Contact:
Christina Lukenich
Brookes Publishing
410-337-9580 x120
clukenich@brookespublishing.com

Kati Elliott
KEH Communications
410-978-9638
kati@kehcomm.com

Father Provides Unique Insight into Raising a Son with Autism

‘Autism in the Family: Caring and Coping Together’ candidly guides families through the many challenges and rewards of raising a child with autism

BALTIMORE, MD – January 10, 2013 – How can parents provide the best support for their child with autism and ensure that the whole family’s needs are met? Psychologist and father of an adult son with autism, Robert A. Naseef, Ph.D., combines his personal experiences and professional background to share insight into the complex care of children and families affected by autism in his latest book, Autism in the Family: Caring and Coping Together. Weaving years of clinical practice with first-hand insight, Dr. Naseef helps parents collaborate effectively with professionals and build a strong circle of support with family and friends so that they can provide the best care for their child with special needs. With this book, Dr. Naseef shows parents how to better understand and guide their child’s behavior and development, manage stress, and tackle other challenges such as meltdowns, food sensitivities, sleeping, and toileting.

Completely revised from his popular book, Special Children, Challenged Parents, “this new book focuses more narrowly and deeply on the challenges that the autism spectrum poses for family life,” explains Dr. Naseef. “Over the last decade, I have traveled around the country and spoken to thousands of people struggling to accept autism and do the best job possible for their families. Seasoned by 24 years of professional practice as a psychologist and integrating advances in research and treatment, I have attempted in Autism in the Family to help families navigate the emotional landscape and the practical roadmap through the lifespan—from early childhood through the school years and adolescence on to adulthood.” The book also offers rare in-depth coverage of the father’s experience in parenting a child with a disability.

Autism in the Family: Caring and Coping Together has garnered much praise:

“A comprehensive view of autism across the lifespan… Naseef encourages readers to understand and accept those with ASD, and to ultimately connect, adapt, cope, hope, and flourish,” said Emily Iland, M.A., president of the Autism Society of Los Angeles.

“Insightful, accurate, and very personal…should be helpful to any parent whose journey includes a child with autism. Naseef has provided important information in a caring and compassionate manner,” explained Kenneth Thurman, Ph.D., professor of special education at Temple University.

“An excellent resource for families and professionals alike. I am moved and inspired by the stories of Naseef and others that are woven in, and will be sharing this [book] with students, families, and colleagues,” said Helen McCabe, Ph.D., associate professor at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

“Fathers often have difficulty expressing their feelings and this book should be required reading for all fathers who have a child with a disability,” said Temple Grandin, author of Thinking in Pictures.

A warm and down-to-earth guide for parents and an enlightening read for the professionals who work with them, this book is a valuable companion to families as they love and support their child with autism. For more information on Autism in the Family: Caring and Coping Together, and to read an in-depth Q&A on Dr. Naseef’s perspective on how to help families navigate the emotional landscape of autism, visit www.brookespublishing.com/autism-in-the-family.

About the Author
Robert A. Naseef, Ph.D. is a psychologist at the Philadelphia-based Alternative Choices, where he specializes in working with families of children with autism and other special needs. Through his experiences as a parent and professional, Robert relates well to both audiences and is a sought after speaker around the country. In 2008, Robert was honored by Variety the Children’s Charity for his outstanding contributions over the past 20 years to the autism community.

About Brookes Publishing
For 35 years, Brookes Publishing has been the premier publisher of practical, researched-based resources that boost the learning and success of all people, with and without disabilities. Brookes Publishing is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. For more information, please visit www.brookespublishing.com.

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This year, all video submissions by New York State teachers will be submitted through the MyVRSpot system, where they will be hosted, accessed, and reviewed by the team of judges. Teachers in New York can submit their entries until January 18th, 2013, and can facilitate their entry process by visiting www.myvrspot.com/learningday. “Working with MyVRSpot for this years event was an easy decision for us. Since MyVRSpot is able to accept any video file format uploaded by our teachers, we don’t have to create restrictions for the video submissions. So whether a teacher creates their entry with a handheld video camera, with a software application like iMovie or MovieMaker, or even from a recording on their interactive whiteboard, the MyVRSpot system will handle the uploading and sharing of those entries for the judges to review”, says Stan Silverman, Director of Technology Based Learning, School of Education, New York Institute of Technology.

