EdTech Show Daily - Post Show FETC Issue

www.edtechshowdai ly.comOser Communicat ions GroupFebruary 2011

An interview withNancy Knowlton,CEO of SMARTTechnologies.

ESD: What new prod-ucts did SMART showcase at FETC 2011?

NK: The featured product was our newSMART Board 800 series interactivewhiteboard. We’re calling it a new classof interactive whiteboard because itenhances collaboration by supportingmultiuser writing and common multi-touch gestures. It offers features such as

Wendy Pye, Pres-ident and Publisher ofAWARD electronictextbooks, reveals what’snew at her company.

ESD: As a developer and creator ofshared and guided reading products thathave affected major changes in Americanclassrooms, why did you move to digitaltextbooks to create new packages forearly learning?

WP: Digital natives come to school withdifferent expectations. They may only befive years old, but they have already

EDCO now offersa NEW Techno-logy Solution linking Student ResponseSystems (SRS) to a District WideTeacher/Student Assessment Databaseeliminating the need for traditional bub-ble sheets and scanners. Tests can bedelivered and analyzed by grade levelfrom the classroom or by the DistrictCurriculum Department.

EDCO (Education ConsultantSpecialists), in partnership withEduTrax and iRespond, offers a real-time, integrated management solutionfor electronically assessing and meas-uring student/teacher performance at

An interview withEdward S. Marflak,Chairman andFounder, Schoolwires.

ESD: Tell our readersa little about your company.

EM: First and foremost, we are totallydedicated to the success of K-12 districts.I personally have strong ties to K-12;both my parents were teachers. Today,Schoolwires provides one of the leadingwebsite and community managementplatforms to more than 1,200 districts

Michael Ross, SeniorVice President/Education GeneralManager, BritannicaDigital Learning, talksabout his company.

ESD: What’s your main line of business?

MR: Britannica serves the entire PreKthrough university market with a variety ofeducational websites throughout the worldand in multiple languages―includingSpanish, French, Korean, Chinese andJapanese. Under the umbrella of our online

The World’s Only TrulyWireless DocumentCamera!

Ladibugs are theworld’s first wirelessdocument camerasdesigned to address the need for teach-ers to present from any location in theirclassroom. With this increased range,teachers can determine the optimalteaching location, encouraging studentsto pay closer attention to lessons as theyare presented.

Students are becoming more tech-nologically savvy, so teachers must find

QOMO HiteVision is adynamic educationaltechnology manufac-turer/distributor spe-cializing in providingcomplete interactiveclassroom solutions. All of QOMO’s prod-ucts are designed to work seamlesslytogether to foster the most positive learningexperience possible. The QView DocumentCamera series, Interactive Whiteboards,RF Interactive Wireless tablets and QClickAudience Response Systems combine tocreate a powerful technology-enabledclassroom environment.

Many organi-zations areplanning to roll out Windows 7 toenhance usability, performance andsecurity. Migrating to a new operatingsystem can be a daunting experience fullof unknown and potential obstacles―butit doesn’t have to be. Melissa Kaleskas,Professional Services Manager atGovConnection, an IT solutionsprovider, offers some strategies andapproaches that can ensure a relativelypainless migration to Windows 7.

ESD: There was a lot of initial hype and alot of people have made the move to

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READY TO MAKETHE JUMP TOWINDOWS 7?

QOMO HITEVISION WORKSTO OFFER HIGH-QUALITYTECHNOLOGY FOR ANINTERACTIVE CLASSROOM

BRITANNICA UNIQUE INITS RANGE OF PRODUCTS,ABILITY TO ADDRESSDIVERSE MARKET NEEDS

AWARD TEXTBOOKS OFFERUNIQUE ADVANTAGESFOR EARLY LEARNING

SMART TECHNOLOGIESCOMMITTED TO CREATINGDYNAMIC LEARNINGOPPORTUNITIES

EDCO PRESENTSITS NEW COMPLETEASSESSMENT SOLUTION

TEACH FROM ANYWHEREIN YOUR CLASSROOMWITH A LADIBUG

SCHOOLWIRES:CONNECTING COMMUNITIESIN SUPPORT OF STUDENTAND DISTRICT SUCCESS

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EdTech Show Dai lyFebruary 20114

There was once a time when IT profes-sionals relied exclusively on one technol-ogy to protect their computers andnetworks. With the number and complex-ity of malware threats steadily increas-ing, relying solely on an anti-virussolution to ensure IT security is no longerenough. A layered security approach isabsolutely necessary now to effectivelyprotect an IT environment.

Faronics, winner of multiple educa-tional software awards, provides work-station security solutions that can helpeducational facilities achieve a morecomprehensive security approach. As thecore layer, Deep Freeze delivers

enterprise-wide protection against acci-dental or malicious damage withoutrestricting user access. As the applicationlayer, Anti-Executable’s whitelisting tech-nology ensures only approved applicationsrun. As the fundamental layer, FaronicsAnti-Virus ensures proactive, resource-efficient malware protection without com-promising system performance.

Faronics Deep Freeze is widely rec-ognized for protecting and preservingoriginal computer configurations andeliminating routine IT maintenance whileallowing complete, unrestricted worksta-tion access. Faronics Deep Freeze helpseliminate workstation damage and down-

time by making computer con-figurations indestructible.Once Deep Freeze is installedon a workstation, any changesmade to the computer are auto-matically erased upon a simplerestart.

Anti-Executable ensurestotal endpoint security byscanning a workstation’s harddrive and creating a whitelistof all authorized programs,thereby preventing unwelcomeapplications from executing orinstalling. Any other pro-grams—whether they are

WHY EVOLVING MALWARENOW REQUIRES A LAYEREDSECURITY APPROACH

Lee M. OserCEO and Editor-in-Chief

Steve CoxKate Seymour

Senior Associate Publishers

Kim ForresterLyle Sapp

Associate Publishers

Lorrie BaumannEditorial Director

Brandon DerrowJustyn DillinghamAssociate Editors

Valerie WilsonArt Director

Yasmine BrownGraphic Designer

Selene PinuelasTraffic Manager

Paul HarrisJames MartinBill Morris

Robert ValenciaJohn Wilkinson

Deborah YarbroughAccount Managers

Enrico CecchiEuropean Sales

EdTech Show Daily is published byOser Communications Group ©2011.

All rights reserved.Executive and editorial offices at:

1877 N. Kolb Road, Tucson, AZ 85715520-721-1300/Fax: 520-721-6300

www.oser.com / www.edtechshowdaily.com

European offices located atLungarno Benvenuto

Cellini, 11, 50125 Florence, Italy.

Ed Lydon, Consultative Public SectorSales Manager for OKI Data Americas,answers your printing questions.

School IT Director: My school needsnew printers for administrative areas andour computer labs. Most printouts areblack and white, but we still need theoption for color. Our IT budget wasreduced so we’re looking for affordableoptions.

Ed Lydon: We do have devices that aretailored to meet multiple printing needsand are affordably priced to accommo-date reduced IT budgets. OKI has justrefreshed a line of color MFPs providingthe option of color when and where youneed it, as well as a new line of mono

products that are designed to help educa-tion professionals control the costs ofprinting. They are more compact, fasterand have higher consumable yields forincreased efficiency. These products alsofeature banner capabilities and as anadded bonus, OKI provides a free SchoolCommunications Pack DVD filled withmore than 100 educational banners per-fect for the classroom.

School IT Director: Half of my IT budg-et goes towards printing. I know printedmaterials are important to the students’education, but the costs have beenoverwhelming.

Ed Lydon: It sounds like you’re havingissues with properly managing your print

WEEKLY READER CONNECT BUILDSBETTER READERS … ONLINE

In our ultramodern, 24/7/365 world, oneancient skill still matters. Whetherwords are presented on a whiteboard ora billboard, an iPad or a memo pad, acomputer screen or in a magazine,understanding what those words mean isabsolutely essential.

That’s one explanation for the successof Weekly Reader Connect. Less than a yearsince it launched, this online reading-comprehension program for students ingrades K–6 is already being used in hun-dreds of schools across 44 states. It has beennamed one of the Top 100 products of 2010

by District Administration magazine. TheMassachusetts Innovation TechnologyExchange proclaimed the digital editionsone of “the most innovative, effectiveand compelling achievements in thedevelopment and implementation ofinteractive technologies.”

Weekly Reader Connect is a superbtool for teaching children to understandwhat they read. It presents hundreds ofhigh-interest nonfiction stories enrichedwith meaningful multimedia that deepen

students’ understanding. WR Connectcomplements those stories with 129onscreen lessons that teach readingcomprehension in a clear, concise andconsistent way.

“Weekly Reader Connect bringstogether elements that teachers have toldus are crucial: easy-to-use 21st centurytechnology; compelling, newsworthynonfiction; exciting multimedia; and

Ed Lydon: I’m familiar with the studieswhich support our belief that colorful,educational materials really do improve astudent’s learning experience; in fact, onestudy shows that color documentsincrease learning and retention by up to78 percent1. Recognizing the impact ofcolor, OKI developed Color AccessPolicy Manager [CAPM], allowingschools to utilize color printing withoutwaste through accountability. WithCAPM, schools can control everythingfrom user-name to application to thenumber of color or black and whitepages printed, helping you better man-age your color printing and have morecontrol over costs.

For more information, please visitwww.okiprintingsolutions.com/education.

1Loyola College, Maryland, U.S.A., byEllen Hoadley, Ph.D., Laurette Simmons,Ph.D., and Faith Gilroy, Ph.D. Case &Company, Management ConsultantsBureau of Advertising, Color inNewspaper Advertising MaritzMotivation, Inc., Southern Illinois


OKI PRINTING SOLUTIONS OFFERSNEW PRODUCTS AND TAILOREDSOLUTIONS THAT CAN SOLVEYOUR PRINTING WOES

unwanted, unlicensed, or simply unnec-essary—are blocked from everexecuting. Organizations benefit fromproductive user sessions each and everytime, while IT personnel are guaranteedthat desktop computers, notebooks andservers are compliant with acceptable usepolicies, regulatory requirements andsoftware deployment schedules.

