the Latest TEKS

Peoples Education, a leading provider of supplemental educational material for the K–12 school market, is pleased to announce the re-launch of Measuring Up® to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Reading, Grades 2–8, and Science, Grades 3–8. These worktexts have been completely revised to include the latest Reading and Science TEKS.

“Peoples Education has a history of responding to Texas educators’ needs promptly and with highly customized content,” commented Brian T. Beckwith, the company’s President and CEO. “These revised reading and science worktexts are no exception.” Revised Measuring Up® Reading worktexts now include new and improved Guided Reading Instruction with numbered paragraphs and cross-curricular connections that builds student test-taking confidence, a wide variety of genres to help students build reading comprehension skills and make connections across texts, and questions that address integrated language arts and 21st century skills. Revised Measuring Up® Science worktexts now include special Investigate sections at the end of every chapter to boost students’ higher-order thinking. The revised Measuring Up® worktexts also include a correlation to the new TEKS to help teachers and students as they transition to the new standards.

The Measuring Up® program can be incorporated into any year-round curriculum, or, in areas where students need extra instructional support, and Measuring Up® lessons can be selected as intervention for the entire class, small groups, or individuals. “I have taught 5th and 8th grade science for more than 11 years, and the Measuring Up® program has been a key instrument in preparing my students for the TAKS,” remarked Mandy Welch, a science teacher at Abilene ISD. “The lessons give a clear direction to concepts and provide an easy organization of standards-based material.”

The complete Measuring Up® program includes instructional worktexts and Diagnostic Practice Tests, which are sold separately. Spanish editions of the Measuring Up® worktext for Reading grades, 2-4 and Science, grade 5, are also available and have been revised to the latest TEKS. Measuring Up Express® for the TAKS, which debuted in fall, 2009 and focuses on the tested TEKS is also available separately. This diagnose-prescribe-instruct model in the Measuring Up® program has helped over three million Texas students master the TEKS and boost their test-taking confidence.

Via EPR Network
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Promethean Sponsors First Irish Teaching and Learning Festival

Promethean, a world leader in the rapidly growing global market for interactive learning technology, has announced that it is to be the lead sponsor of the inaugural Irish Teaching and Learning Festival, held in Citywest Conference Centre, Dublin on 15th and 16th October, 2010.

The conference will feature education thought leader, and Oscar winning producer, Lord David Puttnam, presenting his vision of how Ireland can better meet the educational needs of its new generation of learners. As a former president of UNICEF UK, and non executive director of Promethean, the Cork resident will bring some very thought provoking ideas to his keynote.

Graham Byrne, head of Ireland and Scotland at Promethean said: “There has been very strong demand for an Irish event to highlight the very latest resources, technologies and trends in teaching. As a global leading educational technology company and creator of the ActivClassroom suite of classroom solutions, we are delighted to support Ireland’s first ever interactive conference and exhibition.”

Promethean will be demonstrating how its ActivClassroom solutions, comprising of interactive whiteboards, learner response systems and specialist teaching software, are bringing to life the promise of ICT in education, improving engagement and results for learners and teachers. There will also be a host of practical teaching workshops, live demonstrations and an exhibition of the latest education tools for visitors.

Via EPR Network
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Promethean Acquires SynapticMash

Promethean World Plc (LSE:PRW), a world leader in the rapidly growing global market for interactive learning technology, has announced that it has agreed to acquire SynapticMash Inc, a start-up US education formative assessment software company. The acquisition is expected to complete before the end of July 2010.

The initial consideration is $10 million in cash, of which $1 million is deferred for 18 months. A further performance related consideration of $3 million may be payable in 18 months, dependent on retention of key SynapticMash employees and sales targets.

Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Seattle, SynapticMash has developed a sophisticated and modular cloud-based formative assessment platform that is being marketed to US school districts through a subscription model. Its learning management system, LearningQube, transforms the way schools collect and manage classroom data, enabling teachers and administrators to better assess and track student performance.

Formative assessment is the evaluation of student performance instantaneously during the learning process rather than by formal exam typically at the end of a term or school year. It enables teachers to modify lessons during the progression of a course, based on their students’ levels of understanding, leading to differentiated instruction and improved academic achievement.

SynapticMash directly fits Promethean’s education strategy and significantly strengthens Promethean’s formative assessment and learner response systems (LRS) offering. LRS are handheld devices that allow students to contribute in real time during lessons, and enable teachers to instantly gauge student understanding.

SynapticMash’s LearningQube software will be fully integrated with Promethean’s LRS devices and specialised educational software, ActivInspire, to create a new and powerful formative assessment proposition for the education market, enabling teachers as well as school administrators to improve student assessment and performance.

Via EPR Network
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