MyVRSpot is an online system, used by more than 550 school districts throughout the U.S., for the uploading, indexing, hosting, and sharing of all of their user-created digital content. While hosting multimedia projects, videos, images, and other digital files for students and teachers, the system becomes the district’s digital repository where all content can be shared in a safe district controlled environment. “We are committed to supporting Digital Learning Day by offering the MyVRSpot system for New York educators, as a simple solution for uploading and sharing of the video entries in a secure environment,” says Michael Kessler, CEO of FTC Family of Companies. “Partnering with the New York State Board of Education and the New York Institute of Technology to offer a platform for teachers to submit their videos on how they effectively use technology to improve student learning, directly supports our company’s mission statement,” he adds.

About Digital Learning Day

Digital Learning Day represents a set of activities across the United States that occurs all year long and will culminate in a national celebration in Washington, DC on February 6, 2013. Digital Learning Day celebrates teachers and shines a spotlight on successful instructional practice and effective use of technology in classrooms across the country. The inaugural Digital Learning Day—held February 1, 2012—quickly gained momentum as a grassroots effort in states, districts, schools, and classrooms. It highlighted and celebrated successful models, great teaching practice, and effective uses of technology to improve learning for all students. The inaugural Digital Learning Day also boasted tens of thousands of educators representing nearly 2 million students and 20,000 teachers.

About the FTC Family of Companies

FTC Family of Companies (http://www.ftcomp.com) has spent the past 18 years developing and publishing educational products and services that help K-12 schools and districts stay ahead of the technology curve. From their leading MyVRSpot (http://www.myvrspot.com) online hosting service to their newly released Teacher Gaming Network (www.teachergaming.net) and FileBlimp system (http://www.fileblimp.com) for cloud-based storage, FTC will continue to lead the way in developing affordable new technologies in support of K-12 education.

FTC Family of Companies and their MyVRSpot system have played an integral role in the Tennessee eTales initiative for the past few years. MyVRSpot is an online publishing and social learning network designed specifically for K-12 education. For the third year, MyVRSpot will host the eTales entry page in addition to a site where teachers can easily upload both their personal multimedia entries and student-created submissions. “MyVRSpot has taken Tennessee eTales to the next level in ease of managing our video contest. Being geographically dispersed across the state, MyVRSpot’s cloud-based service levels the playing field and gives easy access for Tennessee eTales contestants,” says Michael Crewse, Technology Systems Administrator for the Lexington City School System.

“We are excited we are able to continue to offer the MyVRSpot system as a platform for the hosting and delivery of the multimedia content included with the Tennessee eTales initiative,” said Michael Kessler, CEO of FTC Family of Companies. “As this is our third year supporting the initiative and hosting of the media entries, we have been privileged to see first hand some of the great projects being produced by the students and teachers in Tennessee. As our system was built around the concept of teachers and students uploading, sharing, and collaborating on digital media, I feel we have somewhat of a responsibility to provide initiatives like Tennessee eTales with a safe place to host those projects,” he adds.

The Tennessee eTales initiative is open to any student or teacher in a K-12 Tennessee school who wants to create and submit an original digital story. Online entries can be submitted at http://www/myvrspot.com/etales, and must be submitted by March 1, 2013.

About TETA

The Tennessee Educational Technology Association, an International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) affiliate, is a non-profit organization comprised of professionals committed to promoting the use of educational technology in the classrooms and throughout the state. Their membership primarily consists of K-12 educators, but they are very proud of the many corporate partners and higher education members who join them in their mission to transform the teaching and learning process in order to advance student achievement. TETA’s purposes include: to share and exchange ideas, materials, and procedures; to promote the effective use of information, communication, and technology; to encourage the appropriate use of technology for the improvement of educational management; to promote professional standards in the field of educational technology; and to communicate current research relating to educational technology.

Please visit www.teta.org to find out more about the “Tennessee eTales” initiative.