Faronics Anti-Virus provides high-performance, proactive endpointmalware protection without the sluggishperformance and resource drain that canplague traditional anti-virus solutions. Itsmost innovative feature allows it to inte-grate seamlessly with Faronics DeepFreeze, so anti-virus updates can beapplied even while computers areprotected in a frozen state. Faronics Anti-Virus has been developed as an integrat-ed solution that combines anti-virus,anti-spyware and anti-rootkit technologyto provide a coordinated, pre-emptiveresponse to advanced malware.

Schools everywhere are quicklyrecognizing that the threat of day-zeroattacks and information theft are sim-ply too costly to risk permitting gaps insecurity. Invest today in a comprehen-sive solution to safeguard yourvital resources.

To see how Faronics Deep Freeze,Anti-Executable, and Faronics Anti-Virus can simplify your workstation soft-ware management tasks and help youachieve an additional layer of security,and to download a free, fully functional30-day evaluation version, visitwww.faronics.com.

fleet, and we can help you with that. OKIPrinting Solutions conducts a free, com-prehensive assessment which analyzesdevice usage and the level of color andmono printing to better understand yourschool’s printing habits. We then proposea strategic plan of action that will helpyou better manage your printing opera-tions and save you money. This mayconsist of removing under-utilizedproducts, consolidating devices and/orreplacing expensive printers with cost-efficient OKI products to significantlyimprove overall performance. As a tes-tament to the potential cost-savings,just recently, OKI identified a savingsof more than a million dollars over afive-year time span for the DonnaIndependent School District, in Donna,Texas by upgrading their old fleet toOKI Printing Solutions.

School IT Director: I’ve read studies onhow color printouts help enhance stu-dents’ learning, but I don’nt think myschool can afford the costs associatedwith color printing. Is it possible to bringcolor into the classroom affordably?



RESULTS SHOW WHY AWARDCHOSEN BY FLORIDA SCHOOLSFOR ELECTRONIC TEXTBOOKS

Florida schools have chosen AWARDReading as an electronic textbook pro-gram to be used for digital learning in theclassroom. As schools move forward toembrace new learning resources in thisdigital age, there is an increasing demandfor online programs that have provenresearch results.

AWARD Reading was creativelydeveloped for electronic instruction thatwould teach and motivate digital natives.The term ‘digital native,’ along with ‘dig-ital immigrant,’ is being more and moreused to explain the differences betweenthose born after the ‘tech movement’ andthose born before it. It doesn’t necessarilymean that ‘natives’ are technically expertbut their thinking is different.

A study of kindergarten and firstgrade students in Texas, New York andNew Jersey coordinated by Dr. CathyCollins Block, Professor of Education atTexas Christian University, reviewedoutcomes based on the use of AWARDReading and control subjects using stan-dard basal reading programs. Resultsshowed that after only 20 weeks, theAWARD program significantly improvedsubjects’ abilities in phonics, continuousreading and attitudes toward reading.Increases in positive attitudes towardreading were especially profound withAfrican American students (48 percentincrease) and Hispanics (15 percent). Thestudents showed more enthusiasm forreading, and they engaged positively

with the animated and interactive textsand activities.

AWARD Reading significantlyimproves reading abilities in the criticalearly school years, in particular withELLs, students with disabilities, thosefrom low socio-economic backgroundsand students who benefit from acceleratedlearning opportunities. Published by thebalanced literacy publisher that firstbrought big books and guided readerssuch as Mrs. Wishy Washy to U.S. class-rooms, AWARD Reading offers teachersand students an opportunity to interactwith technology in new ways to createsuccessful learning outcomes.

One reason why AWARD has provenso successful in creating readers andchanging attitudes to reading and learninglies in the richness of the texts. They aren’te-books. They are animated and fullyvoiced for students to hear the words andunderstand the instructions. Each text,each grade level, is scaffolded to provide agradual progression and the more than 900

interactive activities support and extendlearning of the essential skills.

The U.S. Department of Educationsparked a national discussion around dig-ital learning with the release in 2010 ofThe National Education TechnologyPlan. Transforming American Education:Learning Powered by Technology callsfor applying the advanced technologiesused in daily life to our entire educationsystem to improve student learning,accelerate and scale up the adoption ofeffective practices, and use data andinformation for continuous improve-ment. AWARD’s instructional materialsparallel the recommendations of this planand its principles connected to learning,assessing and teaching.

AWARD Reading was selected asthe innovative educational program to beshowcased on the nationally televised“Today in America.” The TV programprominently featured teachers and stu-dents from Oak Hammock School, St.Lucie County.

BRITANNICA IMAGE QUEST GIVESSTUDENTS, TEACHERS PHOTOSTHEY CAN USE

Students and teachers who need photosand other images for research and specialprojects can now find them easily inBritannica Image Quest, a new onlineresource from Britannica DigitalLearning. Unlike other image collec-tions, this collection automatically grantsuse for academic purposes, to helpschools avoid copyright violations.

Image Quest provides images frommore than 60 of the best collections inthe world, including DorlingKindersley, Getty, the Granger

Collection, the National Portrait Galleryof London, the National GeographicSociety and Oxford Scientific. Thesephotos and illustrations are not availableelsewhere on the public Internet.

The collection contains more than amillion images with more added eachmonth. Suppliers of content come fromthe U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom,France, Italy, Japan, Spain, Australiaand New Zealand―“a truly global rep-resentation of the finest historical, finearts and contemporary images,”

according to Michael Ross, a SeniorVice President at EncyclopaediaBritannica, Inc., and general manager ofBritannica Digital Learning.

Image Quest provides easy accessto high-quality photos and illustrationsfrom trustworthy sources for students ofall ages on a wide range of topics.Images are organized by subject matter,and the site is fully searchable. Eachimage, which is cleared for educationaluse, includes a caption, citation, copy-right information, etc. With all theimages in one convenient place, it sim-plifies the search for photos becauseresearchers don’t have to comb throughmultiple websites or worry about per-mission to use them.

The product has many uses. Studentscan turn to Image Quest for homework

assignments and course projects, andteachers can use the images in lessonplans and classroom activities. It’s idealfor whiteboards, school websites,newsletters, newspapers and bulletins.

“Students today don’t just writereports; they produce rich expositionsthat combine research and relevant illus-trations,” said Ross. “But it can be hardto find the right images, to identifywhat’s in them and to know if you’reallowed to use them. We’ve made all ofthat a lot easier.”

Britannica Image Quest is producedin collaboration with the UniversalImages Group. Schools, universities andlibraries interested in Britannica ImageQuest can call 800-621-3900 or go tohttp://info.eb.com/ for more informationor trial subscriptions.

TRACK BENCHMARK ASSESSMENTSWITH ASSESSTRAX AND EDCOEDCO (Education Consultant Specialists)has partnered with EduTrax to provide abetter management solution for assessingand measuring student/teacher progress.AssessTrax is a Web-based, flexible testmanagement solution used to monitor stu-dent performance on standards-basedbenchmark and unit assessments. Testresults are instantly available to teachersand staff allowing for the immediate devel-opment of intervention strategies.

Districts are using this new technolo-gy to better manage and gauge the resultsof assessments, and to make it easier forteachers to focus on teaching their stu-dents. By eliminating bubble sheets,which need to be manually scored byteachers, and then sent to be scanned andanalyzed by the school system, this newtechnology allows for an immediateresponse to improve student achievement.

AssessTrax is available to any

school district which utilizes benchmarktest scores, standardized test scores, sur-veys, etc., to gauge student performance.EduTrax stores the data, offers analysisoptions, and produces easily understoodreports and graphs suitable for the schooldistrict, school or teacher use.

Because AssessTrax is a Web-basedtool, test results are instantly available toteachers and staff, allowing for the immedi-ate development of intervention strategies.AssessTrax aims to target the needs of eachindividual student by pinpointing proficien-cy levels across a range of subject areas.

With AssessTrax, school systems canmonitor student performance on standards-

based benchmark and unit tests; targetinstruction to address any needs prior tostate and federal assessments; and test asdesired (benchmark, unit, or pre-/post-test).

EDCO efforts focus on partneringwith school systems to plan and imple-ment solutions that will improve studentachievement. Whether implementing acomprehensive assessment plan, manag-ing district benchmark testing or provid-ing a wide range of data analysisprograms, EDCO along with EduTrax iscommitted to helping school systemsimprove student achievement.

Visit the EDCO at www.edcousa.bizor call 770-720-0222 for more information.

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PERSONALIZED LITERACYENVIRONMENT CONNECTS STUDENTINTERESTS AND READING ABILITIES

Capstone Digital, developer of personal-ized learning environments for students,announces the launch of myON™ reader.The first of its kind, myON reader is apersonalized literacy environment thatprovides access to the largest integratedlibrary of digital books with multimediasupports, customized to a student’s inter-est and reading ability. myON readerenables students to take ownership of

their reading growth while rating andsharing their reviews with classmates.

Designed for PreK-8 and remedialreaders, myON reader creates individ-ual, personalized reading programs forstudents. The online platform offers agrowing library of more than 1,000books from award-winning Capstone


EDMODO: BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

The Fastest Growing Social LearningNetwork for Educators Serves As AComprehensive Communication AndContent Distribution Center ForSchool Districts

Originally created in response to teacherdemand for safe social networking toolsfor the classroom, Edmodo has become apowerful communications tool for schooldistricts as teachers and administratorsdiscover new ways to communicate withtheir school communities through the freeonline service. Offering a comprehensive

communication and content distributioncenter for school districts, Edmodo pro-vides school administrators with aninstant and targeted delivery platform toenable rapid communication and schoolcommunity engagement among teachers,students, administrators, and parents.