About the FTC Family of Companies

FTC Family of Companies (http://www.ftcomp.com) has spent the past 18 years developing and publishing educational products and services that help K-12 schools and districts stay ahead of the technology curve. From their leading MyVRSpot (http://www.myvrspot.com) online hosting service to their newly released Teacher Gaming Network (www.teachergaming.net) and FileBlimp system for cloud-based storage, FTC will continue to lead the way in developing affordable new technologies in support of K-12 education.

The 2013 Higher Education Webinar Series: Strengthening Assessment, provides a peer-to-peer virtual opportunity for collaboration as leaders in assessment from universities and colleges across the country present innovative assessment methods and best practice use of technology to evaluate and demonstrate performance-based student learning achievement. Presenters will share their techniques for faculty engagement, communication and transparency across the campus.

All members of the higher education community, including administrators, faculty and staff responsible for data collection, student assessment, and accreditation are invited to register. Registration is open for the following dates:

• Jan. 30 at 1pm CT: Deepening Student Learning with e-Portfolios with Dr. Penny Finley, Florida Gulf Coast University
• Feb. 13 at 1pm: Student Learning and the Degree Qualifications Profile with Dr. Marcus Kolb, Lumina Foundation
• Feb. 19 at 1pm CT: Implementing a General Education Assessment Solution to Collect Meaningful Data with Kevin Riordan, South Suburban College
• Feb. 20 at 1pm: Field Experience Management: Strategies for Success with Angela Hunter, Buena Vista University
• Mar. 19 at 1pm: Communicating Your Assessment Data for Transparency with Alice Hambright, The Citadel

To learn more and register, visit www.livetext.com/news/webinars. Webinars are added throughout the year on a variety of assessment topics.

About LiveText
LiveText ensures that faculty and administrators have the flexible and adaptable web-based solutions to support a culture of assessment across campuses. LiveText develops the most advanced e-Portfolio, assessment, and accreditation management solutions to assist institutions in evaluating and demonstrating performance-based student learning achievement. Faculty and administrators have the tools they need to collect, measure, and report on actionable data for continuous improvement of the academic experience for students. For more information, visit www.livetext.com or follow LiveText on Facebook or Twitter.

HAWTHORNE, N.Y. — Jan. 10, 2013 — BTX Technologies, a value-added distributor and manufacturer of interface, integration, and system products, and ZeeVee, North America’s leading manufacturer of digital encoders and QAM modulators, today announced that BTX has been appointed a distributor for ZeeVee’s ZvBox(R) and HDbridge(TM) lines of HD encoding/RF modulation products. For BTX’s customers, ZeeVee solutions provide unprecedented ease of use and value by converting video sources such as digital signage players, satellite receivers, or any other content device into digital cable channels that can be broadcast over existing coax cabling to an unlimited number of HDTVs.

Allowing up to 135 simultaneous channels on the same coax cable, ZeeVee’s HDbridge and ZvBox digital video distribution products are ideal for a variety of applications in any residential or commercial setting, including digital signage and the sharing of HD sources in sports bars, schools, universities, healthcare facilities, hotels, stadiums, prisons, and houses of worship.

“We are proud to be selected as a distributor of ZeeVee products, which are distinguished from other solutions on the market by their ease of use and value,” said Kim Robbins, senior marketing manager of BTX Technologies. “In the past, modulated video distribution has meant very expensive components, home-run cabling, or set-top boxes. ZeeVee products dramatically reduce costs for installers by providing much faster and simpler installation, while offering end-users exceptional picture quality and user-friendliness. We are very excited to bring these benefits to our customers.”

For larger installations including corporations, hospitals, casinos, and stadiums, ZeeVee HDbridge modules are available in three resolutions up to 1080p to match the native resolution of any source, while LAN ports for remote management and configuration allow channel and content changes to be made off site. To simplify installation, HDbridge modules are used with the HDbridge Rack Chassis, which holds and powers up to eight modules and includes an RF combiner and amplification. Building a medium- to high-channel-count digital headend has never been easier.

ZeeVee’s ZvBox encoder/modulators are ideal for more budget-minded commercial applications, in addition to digital signage distribution and smaller deployments. The units offer up to 1080p output for maximum HD performance, and feature a video processor that delivers 60fps for tough-to-reproduce video such as sporting events. The economical ZvBox line includes the ZvPro(R) 280 encoder/modular, which features an RS-232 port for integration with standard control systems, and the ability to broadcast two languages on the same HD channel, all over coax cabling.

“BTX represents an ideal partnership for ZeeVee,”” explains Bob Michaels, vice president of worldwide sales, ZeeVee. “The company’s history of innovation and technical expertise in manufacturing, selling, and supporting A/V systems provides tremendous synergy for expansion into our core markets.”

ZeeVee’s entire family of HD and Digital SD modulators are now available through BTX. Visit www.btx.com for information.

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About ZeeVee
ZeeVee makes digital broadcast technology available for commercial deployment throughout campus facilities. Their HD/SD encoders and RF modulators are deployed in thousands of installations such as Corporate Centers, Sports Bars, Academia, Assisted Living, Stadiums, Casinos, Hospitals, Houses of Worship, Hotels, Fitness Centers, Digital Signage, and more. For more information, visit www.zeevee.com.

About BTX Technologies, Inc.
BTX manufactures and distributes the industry’s finest interface and integration products for audio, video, security, digital signage, and many other applications. Providing its customers with value-added “Beyond Distribution” services, the company backs every product it sells with a rigorous in-house testing program and highly trained customer support team. The company has been certified as an InfoComm International(R) Sapphire Certified Audiovisual Solutions Provider(R) (CAVSP(R)) since 2007. In business since 1967, the company’s products are available online at www.btx.com, by calling 800-666-0996, and from a selection of international distributors listed on the company’s website.

PR Link: www.ingearpr.com/BTX/130110.zip
Image Link: www.ingearpr.com/BTX/ZvBox180.zip

All trademarks and registered trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners.

ENDS

Adaptive learning is a method of education that seeks to personalize learning by using sophisticated algorithmic technology to continually assess students’ knowledge, skill and confidence levels and design targeted study paths based on the resulting data to bolster students’ understanding in the areas where they need to improve the most. By allowing students to focus their outside-of-class study time on the topics and concepts that are most challenging to them, adaptive learning has been shown to help students study more efficiently, develop greater proficiency and earn better grades. Adaptive learning also benefits instructors: By better preparing students for class, adaptive learning enables instructors to spend more time delving into advanced concepts and engaging students in high-level discussion.

The LearnSmart Advantage suite builds on the success of McGraw-Hill LearnSmart™, the company’s industry leading adaptive study tool. With more than 1 million unique student users answering more than 1 billion questions through LearnSmart since its launch in 2009, McGraw-Hill Education has been able to use its unparalleled data and insights into how students learn to refine its adaptive capabilities and apply them to new areas of the learning experience – in effect creating a fully adaptive course. McGraw-Hill Education will make the LearnSmart Advantage suite available to students through instructors and institutions as well as through direct purchase.

“Since the launch of LearnSmart in 2009, we’ve developed a deep understanding of how personalized learning through adaptive technology helps improve student performance,” said Brian Kibby , president of McGraw-Hill Higher Education. “Bringing our expertise and proven effectiveness in adaptive learning to new areas of the learning experience represents an enormous opportunity, both for McGraw-Hill Education and students, instructors and institutions across the country. With the launch of SmartBook and the rest of the LearnSmart Advantage suite, we continue to lead higher education in using adaptive technology to help improve student performance.”

The following new products are joining LearnSmart in the LearnSmart Advantage suite:

-SmartBook – an adaptive e-book that creates a more efficient and effective reading experience by assessing students’ knowledge and skill levels as they read and highlighting content that focuses their attention on the topics and concepts that they have yet to master. SmartBook represents a breakthrough achievement in reading, as it breaks the centuries-old tradition of books as linear experiences that presume to be read in their entirety, and in a pre-defined sequence, in order to be understood.

-LearnSmart Prep – a “before-the-course” adaptive resource designed to prepare students entering complex courses that are critical to the completion of their major or degree (such as Anatomy & Physiology, Organic Chemistry, or Majors Biology) with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful on day one of class. Students can also use LearnSmart Prep in the early weeks of a course to ensure that they are prepared for concepts and assignments that will come later in the course.