Through Edmodo, schools can easilydistribute a variety of administrative con-tent, including district-wide alerts andemergency notifications, club and activityupdates, parent notifications, principal



HOW MUCH ENERGY AREYOUR COMPUTERS WASTING?

If your school district is searching forfresh green initiatives that save money,you need to consider a PC power man-agement solution. It is one of the mostimmediate and cost-effective ways toreduce your school district’s power billand energy consumption.

With the creation of its PC powermanagement software, Faronics hasbecome a recognized industry leader inreducing enterprise IT energy waste.

Faronics Power Save provides organiza-tions with centralized computer energymanagement and real-time savingsreports, allowing companies to continu-ously maximize their savings by power-ing IT down daily.

Faronics Power Save can deliver afull ROI in as little as eight months—lessif you qualify for a rebate. Depending onthe number of PCs, districts can annuallysave hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Last year, Faronicsteamed up with industry ana-lyst Forrester Consulting andconducted a Total Economic

Impact (TEI) study verifying that organi-zations reducing their computer energywaste by deploying Power Save canachieve a substantial and rapid return oninvestment (ROI). The study focused onthe deployment of Power Save on morethan 8,000 computers at a Canada-basedutility giant. Power Save outperformedinitial estimates and saved the organiza-tion 1.2 gigawatt hours (GWh) of elec-tricity. Also among the growing list ofmore than 1,000 Power Save customers

is California-based Chaffey Joint UnionHigh School District, which is currentlysaving $350,000 annually by shuttingdown their inactive PCs.

As regulations slowly increase,more and more schools will be mandat-ed to adopt a green IT approach.Educational facilities have a strongresponsibility to help create a greener,cleaner future. Irresponsible PC energyconsumption is not just a waste ofenergy; it’s a waste of money.

To learn how your organization canbenefit from PC power management,visit www.faronics.com and download afree 30-day evaluation.

WHAT DOES SOFTWARE LICENSINGHAVE TO DO WITH SERVERVIRTUALIZATION? HINT: IF YOUWANT TO STREAMLINE AND SAVE,THE ANSWER IS EVERYTHING.

The benefits of server virtualization areeasy to see—reduced costs, increasedhardware and application availability,greater deployment agility, as well astime and energy savings. But is there aprice to pay for those gains? While virtu-alization makes it almost effortless todeploy new servers, it also creates aunique challenge for software licensing.

The Smarter Way To SimplifyAs organizations move their Microsoftserver environments to virtual modelsin order to take advantage of all thatcloud computing and virtualization

have to offer, it’s important to be awareof potential issues that software costsand licensing can present.Virtualization has drastically changedthe way organizations license their soft-ware. While there are more options tochoose from, it’s now easier to find alicensing program that complements theadvantages of virtualization. By adapt-ing your licensing structure to the needsof a virtual environment, you can real-ize a number of benefits, namely ease ofoperation and a reduction in the totalnumber of licenses you need to pur-chase, track and manage. One of the

greatest benefits of virtualization is thatit has leveled the playing field betweensmall and large schools. It’s brought thepower of the data center within reach ofthe little guy, but in doing so it hasintroduced the complexities of softwarelicensing into organizations of everysize. For schools that don’t have a ded-icated licensing expert to deal withthose issues, acquiring the right mix ofsoftware can be a challenge.

More Options, More OpportunityThe good news is that Microsoft has cre-ated a variety of licensing options tochoose from, so you can get the coverageyou need without wasting resources.They’ve even added a new version ofWindows Server, called Datacenter, totheir product lineup. Datacenter is specif-ically designed to meet the needs of vir-tualized environments. It allows you tolicense your machines on a per-socketbasis, giving you the option to run anunlimited number of virtual machines(VMs) as long as you’ve licensed all of

your sockets.Microsoft licensing for virtual envi-

ronments includes several differentoptions to help you get the most valuefor your investment. These optionsinclude: Licensing by Instance,Licensing by Processor, UnlimitedVirtualization Rights and ApplicationServer License Mobility.

The Right SoftwareLicensing Starts HereThe key to finding the right licensingprogram for your school is knowing howyour virtual data center operates, andchoosing a licensing option that lets youcapitalize on the efficiencies you’realready pursuing. While the large varietyof licensing programs and complex rulesmay seem daunting, talking to an expertwho understands how your data center isset up and knows what you’re trying toaccomplish with virtualization can help.

Call 800-800-0019 to speak to a dedicat-ed Account Manager at GovConnection.

HOW SCHOOLWIRES HELPEDONE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

When the Dalai Lama comes for a visit,public attention follows. The spiritualleader of Tibet was scheduled to visitCostano Elementary School, part of theRavenswood City School District, onOct. 13, 2010, to engage in a public con-versation with children who reside inEast Palo Alto before an audience ofmore than 400 students and specialguests. Knowing that the eyes of theworld would be on them, school officialswanted to implement a new website thatwould better reflect the high-quality edu-cational opportunities that the districtprovides for students and their families.However, there was one problem: HisHoliness was arriving in eight days.

For most districts, migrating contentto a new content management system andlaunching a new district website oftentakes months. With the support of the

Schoolwires services team, the newRavenswood City School District web-site went live within five days.

“We really had eight business daysbefore the visit, but we set a deadlinefor going live within five days to be cer-tain that we met the district’s require-ments,” said Diego Rodriguez, SalesConsultant for Schoolwires. Migration,Development, and Implementationstarted on a Monday. By that Friday,Ravenswood’s new website(http://ravenswood.schoolwires.net),built with Schoolwires Centricity,launched to the public.

“It really wasn’t anything too differ-ent than what we normally do,” recalledPeter Weyandt, Manager of ActivationServices with Schoolwires, who playedan integral role in this pivotal districtimplementation and launch. “We just

gave it a bit of extra attention to makesure that it was done really quickly.”

Centricity is a strategic website andcommunity management platform thatbrings together robust and flexiblewebsite management, community man-agement and web 2.0/social network capa-bilities in a single, user-centric solution.

“Not every district can implement infive business days,” said Jeff Windsor,the Product Manager for Centricity. “Butwe really try to go out of our way to meet

the needs of our clients, even if they maynot seem possible at the time.”

The Schoolwires services team hassuccessfully implemented the Centricityplatform at nearly 1,200 districts nation-wide. The tech-savvy SchoolwiresImplementation Specialists draw upontheir expertise and broad situational expe-rience to meet the schedule and budget ofindividual districts so that they can go livequickly and begin to strengthen their con-nections with their communities.

Schoolwires believes that districtsshould not have to compromise on func-tionality, price or delivery date. “Wehave created very effective tools andprocesses to help districts go live veryquickly, whether the implementation iscomplex or straightforward,” saidWeyandt. “We recognize that an effec-tive website has significant impact ondistrict and student success, and wewant to deliver these benefits to schooldistricts as quickly as possible.”

Visit Schoolwires at www.schoolwires.com or [email protected].

announcements, differentiated instructionlessons, professional development oppor-tunities, and much more. Accessible fromany networked device, Edmodo providesupdates to school communities throughindividuals’ preferred delivery methodincluding RSS feed, SMS, smart phone

applications, and e-mail.“Edmodo began as a tool for teach-

ers and students, and grew into a plat-form for school-wide communication.Now, it has become a critical componentof district-wide activities,” notes NicBorg, President and Co-founder ofEdmodo. “It’s been astounding to see theviral growth of the service; there really

Edmodo (Con’t. from p. 6) are no limits to where schools will takethings next.”

For more information on implement-ing Edmodo in your district and toreserve your unique district sub-domain,visit www.edmodo.com/institutions.

About EdmodoWith more than 1 million users and

growing, Edmodo is a free and securesocial networking platform for teachers,students, parents and school administra-tors. Edmodo enhances collaboration andlearning in schools, offering a real-timeplatform to exchange ideas, share con-tent, and access homework, grades andschool notices. For more information,visit www.edmodo.com.



NEW LITERACY PROGRAM ATTRACTSATTENTION OF EDUCATORSElectronic textbooks are a new innova-tion for some teachers. However, thereare other teachers, especially those whouse interactive whiteboards daily in theirclassrooms, who readily embrace theseaccessible textbooks. They find programslike AWARD Reading to be a powerfulresource that connects with their stu-dents. They are able to share hundreds ofcarefully graded stories with their

students and extend instruction withvocabulary, comprehension, fluency andwriting tasks. The technology behindAWARD allows students to progress attheir own pace and practice until theessential literacy skills are learned.

One of the strengths of AWARDReading―a provider of electronic text-books in Florida―is that it offers interac-tive extension activities in all the reading

skills, as well as a range of software pack-ages, useful across the K–3 curriculum.

One example is “Snappy SlideShow.” This open-ended software allowsstudents to use illustrations from the textand then write captions, add visualeffects and music to create an individualinterpretation of the story. This activityencourages a range of writing experi-ences and highlights for the teacher astudent’s understanding of the text. Orstudents can create their own science orsocial studies presentation using imagessourced from personal picture libraries ordownloaded from the Internet.

Another example is “Newspaper FrontPage.” Students write a newspaper storybased on a text they have read in class orthey can create their own story. Illustrationsfrom the texts and a choice of headlines areprovided, or students can source their own.The finished story can be printed and filedin the student’s digital portfolio.

These are just two examples of thehundreds of activities and games featuredas extensions to the 300 electronic text-books available from AWARD Reading,where content and technology integratesdiverse media tools to reinforce tradition-al learning and expand comprehension.

BRITANNICA SMARTMATHPERSONALIZES LEARNING

For schools and districts looking tohelp students improve their math skills,Britannica Digital Learning offersSmartMath, an online math practiceand formative assessment tool.Britannica SmartMath encouragesmath practice by making it fun, adapt-ing to each student’s performance fortruly individualized instruction.