-LearnSmart Labs – a photo-realistic virtual lab experience that uses adaptive technology to enable meaningful scientific exploration and learning while eliminating many of the practical challenges of a physical lab setting. By allowing students to practice their experiments in a virtual lab setting, LearnSmart Labs allows students and instructors to maximize the valuable time spent in the physical laboratory. For online and blended courses, LearnSmart Labs offers the closest thing available to an actual physical laboratory experience, enabling students to put the concepts they have learned in class to the virtual test without requiring access to a brick-and-mortar lab.

-LearnSmart Achieve – a comprehensive adaptive learning system that pinpoints students’ areas of weakness and supplies students with targeted content, including videos, interactive activities and additional readings. LearnSmart Achieve gives students on-the-spot tutoring at times when they may not have access to their professors and also provides a time management feature that guides students through the content and resources at a pace that is best for them.

The LearnSmart Advantage suite enables institutions to adopt adaptive learning as an institution-wide practice, creating a cycle of student performance improvement across disciplines and classes. McGraw-Hill Education also plans to offer the products in the LearnSmart Advantage suite available to students or their parents to purchase directly. The company entered the consumer market for adaptive technology in the summer of 2012 when it made LearnSmart for sale directly to students and parents.

LearnSmart Advantage Availability:

-LearnSmart: Available immediately across more than 90 course areas.
-SmartBook: Available in the spring of 2013 across more than 90 course areas.
-LearnSmart Prep: Available immediately across six course areas.
-LearnSmart Labs: Available immediately for the following courses: Majors Biology, General Chemistry, Anatomy & Physiology, Microbiology, Organic Chemistry and Nutrition.
-LearnSmart Achieve: Available in beta in the spring of 2013 across more than 25 course areas.

All products in the LearnSmart Advantage suite will be available directly to students beginning at $19.99.

McGraw-Hill Education at CES
McGraw-Hill Higher Education will be demonstrating the LearnSmart Advantage suite at Pepcom’s “Digital Experience!” event on Jan. 7. McGraw-Hill Education will be posting live tweets from the conference through its Twitter feeds (@MHEducation, @MHhighered). Additionally, Stephen Laster , McGraw-Hill Education’s chief digital officer, will participate in the HigherEdTECH Summit at CES, a conference designed to bring together industry leaders to discuss how technology can positively impact higher education.

About McGraw-Hill Education
McGraw-Hill Education is a digital learning company that draws on its more than 100 years of educational expertise to offer solutions that improve learning outcomes around the world. McGraw-Hill Education is the adaptive education technology leader with the vision for creating a highly personalized learning experience that prepares students of all ages for the world that awaits. The Company has offices across North America, India, China, Europe, the Middle East and South America, and makes its learning solutions available in more than 65 languages. For additional information, visit www.mheducation.com.

Contacts:
Brian Belardi
McGraw-Hill Education
(212) 904-4827
brian_belardi@mcgraw-hill.com

Gerald Kimber White
RF|Binder for McGraw-Hill Education
(781) 455-8250
mhhighereducation@rfbinder.com

SOURCE McGraw-Hill Education

BEAVERTON, Oregon, January 9, 2013 – Starting this February, Vernier Software & Technology will host more than 30 free, hands-on workshops to help science and STEM educators integrate data-collection technology into their science curriculum. During each four-hour workshop, attendees will have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with dozens of hardware and software titles from Vernier’s award-winning line of computer and handheld data-acquisition technology.

“To continue to engage students in hands-on scientific investigation and discovery, it is important that educators are continually learning new – and refreshing their current – teaching techniques so they can get students excited about STEM education,” said David Vernier, co-founder of Vernier and a former physics teacher. “The data-collection workshops are great for all science educators – those who are new to data collection, need a refresher course, want to learn new skills from an expert, or just want to evaluate our technology firsthand.”

During the workshops, knowledgeable training specialists will provide attendees with guidance as they explore classroom-ready labs they can use in their chemistry, biology, physics, middle school science, physical science, or Earth science classes.

Attendees have the option of earning two (quarter) Graduate Science credit hours through the Portland State University Center for Science Education. Each workshop also includes a light meal and an electronic copy of Vernier’s Workshop Training Manual, which includes ready-to-use lab handouts for all science disciplines.