Dealing with differences in studentskills has always been a challenge, par-ticularly in math. But SmartMath’s adap-tive platform builds differentiation intoevery question by adjusting difficulty

based on each student’s performance. Inthis way, teachers reach all students, fromthose who are falling behind to those whoare well ahead. The result is that studentsachieve success in math and movethrough each topic at their own pace untilthe material is mastered.

A highly interactive program,Britannica SmartMath uses amusing car-toon characters and an award system tocreate a fun, game-like environment thatengages students. Students have funpracticing math, meaning more time-on-task and a greater mastery of the subject.

SmartMath is designed around NCTMfocal points and correlated to the FloridaSunshine State Standards and theCommon Core standards.

Formative assessment is also an inte-gral part of SmartMath. Teachers andadministrators have access to reports toinform instruction according to an indi-vidual student’s needs or the progress ofentire classes and grades. These assess-ments drive differentiation without put-ting an extra burden on teachers. There isless grading to be done and more time forteachers to respond to student results.

“This is the future of math instruc-tion,” said Michael Ross, a Senior VicePresident and General Manager ofBritannica Digital Learning. “It’s fun andengaging for students and a powerful,

easy-to-use formative assessment tool forteachers. It’s on the cutting edge of incor-porating feedback into the learningprocess. Educators, parents and studentsnow have real-time measurable results ofstudent performance and a better way totrack student progress.”

SmartMath joins the company’smathematics-instruction portfolio along-side the Mathematics in Context middleschool core mathematics curriculum.Ross said that the two initiatives exem-plify Britannica’s expanding productline that focuses on the needs of 21stcentury classrooms.

Schools interested in BritannicaSmartMath or any of Britannica’s prod-ucts can visit http://info.eb.com/smartmath or call 800-621-3900.

A STUDENT RESPONSE SYSTEMTHAT WORKS: IRESPOND

The iRespond personal response systemis a cost-effective way for any instructorto instantly become more productive.Combined with our proprietary TeachersDashboard Software, you may take atten-dance, collect homework, track forma-tive assessment, give timed tests, engageevery student, reduce the drudgery ofgrading, produce meaningful state stan-dards reports and much more.

Increase Instructor ProductivityBecause iRespond handles the gradingprocess, from short quizzes to end-of-term assessments, teachers have moretime for teaching. Imagine how muchmore productive you can be when freedfrom the burden of grading tests.

Achieve 100% Student ParticipationWith iRespond, every student is engagedin the learning process and is an activeparticipant. Students love the technology.EDCO customers say that attendance isalways better when their students knowthey will be using iRespond remotes. TheiRespond-Lite is a wonderful addition toany classroom from kindergarten to grad-uate school. It’s perfect for the individualclassroom or a meeting where you wantto capture everyone’s opinion.

Flexible and easy to use iRespondallows for a wide variety of questions:multiple choice, true/false, multipleresponse, yes/no, numeric fill-in-the-blank and survey. The iRespond-Literemotes have a display window to show

students the question number they areanswering and the answer they selected.This window can display the student grade,class average, messages from the teacherand feedback. Teachers are free to movearound the classroom and can remotelysend prepared questions. The system is alsoeasy to use for questions on the fly.

More reasons to check outiRespond: fully integrates with PowerPoint; Built-in State Standards to corre-late to your test questions; create aquick answer key for instant testing;unique PIN login allows students to useany remote; fosters classroom excite-ment and competition; supports paper-based, oral and projected tests; allowsassessment of individual students,teams or the entire classroom; easy tocreate reports that can be printed ore-mailed; radio frequency for fail-prooftwo-way interactive communications;runs on AA batteries; and online

easy-to-follow video tutorials.See how engaging your students and

improving performance is as easy as1…2…3!

Select a class, choose a lesson, andpick your remotes. That’s it. Now you dowhat you do best―teach. iRespond’sStudent Response System collects stu-dent answers and scores each response inreal-time, whether delivering a randomsingle question or a comprehensive ‘testfor record’ to all students. Both you andyour students know in seconds what hasbeen mastered and what still needs tobe learned. Combined with EDCO’sinstant reporting features, teachers maymodify lessons or assist individual stu-dents who need further help. EDCO alsooffers assessment solutions and state-aligned content. Both work seamlesslyand dynamically with iRespond.

Visit EDCO at www.edcousa.biz orcall 770-720-0222 for more information.


LearningStation announced at FETC2011 that it has rolled out a campaign toaward 2,011 individual grants to teachersto deploy its Classroom InsightAssessment and Learning Platform in thecoming year. The Insight Platform allowsteachers to access a unique assessmentand test creation tool via a Web-basedinterface, and deliver the assessment viainteractive whiteboards using studentresponse devices.

LearningStation’s V.P. of BusinessDevelopment Don Carte noted: “The

benefits of the Insight Platform are justtoo plentiful to keep bottled-up. Beingable to create an assessment aligned tostate-standards in minutes, and deliver thetest seamlessly using current classroomtechnology, can be a huge justification forthe 21st century classroom. By using thattechnology in a meaningful way, teacherscan see results from their assessments ofstudents instantly, and pin-point exactlywhere intervention may be required.”


Daniel A. Cabrera Brings Deep IndustryExperience To Expand Smoothwall’sSales and Channel Partner Programs

Internet security specialist SmoothwallInc. has announced that Daniel A.Cabrera has joined the company as VicePresident of Sales. In this role, Mr.Cabrera will lead Smoothwall’s ongoingexpansion in the U.S. and the Americas,developing channel partner programs andreaching more value added resellers(VARs) and system integrators.

“Daniel’s international and channelsales experience are a great fit for

Smoothwall at a very important momentas we seek to expand our U.S. presence,”said Richard Moore, Executive VicePresident of Smoothwall. “His extensiveexperience in the network security indus-try means that he can speak the languageof our customers and channel partnersand deliver exactly what they need.”

Mr. Cabrera has worked in the tech-nology industry for more than 20 years,serving in a variety of executive sales andmarketing roles. Most recently, he was aRegional Sales Director at SonicWALL

SMOOTHWALL’S NEW V.P. OF SALESLEADS EXPANSION IN USA & AMERICAS

LEARNINGSTATION ANNOUNCESPLANS TO AWARD OVER 2,000TEACHER GRANTS



SURVEY SAYS: WEEKLY READERCONNECT IS HUGE HIT

What do the users of Weekly ReaderConnect think of this new K–6 onlinereading-comprehension program? Fully98 percent of respondents to a recent pollsaid they would recommend WRConnect to a colleague.

Now listen to what they said whenasked why they would recommend theprogram:

• It is an excellent way to teach currentevents and teach reading comprehensionstrategies together. —Angie Taub,Rutherford County Schools, Cliffside, N.C.

• Has available all comprehensionstrategies that students need to assist withcomprehension skills. —Kim Chatman,Alma Intermediate School, Alma, Ark.

• It fulfills the needs of the visual learner.—Deborah Famini, Meadowvale

Elementary, Md.

• It is an excellent resource to have inthe classroom. —Lisa Newberry, CrossStreet Christian School, Anderson, In.

• It is such an interactive teachingtool.—Marcia Jolley, Harris Elementary,Forest City, N.C.

Less than a year after its launch, WeeklyReader Connect has already been adoptedby hundreds of schools in 44 states, andhas won major educational and technolo-gy awards. But the highest accolades theprogram has received are from educatorswho say that Weekly Reader Connect is asuperb teaching tool. The program pres-ents hundreds of high-interest nonfictionarticles enriched with meaningful multi-media that deepens students’ understand-ing. WR Connect complements those

stories with 129 onscreen lessons thatteach reading comprehension in a clear,concise and consistent way.

WR Connect requires no additionalsoftware or tech expertise, andbrings the following elements to allsubscribing schools:• Exclusive interactive Weekly Readerdigital editions, presenting timely, high-interest and grade-specific nonfictioncontent that has been carefully crafted toalign to state curricula.• Downloadable companion Teacher’sGuides that incorporate wide-rangingbackground information, informal assess-ments and other engaging extensionactivities along with practical tips andtechniques on how to broaden the lessons.• Concepts of Comprehension© SkillBuilder lessons, with teacher tips andadditional reading passages specificallydesigned to build reading skills andscores while improving students’ under-standing of texts.

Weekly Reader Connect is built on theConcepts of Comprehension, a research-

based framework of 21 inferential think-ing skills developed by the nonprofitUrban Education Exchange. This frame-work enables students to expand theirreading skills from year to year, anduses proven methods that teach kids toread for understanding.

We could tell you more. But we’drather let a teacher tell you:

“I am thrilled with what WeeklyReader Connect provides me,” says LauraHavill of the Turning Point ElementaryProgram in Ithaca, N.Y. “The material ishighly motivational for my students. Themultimedia resources are targeted andappealing. The additional work sheetssupport classroom learning and have beenan excellent way for my students to gohome as ‘experts’ to their family anddemonstrate their new learning. In short,you have made us believers! Thank youfor providing this terrific resource!”

Want to know more? If you’re aprincipal, school district leader, media ortechnology specialist, or classroomteacher, visit www.wrconnect.com or call877-344-2834 for a free demo.

MORE EFFECTIVE LEARNINGWITH FARONICS INSIGHT 7.5.THERE IS AN APP FOR THIS.

Faronics is pleased to announce therelease of Faronics Insight 7.5, a popularclassroom management software forinstructors in the lab. This latest versionoffers 35 new feature additions andenhancements to help instructors monitorstudents more easily and strengtheninstructor control over the classroomwhile improving lesson quality andincreasing teaching effectiveness.