Interested educators can select dates from the schedule below.

February Workshop Dates and Locations
February 21: Ft. Lauderdale, FL February 23: Tampa, FL
February 25: Orlando, FL February 26: Jacksonville, FL

March Workshop Dates and Locations
March 6: Birmingham, AL March 7: Montgomery, AL
March 9: Atlanta, GA March 11: Chattanooga, TN
March 12: Knoxville, TN March 13: Augusta, GA
March 14: Columbia, SC March 16: Charlotte, NC
March 18: Greensboro, NC March 19: Raleigh/Durham, NC

April Workshop Dates and Locations
April 18: Richmond, VA April 20: Arlington, VA
April 22: Baltimore, MD April 22: Baton Rouge, LA
April 23: Dover, DE April 23: Jackson, MS
April 24: Little Rock, AR April 24: San Jose, CA
April 25: Memphis, TN April 25: San Francisco, CA
April 27: Stockton, CA April 30: Pasadena, CA
April 30: Philadelphia, PA

May Workshop Dates and Locations
May 1: Riverside, CA May 1: Princeton, NJ
May 2: Newark, NJ May 4: Stamford, CT

To register for a Vernier probeware workshop near you, visit http://www.vernier.com/training/workshops

About Vernier Software & Technology
Vernier Software & Technology has been a leading innovator of scientific data-collection technology for 32 years. Focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), Vernier is dedicated to developing creative ways to teach and learn using hands-on science. Vernier creates easy-to-use and affordable science interfaces, sensors, and graphing/analysis software. With world-wide distribution to over 130 countries, Vernier products are used by educators and students from elementary school to college. Vernier’s technology-based solutions enhance STEM education, increase learning, and build students’ critical thinking skills. Vernier’s business culture is grounded in Earth-friendly policies and practices, and the company provides a family-friendly workplace. For more information, visit www.vernier.com.
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PHOENIX – Jan. 8, 2013 – The Arizona Department of Education announced today that it is adding 25 NES® (National Evaluation Series™) tests to its teacher certification program. These tests join other Pearson-delivered licensure tests that are part of the Arizona Educator Proficiency Assessments (AEPA), to fulfill the testing requirements for Arizona teacher certification. NES tests are comprehensive, computer-based exams offered year-round, by appointment, at Pearson test centers throughout Arizona and at more than 1,000 secure test centers in the United States and around the world.

“As we continue to work to increase graduation rates, accelerate achievement and prepare all Arizona students for success in college and careers, ensuring that state teachers are ready to teach in 21st century classrooms and help students meet new learning goals is the lynchpin to our success,” said Todd Petersen, Deputy Associate Superintendent, Arizona Department of Education. “The NES tests will help us accurately evaluate teacher candidate readiness and fully realize our state’s educational goals.”

Arizona teacher candidates will now take the NES Assessment of Professional Knowledge tests to fulfill the professional knowledge testing requirement for Arizona teacher certification. These tests assess candidates’ knowledge of essential areas such as student development and learning; assessment, instruction and the learning environment; and the professional environment in both elementary and secondary education.

Teacher candidates seeking certification in one of 23 subject areas will now be required to take NES Subject Knowledge Tests. Aligned with the Arizona academic and professional standards, including the Arizona Common Core Standards, the NES tests include Art, Biology, Business Education, Chemistry, Chinese, Elementary Education, English Language Arts, French, General Science, German, Health, History, Mathematics, Middle Grades Mathematics, Middle Grades English Language Arts, Middle Grades General Science, Music, Physics, School Library Media Specialist, Spanish and Special Education.

“Arizona’s leaders have set forth an ambitious education agenda and are making important investments in accelerating achievement for all state students,” said William Gorth, Ph.D., president of the Evaluation Systems group of Pearson. “We are proud to be a part of Arizona’s teacher certification program.”

To support them as they prepare for the NES tests, Arizona teacher certification candidates have access to a full complement of NES preparation resources and tools, available for all NES test fields, including:

 NES Profile: free, online study guides that include the essential information a candidate needs about a NES test, such as the format and content covered, as well as sample test questions.

 NES Practice: full-length, online practice tests designed to simulate the experience of taking a NES test.

 NES Prep: interactive, online study guides that feature a diagnostic test, review exercises, a review of test competencies and, for 13 fields, instructional content for additional study.

For more information about the NES, visit www.NEStest.com. For more information about the Evaluation Systems group of Pearson, go to http://www.teacher.pearsonassessments.com.

About Pearson
Pearson, the world’s leading learning company, has global reach and market-leading businesses in education, business information and consumer publishing (NYSE: PSO). For more information about the Assessment & Information group of Pearson, visit http://www.pearsonassessments.com/.

BOSTON – Jan. 9, 2013 – Teachers can make every day a celebration with the holidays, special events and important days in history featured on TeacherVision’s 2013 Educators’ Calendar. Now available on TeacherVision.com, this year’s calendar includes an activity for each event listed, putting thousands of ideas to stimulate students’ creativity at teachers’ fingertips. Designed to meet the needs of all educators, the calendar is available as an interactive feature online, a printable PDF, or a free widget for featuring on a blog.

“Discussing and celebrating holidays, significant dates in history and birthdays of important public figures provides teachers with a great way to make learning come alive for their students,” said Jess M. Brallier, publisher, TeacherVision. “The 2013 Educators’ Calendar offers engaging learning activities, lesson plans and other resources to support the thousands of creative teachers who turn to TeacherVision every year for new ways to encourage learning in their classrooms.”

Major holidays, such as Martin Luther King Day, Valentine’s Day, Chinese New Year, Halloween and Fourth of July, are featured on the site with plenty of lessons, projects and activities for celebrating with students. However, every day is a holiday on the 2013 Educators’ Calendar, where teachers will find smaller, more unusual reasons to celebrate. For example, January 29 is Puzzle Day, and teachers can help their students celebrate with tangrams, word finds, math squares and other fun and educational puzzles. On May 16, Biographers Day, teachers can encourage their students to read full-length biographies or even write their own life stories. September 30 marks International Translation Day, and the 2013 Educators’ Calendar provides great ideas for discussing foreign languages with students – even teaching them a few new words.

The calendar also presents teachers with great resources for discussing major historical events. For example, April 6, 1896, marked the beginning of the first modern Olympics, and teachers and their students can learn about the advent of the Games and what happened at that inaugural event. On June 18, they can explore the War of 1812 on the day that President James Madison signed a declaration of war against Great Britain.

The 2013 Educators’ Calendar includes activities for celebrating monthly events as well. For February, Black History Month, the calendar highlights resources on the contributions of African Americans, from Harriet Tubman to Barack Obama; during Women’s History Month in March, the calendar features female historical figures, such as Susan B. Anthony, Eleanor Roosevelt and Sally Ride.

The 2013 monthly calendar for teachers is one example of the many quality resources and classroom tools that are regularly added to TeacherVision. To receive updates on the site, special offers and new resources, educators can sign up for TeacherVision’s free teacher newsletters, “Great Stuff for Teachers” and “Special Offers for Teachers.”

Teachers can also visit TeacherVision on Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/teachervision/), Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/TeacherVision), Google+ and Twitter to find more great ideas for integrating current and historical events into their teaching calendar throughout the year.

About TeacherVision
TeacherVision is the Internet’s most popular teacher site for trusted online tools, lesson plans, printables, classroom management resources and skill-building exercises that help teachers save time and make learning fun. TeacherVision.com is dedicated to supporting children’s learning in school and in life.

TeacherVision is part of Pearson, the education, services and technology company. Pearson’s other primary operations include the Financial Times Group and the Penguin Group.

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Oracle engineers hardware and software to work together in the cloud and in your data center. For more information about Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), visit www.oracle.com.
About Oracle in Industries

Oracle industry solutions leverage the company’s best-in-class portfolio of products to address complex business processes relevant to the education and research industry, helping speed time to market, reduce costs, and gain a competitive edge.
Trademarks
Oracle and Java are registered trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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Contacts:

Katie Barron
Oracle
+1.202.904.1138
katie.barron@oracle.com

Janice Clayton
O’Keeffe & Company
+1.443.759.8151
jclayton@okco.com