Student monitoring is improved withkeystroke alerts for banned words anddual monitoring for both the instructor

and the student side. Instructors can nowlimit Web browsing on all Windowsbrowsers, such as the popular MozillaFirefox and Google Chrome. To get stu-dents’ attention more effectively at thebeginning of class, instructors can imme-diately shutdown all applications appear-ing on selected students’ desktops with aClear Desktop feature. Meanwhile, les-son quality and student experience areenhanced by the ability to broadcast bothaudio and video. The latest release fea-tures an expanded Mac feature set

matching the comprehensiveWindows set, and also supportsApple iPod, iPhone and iPad.

Faronics Insight empowersinstructors to educate, monitor and com-municate with an entire class from onecentral computer or a portable device,such as Apple iPod, iPhone, or iPad.Instructors can share their screen withstudents, control student access to appli-cations and websites, and monitor class-room screens to ensure students are ontask. Students can interact with theinstructor directly through Insight’s chat,voting, and remote assistance capabili-ties. Instructors no longer need to dealwith classroom distractions—such asgames, instant messaging, and Web surf-ing—when teaching a class. Insight stu-dents are kept on task and engaged in an

environment where technology acceler-ates their learning.

“This version offers increased flexi-bility for instructors making it easier thanever to monitor students’activities, removedistractions for more effective learning,and strengthen control over the class-room,” said Graham Vair, ProductManager for Faronics Insight. “Instructorscan fully benefit from computers as educa-tional tools minus all the student distrac-tion of messaging, browsing and playing.”

Classroom-specific solutions are themost effective means to achieve com-plete collaboration within educationalenvironments. To see how FaronicsInsight can help you gain classroom con-trol and help you achieve your mandateof a stronger learning environment, visitwww.faronics.com.

LearningStation’s CEO, Jim

Kirchner, pointed out that the InsightAssessment platform can turn any set of‘clickers’ into an a premier tool for

LearningStation (Con’t. from p. 10) monitoring student progress. “In short, theplatform can transform a very neat idea(clickers) into a device to monitor student

progress real-time in the classroom.”Find out more at www.learning

station.com.



SUPER START: WR CONNECT WINSMULTIPLE AWARDS IN FIRST YEAR

Weekly Reader Connect—an onlinereading-comprehension program forgrades K–6—was launched in January2010, and has already won multipleawards for its outstanding content andseamless integration of technology intothe classroom.

In December, District Administra-tion magazine named Weekly ReaderConnect one of their Reader’s ChoiceTop 100 products of 2010. The 2010 win-ners were selected from hundreds ofnominations. “Weekly Reader provideseconomical yet informative and enter-taining reading to my district’s Englishlanguage learners,” Lynne Ewing, ESOLProgram Director in the Queen Anne’sCounty (MD) Public Schools, told themagazine.

Weekly Reader Connect’s digitaleditions also won a prestigious awardfrom the Massachusetts Innovation

Technology Exchange. That organiza-tion—which describes itself as a“growing community of thought leaders,collaborators and individuals in search ofinsight, education and opportunity”—proclaimed Weekly Reader Connect’sdigital editions one of “most innovative,effective and compelling achievements inthe development and implementation ofinteractive technologies.”

The honors for Weekly ReaderConnect were matched by enthusiasmfrom users. “Every teacher [in myschool] … has been super excited to tryout Weekly Reader Connect on our newwhiteboards,” wrote Karen Small, SITitle 1 Reading Coordinator at theCrittenton Community School inColumbus, Ohio. “Some comments havebeen, ‘Wow, I’m just going to use thisinstead of trying to make all my own flip-charts for everything’ and ‘This has all

the content areas covered, plus the shortcycle assessment? Too cool!’”

Weekly Reader Connect requires noadditional software or tech expertise.Developed by Weekly Reader—theinnovative, 108-year-old educationalpublishing company that virtually invent-ed current-events coverage in the class-room—Weekly Reader Connect bringsthe following elements to all subscribingschools:• Dozens of exclusive interactive WeeklyReader digital editions, presenting timely,high-interest and grade-specific nonfic-tion content that has been carefully craft-ed to align to state curricula.• Downloadable companion Teacher’sGuides that incorporate wide-rangingbackground information, informalassessments and other engaging exten-sion activities along with practical tipsand techniques on how to broadenthe lessons.• 129 onscreen Concepts ofComprehension© Skill Builder lessons,with teacher tips and additional readingpassages specifically designed to build

reading skills and scores while improv-ing students’ understanding of texts.

Weekly Reader Connect is built on theConcepts of Comprehension, a research-based framework of 21 inferential think-ing skills developed by the nonprofitUrban Education Exchange. This frame-work enables students to expand theirreading skills from year to year, and usesproven methods that teach kids to readfor understanding.

Subscribing schools just log on towww.wrconnect.com for full access tothe program. Teachers can project thecontent onto a screen or use an interac-tive whiteboard for group instruction.The program is also appropriate for indi-vidualized use on a single computer.With a simple password, instructors canalso provide off-premises access toall students.

Want to know more? If you’re a prin-cipal, school district leader, media or tech-nology specialist, or classroom teacher,visit www.wrconnect.com or call 877-344-2834 for a free demo.

BUILDING A 21ST CENTURYLEARNING ENVIRONMENT

The Proliferation Of The PortableMobile computing is one of the mostvisible changes to today’s campuses.From netbooks and notebooks tosmartphones and tablets, portablecomputers have earned their place inthe classroom. Today’s generation ofstudents is well-versed in portablecomputing, and they need to be inorder to prepare for a workforce thatincreasingly relies on portable tools toconduct business. These power-packed PCs add a new dimension tolearning, creating a foundation forexciting possibilities inside and

outside the classroom.

Learning Online And On-BudgetWhile already extremely popular inhigher education, Web-based learning isquickly gaining momentum in K-12environments. It’s an excellent way toprovide students with greater access toresources, personalized instruction andself-guided learning. Online interactionhas become an everyday part of students’lives, and providing them with an onlineforum for discussion and research is botha constructive and cost-effective way toenhance learning.

The Sky Is The LimitCloud technologies are yet another driverof progress, introducing powerful newcapabilities into education without car-rying a hefty price tag. Districts makingthe jump to cloud computing have dis-covered the benefits of seamless shar-ing, increased collaboration, andgreater access to tools and resources.Being able to store and share data in thecloud reduces the burden on IT staff andbudgets while making resources avail-able to everyone.

Technology + Education = SuccessWith all of the recent advancements incomputing, networking, and storage, onefact has never been more evident―tech-nology and education are a powerfulcombination. In coming years, the

integration of these two entities willundoubtedly continue to amaze and sur-prise us. Technology will become evenmore integrated into the learning process,with real-time feedback from ‘clickers’and other input devices, individualizedmonitoring reports for students, and morepowerful software tools. Incorporatingonline programs into traditional classeswill provide the best of both worlds, withpersonalized attention and targetedinstruction in areas where students needmore focus.

GovConnection is here to help youintegrate technology into the learningprocess―quickly, effortlessly and costeffectively. They can provide the prod-ucts, services, and expertise to supportyour IT initiatives and promote learning.For more information, call 800-800-0019.

where he managed wholesale channel part-ners, engaged with system integrators, and

developed Managed ServiceProvider/Enterprise programs in LatinAmerica. In these roles he built and man-aged sales teams to achieve sales targets in

Smoothwall (Con’t. from p. 10) difficult environments. Mr. Cabrera ismulti-lingual, speaking Spanish,Portuguese, French and English. He has amaster’s degree from the University of

California at Los Angeles and an M.B.A.from the University of Southern California

For more information, visitwww.smoothwall.com.



HOW SCHOOLWIRES CAN HELP YOUDEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE TECH-NOLOGY INTEGRATION STRATEGY

Technology strategy has the potential togreatly impact student and organizationalsuccess. However, many districts take areactive, fragmented and tacticalapproach to acquiring and integratingtechnology in the absence of a long-termand cohesive strategy. Despite a dis-trict’s best efforts, these technologiesyield only a fraction of their potentialbenefit in the areas of advancing studentand organizational success, and the lackof cohesiveness results in high-costtechnology management.

If a district continues on this path ofacquiring point solutions to meet specificneeds, the deficiencies associated withthese disparate systems will continue togrow and heighten over time. A district’sIT staff must continue to integrate thismultitude of point solutions and maintainthe integrations individually each time avendor releases an update. The amount ofincorrect data and its implications for

decision making will compound, andinefficiencies will proliferate. These arestrategic–not just technical–issues thatrequire thought and leadership at thesuperintendent level.

Fortunately, districts can addressthese issues by developing a compre-hensive technology strategy, and using itas a guide for making strategic technol-ogy decisions. To help districts in theirstrategic planning efforts, Schoolwireshas created the K-12 UnifiedTechnology Model (download whitepa-per at www.schoolwires.com/unifiedtechnology). This model wasdeveloped by Schoolwires through ourtechnology leadership and our exclusiveimmersion in K-12. It provides districtswith a cohesive technology model thatprovides the framework for evaluatingstrategic technology decisions.

According to Project Tomorrow’s2009 Speak-Up research, “Ninety-one

percent of administratorsreport that the effectiveimplementation of instruc-tional technology is impor-tant/extremely important totheir district’s mission andthat facilitating meaningfulsocial-based learningrequires a supportive tech-nology infrastructure,access to technology andexplicit opportunities forstudents to collaborate.”

Fortunately, creating and maintain-ing a unified technology infrastructuredoes not need to be a core competency ofa district. Technology standards andinnovations offer great promise fordeveloping these unified technologyinfrastructures. A community manage-ment platform like SchoolwiresCentricity2™ creates an environmentwhere students are more deeply engagedin the learning process, applying theirreal world knowledge of collaborative,interactive and social technologies to theclassroom and to their education, andcreating the kinds of experiences that arecritical to developing 21st centuryteachers and learners.

It is important for eachdistrict to create its ownplan for a unified technolo-gy approach and then ensurethat selected vendors canwork within that infrastruc-ture to help the districtachieve its goals.Schoolwires has theresources and informationto guide you in your plan-ning efforts and to help you

create the infrastructure that will enabledistrict success.

By creating a strategic, unified andcomprehensive technology framework,districts can create a single comprehen-sive technology platform where all yourconstituents–from the educator to thelearner, from the parent to the boardmember–can access with a single sign-onall the information and resources that arerelevant to them in a personalized andindividualized manner across all the dis-trict’s many applications, engaging themmore deeply in support of your districtimperatives and student achievement.

Visit Schoolwires at www.schoolwires.com or [email protected].

imprints. Embedded reading scaffolds(including highlighting, audio and dic-tionary) increase student confidence. Topersonalize the reading experience,myON reader develops an individualprofile for each student based on inter-ests and reading ability, and generates arecommended book list to encouragestudents to read more and furtherimprove their reading skills.

“myON reader gives students thepower to choose what they want to read,”said Todd Brekhus, President ofCapstone Digital. “Today’s students per-sonalize their lives digitally on a dailybasis through music, games and socialnetworks. myON reader leverages thoseskills to engage students in an online,integrated reading environment using thesame premise: digital personalization.”

In addition to customizing the read-ing experience, myON reader furnishes acollaborative reading environment inwhich students, educators and parentswork together to support student readingperformance. The online platform usescloud-based technology to connectschool and home through anytime, any-where access to an expanding library ofdigital books, and to provide a safe,social network where students can read,rate and review digital books and recom-mend them to classmates.

“In Orange County, our goal is tocontinue to motivate students to ‘read forthe love of reading,’ ” said KatrinaSummerville, M.Ed, Program Specialistfor NCLB services at Orange CountyPublic Schools. “Through research andobservation, it is noted that children whobecome more engrossed in reading con-struct a foundation that teachers can build

Capstone Digital (Con’t. from p. 6) upon. Exposure to myON reader hasengaged and inspired our 21st centurylearners to expand their knowledgethrough digital exploration,”Summerville added.

Capstone Digital partnered withMetaMetrics to embed The Lexile®

Framework for Reading, which measuresstudent reading ability and text complex-ity on the same developmental scalewithin myON reader. Educators useLexile measures to match a student withbooks that will provide the right level ofchallenge for that student’s ability andgoals. Research shows that students canimprove their reading skills by readingbooks within their Lexile range (100Lbelow to 50L above the student’s Lexilemeasure) and on their favorite inter-ests―two factors that myON reader usesto recommend books.

Through embedded assessments,

myON reader enables educators to monitor,track and measure student readinggrowth based on the Lexile Framework.Benchmark tests measure reading levels,and end-of-book quizzes determine com-prehension. In addition, myON readeraccurately tracks number of books readand time spent reading. To monitor theirown growth, students have access to apersonalized trajectory report that canforecast their expected reading level.

myON reader is supported by severalresearch studies on how students read,how technology plays a part in reading,and what motivates students to read.These three indicators together influencedthe development of myON reader. Formore information on the research behindmyON reader, view the white paper enti-tled “Building Proficiency ThroughPersonalized Reading.” To download acopy, visit www.capstonedigital.com.



begun the journey to literacy in a varietyof interactive ways with gaming consolesand other technology. Research showsthat this early exposure impacts how theirminds work and how they see the world.They expect that they will continue tolearn using this technology. This is thereason why I developed AWARD as aresponse to the digital revolution in oureveryday lives―I’m taking it to theclassroom. I also wanted to build a pro-gram that offered everything a youngreader needs to succeed.

ESD: How are teachers using AWARD,and how does this differ from other

programs used in Florida schools?

WP: AWARD Reading was carefullydesigned from the beginning with thedigital learner in mind, and it took oversix years to develop. It offers a range ofmore than 300 original, rich and engag-ing stories, the best in balanced literacy,for use with shared or guided reading.AWARD is also a program designed withteacher support in mind. The websiteprovides teachers with easy-to-use linksfrom the Common Core State Standardscorrelation to AWARD lesson plans tosupport their skills instruction. We havefound through research projects that onceteachers and students begin usingAWARD, they are guaranteed success.

AWARD (Con’t. from p. 1) ESD: Are the books graded in levels ofdifficulty, and how different are theyfrom e-books that everyone talks about?

WP: The 300 titles are animated andvoiced with interactive skills activitiesconnected to the text. These are not juste-books or digital copies of a printed book.AWARD gives teachers and students theopportunity to explore text through anima-tion, video clips, and a range of text types.Each title is expanded with vocabulary,phonics, fluency, comprehension and writ-ing tasks. Each text, each grade level, isscaffolded―building on the skills previ-ously taught and advancing the learning ina gradual progression within an easy-to-follow digital format.

ESD: I understand you offer professionaldevelopment to support instruction fordigital learning. Can you tell us moreabout that?

WP: Yes, to match the needs of teacherswe offer a range of courses,presented by experienced classroomteachers. These courses cover effectiveclassroom management strategies, dif-ferentiated instruction for grades K–3,and for ELL and RTI groups. We alsohave a video center on our website sothat teachers can access professionaldevelopment tutorials 24/7.

For more information, [email protected].

Windows 7. What have people been sayingthat motivated them to make the jump?

MK: It’s different for everyone, but thereason that is resonating the most is ademand for the next true business classoperating system [OS]. It’s been abouteight years since customers last had realconfidence and desire to move forward asquickly as they are today. Because ofthat, there has also been some hold offwith desktop refreshes. With Windows 7,there are so many wonderful benefits andenhancements that many people areexcited and ready to make the jump.

ESD: If someone is ready to go, whatare one or two steps they need to think

about when it comes to taking on an OSmigration?

MK: The first step is to have a conversa-tion about getting a Windows 7Assessment done. This will give a betterunderstanding of the current environ-ment and determine the readiness tomove to a new OS, where there will benew system requirements. It gives adetailed look into what’s happening in asystem today, what’s ready to move to anew OS, and perhaps what’s not goingto work. When they get to the planningstage, they will already know what isneeded and where to go.

ESD: I’m sure this changes for differentorganizations, but what is a normal time-line for an assessment?

GovConnection (Con’t. from p. 1) MK: In general, we run an assessment for30 days. That gives a good snapshot of thetrending of what’s going on in their envi-ronment and how everything is being uti-lized. It gives us a really good look at a fullworking environment. We can tailor short-er or longer time frames based on customerneeds, but we recommend a full 30 days.

ESD: What type of information are mostpeople going to get out of that assessmentto start moving the project along?

MK: We stay very much involvedthroughout the entire process, from theinitial conversations about the OS to thedifferences and the benefits throughoutthe assessment. After the assessment, wetake a look at the data that is collected―from system speed and hardware to

compatibility requirements and underuti-lized software applications. We then sitdown with them and go through the datato show them where things are.

ESD: What are your top two tips for anOS migration?

MK: First, go back to the importance ofan assessment; planning is critical to thesuccess and outcome. Second, make sureyou have partnered with someone whounderstands what they are doing and canwalk you through the process as a collab-orative effort. Be sure they understandwhat you are looking to get out of this sothat the plan is tailored to your needs andyou are happy with the end result.

For more information, call 800-800-0019.

the classroom level.AssessTrax, a module of EduTrax, is

a Web-based test management solutionthat monitors student performance onstandards-based benchmark and unitassessments. Gathering student data atthe classroom level via iRespond (SRS)clickers, the data is delivered electroni-cally to the AssessTrax database.Analysis of the data can then be done atboth the school and district curriculumdepartment levels.

Real-time analysis of student per-formance utilizing instant test results

provides a snapshot of a student’s level ofunderstanding. This snapshot enablesrespective classroom teachers andadministration the opportunity to imme-diately develop intervention and remedi-al strategies when necessary and theoption to re-direct curriculum delivery.

Eliminating the need to administerbubble sheets, the ComprehensiveAssessment Solution saves time and pro-vides a faster response to instructionalneeds to further student achievement.

AssessTrax is advantageous to anyschool district which utilizes bench-mark or standardized test scores,surveys, etc., to gauge student

EDCO (Con’t. from p. 1) performance. EduTrax stores the data,provides analysis options, and pro-duces easily understood reports andgraphs suitable for use across all levelsof curriculum and classroom manage-ment. In addition, iRespond offerscustomized reports to be used at theclassroom level for performance analy-sis and remedial recommendationsfor individual students.

Utilizing AssessTrax in conjunctionwith iRespond’s (SRS) hand-held unitsschool systems can: Monitor student per-formance on standards-based benchmarkand unit tests; Target instruction toaddress any needs prior to state and

federal assessment; and Test as desired(benchmark, unit, or pre/post tests).

EDCO partners with school systemsto plan and implement solutions focusedon improving student achievement.Whether implementing a comprehensivedistrict-wide assessment plan, managingdistrict benchmark testing, or providing awide range of data analysis programs forstudent/teacher performance, EDCO iscommitted to helping school systemsreach their maximum potential.

Please visit EDCO atwww.edcousa.biz or call 770-720-0222to learn more about their educationsolutions.

The Combined 3D-Ready And InteractiveProjector With Dual-pen CapabilityOffers More Opportunities For StudentEngagement

Further advancing collaboration in theclassroom, Texas Instruments (TI) DLP®

Products announced dual-pen and 3Dinteractive projectors at FETC 2011.With this technology comes richer andbroader engagements between teachersand their students as well as between stu-dents and their classmates.

The versatility of DLP’s micro-mirror chip design also extends to tech-nological collaboration. DLP technology

has the unique ability to work with bothpassive and active 3D displays as wellas a variety of light sources includinglamp, laser and LED, offering schoolsand manufacturers a variety of optionsfor displaying and interacting withprojected content.

One example of this is DLP’s inter-active projector, which allows teachersand students to manipulate projectedimages on any surface with the touch ofa pen or from a distance without the needfor calibration. Using a special interac-tive pen that functions similarly to awireless mouse, teachers and studentscan interact with an image on the screen

from up to 7 meters away by simplyrolling, pointing, clicking, scrolling,navigating and writing.

With new dual-pen capabilities class-rooms can have two students interactingwith the projected image at the same time.DLP dual-pen interactive projectors alsowork in conjunction with 3D to createinteractive 3D teaching opportunities.Imagine multiple students racing eachother to solve math equations projected onthe ceiling or students viewing Earth in3D and taking turns using the pen to breakapart the earth into layers―all from wher-ever they are sitting in the classroom.

In addition, projectors such as the onelaunching this week from Acer are nowavailable with SXGA+ chipsets. This chipprovides increased resolution for readabletext and graphics at a distance. The1400x1050 resolution ensures students sit-ting in the back of the room see crisp, clearimages, which is especially important for

viewing letters, numbers and other high-ly detailed objects. This higher resolutionalso displays more content on the screenat one time, making it easier to viewcomplex, detailed spreadsheets withouthaving to scroll.

“Technology is a powerful enablerfor positive change in classrooms andsomething Texas Instruments has beendedicated to for decades,” said RogerCarver, Manager of Front Projection,DLP Products. “In collaboration with ourprojector manufacturing and educationecosystem partners, we’re developinginnovative technologies to transformeducation for the better, and these inter-active solutions are great examples ofthat. Not only do they foster an environ-ment of collaboration, they’re reliableand easy to use, so teachers can spendmore time teaching.”

For more information, go towww.ti.com.

TI DLP UNVEILS INTERACTIVITY FOR3D LEARNING AND MULTIUSER ABILITYFOR DLP INTERACTIVE PROJECTORS


EdTech Show Dai ly 19February 2011

marketing division, Britannica DigitalLearning, we are pleased that more than75 million students and faculty mem-bers have access to Britannica’s sub-scription products and are findingBritannica indispensable for theirresearch and daily classroom needs. Weare proud that 13 states have adoptedBritannica products for their entirestate, and that we even have nationalagreements with Ireland, Finland andSouth Africa. Last year the governmentof Brazil commissioned Britannica tocreate a learning portal for their K-8students in Portuguese, all based onBritannica’s existing websites. Webelieve that the interaction we havewith our global customers and partnersimproves all of our product offeringsand benefits our customers everywhere.

ESD: What would you say makes yourcompany unique?

MR: Britannica is unique in its breadthand depth of product content, its editorialapproach, and its ability to address theneeds of a variety of markets across theglobe. First, we have unparalleled prod-ucts for all age ranges, particularly withour two flagship products, BritannicaOnline School Edition and BritannicaOnline Academic Edition. We address thespecific needs of preschoolers with ourLearning Zone feature; elementary stu-dents with our young learner’s database;middle schoolers with our Compton’sbranded database; and high schoolthrough university users with the seniorBritannica database. All of these sites areedited and maintained daily by our ownin-house staff of editors, who work withexperts around the world, includingPulitzer Prize winners and Nobel laure-ates. This ensures that all of our contentis best of breed, up to date and meets thehighest standards possible. We revise oradd more than 1,000 articles a month toour sites, which is by far the largest

output of any English-language referenceand e-learning publisher. As a furtherbenefit to our users, we have our own in-house staff of programmers, who areresponsible for innovative site develop-ment and performance.

ESD: Are you introducing anynew products?

MR: In the last two years we havelaunched several exciting products thatcomplement our flagship products.SmartMath is our new elementary, onlineformative assessment product, whichuses wonderful animated characters anda fun and engaging interface to helpyoung learners master important mathskills. The program is unique in its abili-ty to adapt to the learners’ levels so thatthey never get frustrated and continue tomake progress. It’s perfect for both strug-gling learners and gifted learners, and anideal product for differentiated learning.SmartMath is part of Britannica’sgroundbreaking line of math programs,which includes the highly acclaimedMathematics in Context, a reform mathprogram for middle school that has beenadopted and used successfully in manydistricts across the country.

ESD: Where is your current productemphasis?

MR: There is a great need for differenti-ated learning across the curriculum, andlast year we addressed that need with our21st Century Explorer online product.21st Century Explorer is a two-tieredgeneral reference product that is gearedto the reading level of struggling readersbut has an interface that will appeal toolder learners. It has a very readable fontand uses Britannica’s read-aloud featureso that learners can follow along with thetext as they hear every word pronounced.It also has all of Britannica’s standardreference features, including theMerriam-Webster dictionary, our verypopular workspace and a multitude of

Britannica Digital Learning (Con’t. from p. 1) multimedia. 21st Century Explorer willbe part of a growing line of e-learningproducts from Britannica that willaddress the needs of students at differentlearning and reading levels. Right nowwe are developing a science product formiddle school that will also have a strongdifferentiated learning component thatwill be available next fall.

ESD: What products do you see as beinghottest this year?

MR: We have just released a fantasticnew product called Image Quest. Thisproduct addresses the need for students atall levels, and teachers as well, to haveinstant access to educationalimages―photos, illustrations, maps, and,in the near future, video clips―that theycan use freely in all of their projects, pre-sentations, websites, lesson plans andinteractive whiteboard activities. Wehave over 1 million images available nowand will soon have 2 million. All imagerights have been cleared for use for edu-cation, and the database is searchable bykey word, subject or image provider. Wehave brought together more than 50 ofthe best image providers in the world,and have provided important metadatafor each image, including captions, fullcopyright information, keyword andrelated subject areas, and citation infor-mation. Image Quest is a unique productand should have broad appeal―from ele-mentary school through university.

ESD: What distinguishes your productsfrom the competition?

MR: Britannica today is distinguishedamong reference and e-learning publish-ers in a variety of ways. Our mission is tomake sure that our customers have accessto the highest quality content on any for-mat they prefer, including print, e-books,websites, mobile devices and apps.Through our unique ‘Universal Access’technology, our school and public libraryusers have access to Britannica Online

content through any search engine. Inaddition, Britannica Online is easily inte-grated into popular federated search sys-tems, learning management systems andother innovative technologies. We makesure that we are everywhere our cus-tomers are and break down any barriersto learning. We believe that we have aunique value proposition, which providesbest-of-class content at all levels withtechnical best practices to make our con-tent intuitive and rewarding.

ESD: What’s next at Britannica?

MR: We are constantly innovating,changing and improving the experiencethat our customers have with all of ourproducts. Our editors work with morethan 3,000 experts in their fields inorder to keep up with the latest scholar-ship, to separate fact from fiction, tomaintain neutrality, and to appeal to avariety of reading levels. Our designersand media specialists are constantlyupdating our video offerings, interactiv-ities, maps and other illustrative contentso that our users benefit from informa-tion provided in multiple forms.Moreover, we are responding to theneed for more interactive products inthe classroom that are curriculum-focused, like Student News Network, asocial studies product with cross-curriculum links; Discover English withBen and Bella, for preschoolers throughgrade two; and Science Pathways, amiddle-school science supplement tiedto the state standards. Our goal is tomake sure that we are meeting the needsof students and teachers alike withengaging, trustworthy content that iseasy to use, accessible to all learningstyles, and that provides the best valueon the market.

Schools, universities and libraries inter-ested in Britannica Image Questcan call 800-621-3900 or go tohttp://info.eb.com/ for more informationor trial subscriptions.

engaging, curriculum-rich lessons,” saidIra Wolfman, Senior Vice President ofWeekly Reader. “WR Connect enablesschools to integrate technology seamlesslyinto the classroom and reach today’stech-savvy kids directly where they live.”

WR Connect requires no additionalsoftware or tech expertise. Developed byWeekly Reader—the innovative, 108-year-old educational publishing companythat virtually invented current-eventscoverage in the classroom—WeeklyReader Connect brings the following

elements to all subscribing schools:• Exclusive interactive Weekly Readerdigital editions, presenting timely, high-interest and grade-specific nonfictioncontent that has been carefully crafted toalign to state curricula.• Downloadable companion Teacher’sGuides that incorporate wide-rangingbackground information, informalassessments and other engaging exten-sion activities along with practical tipsand techniques on how to broaden thelessons.• 129 onscreen Concepts ofComprehension© Skill Builder lessons,

Weekly Reader Connect (Con’t. from p. 4) with teacher tips and additional readingpassages specifically designed to buildreading skills and scores while improv-ing students’ understanding of texts.

Weekly Reader Connect is built on theConcepts of Comprehension, a research-based framework of 21 inferential think-ing skills developed by the nonprofitUrban Education Exchange. This frame-work enables students to expand theirreading skills from year to year, and usesproven methods that teach kids to readfor understanding.

Ease of use is another outstanding

feature of WR Connect. Subscribingschools just log on to www.wrconnect.comfor full access to the program. Teacherscan project the content onto a screen or usean interactive whiteboard for groupinstruction. The program is also appropri-ate for individualized use on a single com-puter. With a simple password, instructorscan also provide off-premises access toall students.

Want to know more? If you’re aprincipal, school district leader, media ortechnology specialist, or classroomteacher, visit www.wrconnect.com orcall 877-344-2834 for a free demo.

innovative ways to capture their atten-tion. The Lumens line of LadibugDocument Cameras provides educatorsan interactive tool to present a wide vari-ety of materials with the best image clar-ity and color reproduction in the industry.Teachers are more effective when theyhave the ability to utilize all areas of theclassroom, but the ability to teach bymoving around the classroom can be hin-dered by poorly placed classroom control

panels or unwieldy carts.“Teachers are doing it for them-

selves,” proclaimed Lumens ProductManager Chris Laughary, who is aformer Broward County teacher andtechnologist. “You no longer have tosacrifice image quality when a longVGA cable or USB connection isn’tfeasible,” he continued.

As with any valuable teaching tool,the Ladibug wireless document camera isintended to empower educators tospend more time teaching and less time

Lumens (Con’t. from p. 1) transitioning between teaching materials.Freedom from wires allows teachers tosend an image from any location in theclassroom. This means that no teachablemoment will be missed, whether it isfrom a lab table, classroom learning sta-tion, or a student’s desk.

All Lumens Ladibug document cam-eras are compatible with InteractiveWhiteboards and boast superior imageclarity with an unmatched, unlimitedfive-year replacement warranty. Teacherssurveyed chose the Ladibug as their

favorite classroom technology tool forconvenience and ease-of-use.

Hampton City Schools, Va., asked 40high-tech teachers to try numerous class-room technology tools and they unani-mously selected the Lumens Ladibugdocument camera as the best. The groupstudied uses for interactive whiteboards,wireless tablets, student response systemsand Ladibug document cameras.

For more information on the excitingLumens Wireless Ladibug documentcameras, visit www.myladibug.com.



To accomplish this, QOMO engi-neers have designed the documentcamera to serve as your one-stop mediacenter for connectivity and control.With a complete multimedia switchingsystem, video scaler, and projector con-trol, you can connect two Mac or PCcomputers and video sources such as aDVD player directly to your documentcamera. You only need one VGA cableto connect to your projector, savinghundreds of dollars in installationcosts. QOMO’s new QD 8000 docu-ment camera with HDMI 1080p output,on-board color monitor, and touch con-trols delivers a new standard of qualityin document cameras. The QPC30offers brilliant color in a versatile

portable form factor, making intricateviewing angles possible.

The Interactive Whiteboard seriesis created with you in mind. By usinginfrared technology, users can annotateand draw simply using the touch of afinger—no special pens or pointersrequired! The board’s hard surface isvirtually indestructible and the writingspeed makes it superior to the compe-tition. QOMO’s electromagneticwhiteboards are very cost-effectiveand feature dual pen technology allow-ing for team collaboration. The newanalogue resistive board is a low costalternative to IR touch technology, per-fect for cost-conscious users thatrequire touch technology.

Many teachers and presenters com-plain of being rooted to the front of the

QOMO HiteVision (Con’t. from p. 1) room, instructing a group while stuck tothe blackboard. QOMO’s InteractiveWireless Tablet frees the presenter tonavigate around the room, interactingwith their audience while still having allthe power and control of being at thefront of the room. The RF technologycommunicates wirelessly via a USB don-gle. Simply plug the dongle into your PCor MAC and you are ready to go!

QOMO’s QClick AudienceResponse System is simple, affordableand extremely effective. With varyingmodel levels equipped with RF and IRtechnologies, QOMO ensures that yourspecific needs are being met. Newlyintroduced QRF700 features an all-newstudent remote design with a backlit LCDdisplay for all the information a studentneeds. In addition to commonly used

exam modes, homework and sessionmodes allow exams to be done withoutrelying on a computer. The software iseasy to use, with a large collection ofreporting features.

To tie together the product line,QOMO HiteVision offers Flow!Workssoftware. It allows the user to annotateover various documents, includingPowerPoint, Word, and Excel, as well asvideo. This results in unique interactivitywith the audience allowing your files tobe saved with annotations included!

QOMO HiteVision strives to becompetitive on price point, while offer-ing the best quality technology on themarket today. Their product line speaksfor itself and the staff is known for theirpassion and creativity. End users are sureto be pleased!

freestyle interactions, touch gestures andfull object awareness, meaning that thewhiteboard recognizes whether a userinteracts using a finger, fist, pen or aneraser and responds accordingly. Thisseries includes the 880 and 880i models,and the widescreen 885, 885i and 885ixmodels. The fact that two people canwork anywhere on the 800 series interac-tive whiteboard at the same time willhelp teachers make effective use of classtime, engage in meaningful collaborationand motivate all types of learners.

Another product featured was theSMART Table interactive learning cen-ter. Although not new, it continues togarner considerable interest from edu-cators and be very popular. We areexcited, and think our customers willbe too, about our recently announcedaddition of more than 250 activitypacks which can be downloaded at nocharge via the SMART Exchange

website [exchange.smarttech.com].These new resources mean teachers nowhave access to thousands of multitouch,multiuser SMART Table activities.

ESD: Your company recently went pub-lic. How is that affecting how SMARToperates and how has it affected the wayyou offer your education solutions?

NK: It was an interesting step forSMART, but also just another along thegrowth path of our company. It meanssome changes for the way we do thingsinternally–but what hasn’t changed is ourcommitment to our customers. Weremain passionate about providing ourcustomers with education solutions thatwill enable them to better engage andmotivate students.

ESD:There have been recent reports in themedia about SMART products and otherclassroom technology being used more asa fad rather than having positive results forstudents. What is your take on that?

SMART Technologies (Con’t. from p. 1) NK: Some articles in the media tend totalk about our products and other class-room technology products in isolation. AtSMART, we have consistently said thatsimply putting our products in the class-room is not the answer–it’s how they areput to use. We believe SMART productsare a valuable tool that, when combinedwith effective teaching and appropriatepedagogy can help transform the learningexperience. There is a considerable bodyof research posted on our website fromnational and international sources indi-cating that our products, when properlyused, can increase student motivation andengagement and improve learning out-comes and teacher effectiveness.

ESD: Beyond products, tell us whatSMART offers?

NK: SMART is committed to providinga wealth of resources and support forteachers to fully utilize SMART prod-ucts and create dynamic learning activ-ities for students. For example,

SMART Exchange, an online commu-nity that helps educators share informa-tion on various topics, now has almost50,000 classroom-ready resources.Teachers are also able to connect witheducators around the world toexchange ideas. We’ve announced anew, free membership program toSMART Exchange that will mean evenmore exciting features for users.SMART also believes strongly in sup-porting our customers after their pur-chase. So we offer a variety of onlinetraining options, certification and pro-fessional development opportunities.

ESD: Any final thoughts on SMART in2011?

NK: Engage with us regularly to learnwhat is new in our product offerings andother materials supporting the use of ourproducts. With more than 400 people onour R&D team, we are and will continueto be very active in new product releasesand upgrades.

nationwide. A key reason for our successis that we make technology easy to use,which in turn increases the usage of thetools and the value they deliver. Forexample, administrators and staff caneasily add content to their district andschool websites. Teachers can interactwith students and parents online,extending classroom content outthrough the Web to more effectivelyengage students and drive parentalinvolvement. Our platform also makes iteasy for districts to seamlessly connecttheir various Web-based technologies sothat they are easier to access, and worktogether more effectively.

ESD: What are the biggest issues facingeducation that are addressed by yoursolutions?

EM: As we continually speak with super-intendents and thought leaders in this mar-ket, six key themes keep rising to the top.

First, districts need to better connectwith communities at the school, districtand community levels. We repeatedlyhear that the ultimate success of the dis-trict and the superintendent pivots on howwell they connect with their communities.

Second, districts struggle with the

multiple technology pieces that operatein silos, and are costly to maintain andsupport. But the greater cost is that thesediscrete technologies make it difficult forusers to easily access the resources andinformation they need. Districts want toprovide their users with an easy, seamlessexperience wherein each individual canaccess the information and services thatthey need to succeed.

Third, districts want ways to effective-ly measure and drive engagement. Theavailability of data helps districts makeadjustments to their tactics to increaseengagement even more.

Fourth, districts place great importanceon supporting 21st century teachingand learning. Research, like ProjectTomorrow’s 2009 national researchstudy, shows that students apply knowl-edge when learning occurs in a collabo-rative and interactive environment, yetmany districts are unable to provide thetechnology platform necessary to support21st century learning.

Lastly, given the economy, districts arelooking for ways to gain efficiencies tosave time and money.

Schoolwires delivers software andservices that address these critical con-cerns. Our solutions enable districts tocreate a 21st century teaching andlearning environment; enable districts

Schoolwires (Con’t. from p. 1) to more deeply and socially engageteachers, students, parents and otherconstituents; and seamlessly unifytheir technologies to deliver the rightservices to the right individuals at theright time over a multitude of devicesto activate communities. Also, with theimplementation of the Centricity2

platform, districts can affordably gainefficiencies, saving time and money.

ESD: What are some of the most signifi-cant achievements of the company in thepast year?

EM: We had several notable accomplish-ments. We delivered our new Centricity2

solution that will help districts addresstheir critical key issues even better.

Also in 2010, we reached an importantmilestone: earning the business of morethan 10 percent of the nation’s 200largest districts, and implementing theirnew platforms on budget, on time andwith high client satisfaction. These largedistricts added to our ongoing growth. In2010, we ranked on Inc. Magazine’s Top500|5000 list for the fourth consecutiveyear, and we remain in the top 20 fastestgrowing companies in the privateeducation sector.

How do we achieve this rapid growthin a flat economy? It’s because our

products and our people deliver solidresults and remarkable satisfaction. Thisis demonstrated in our exceptionally highclient retention rate, averaging 98 percentsince our founding.

ESD: Do you have any customers inTexas?

EM: Since 2005, when Denton ISDchose Schoolwires and became our firstclient in Texas, over 130 Texas districtshave come to rely on Centricity as theirwebsite and community managementplatform. Districts of all sizes―fromCallisburg ISD to Dallas ISD―enjoyincreased efficiency and cost savings as aresult of this strategic decision. In addi-tion, we have a long-standing relation-ship with Education Service Center[ESC] Region XI in Texas to provide cer-tified hosting of our solutions to K-12districts in the state.

To learn more about Schoolwires, visitwww.schoolwires.com, call 877-427-9413 or join the Schoolwires KnowledgeCenter by visiting www.schoolwires.com/knowledgecenter where expertsshare their insights through a growingcollection of thought leadership whitepapers, K-12 business and technologymodels, case studies and more!


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