Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Discovery Education Appoints Scott Kinney as Chief Executive Officer and Kelli Campbell as President

Discovery Education—the Charlotte, North Carolina based global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms—today announced the appointment of Scott Kinney as its new Chief Executive Officer and Kelli Campbell as the company’s new President. Kinney succeeds Paul Ilse, who will become Executive Chairman of Discovery Education’s Board of Directors.

Kinney’s distinguished 25-year career in education began in Pennsylvania’s public school system at the  Sharpsville Area School District, where he served as the district’s Instructional Technology Coordinator.  Following stints as Assistant Director of Curriculum and Instruction and Director of Educational Technologies at Pennsylvania’s  Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit #21, Kinney joined Discovery Education in 2005.

During his tenure at Discovery Education, Kinney has played a key role in a number of the organization’s innovative initiatives, including the creation of Discovery Education’s professional learning business, the establishment of Discovery Education’s master’s degree in instructional media, and the growth of the company’s award-winning professional learning community, the Discovery Educator Network.…Read More

Discovery Education Celebrates Human Rights Day by Offering Educators, Families, and Students No-Cost Digital Resources

Discovery Education and leading corporate and community partners are offering engaging, no-cost digital learning resources to students, teachers, and families to support  Human Rights Day observances. Held annually on December 10th, Human Rights Day commemorates the date on which the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, effectively outlining human rights for the first time globally. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

In recognition of the 2020 theme – Recover Better: Stand Up for Human Rights – Discovery Education and its diverse network of corporate and community partners present a host of digital resources designed to immerse students and families in the past, present, and future of social justice and equity. Among the curated resources exploring fundamental human rights principles and encouraging students worldwide to create a brighter tomorrow are:

Interactive Human Rights Defenders Map
Speak Truth to Power is an educational program created in partnership between Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights and Discovery Education empowering youth to defend human rights through no-cost digital resources for the anywhere classroom. With the Human Rights Defenders Map, students can travel the globe to hear from courageous individuals about how they are working to fight systemic injustice for the betterment of humanity.…Read More

Apex Learning and Illuminate Education Partner to Inform Meaningful Instruction

Apex Learning, a recognized leader in online learning and Illuminate Education, a leading K-12 student performance system, announce a new partnership. The new partnership provides schools and districts the ability to correlate learning gap assessments to digital curriculum, enabling individualized learning pathways for students in the critical subjects of Math and English Language Arts.

“We recognize the need to meaningfully link assessment data with effective and targeted instruction,” said Chris Porter, CEO, Apex Learning. “Especially in light of the profound impact of school closures due to COVID-19, and the challenges educators now face, efficient use of assessment information to drive individual student instruction is critically important.”

Apex Learning Courses curriculum seamlessly integrates with a district’s technical vision, simplifying the implementation from day one, but also supporting educator success throughout the process. Apex Learning Tutorials are used for grades 6-12 to strengthen skills, address learning gaps and provide personalized, scaffolded pathways for students to boost readiness to succeed on grade-level and provide students with opportunities for personalized acceleration.…Read More

Camden and Discovery Education Launch New PK-12 Partnership Supported by the Subaru

New Jersey’s Camden City School District (CCSD) today launched a new, multi-year partnership with Discovery Education supporting PK-12 education. Through this new collaboration, all CCSD educators and students will receive access to dynamic digital resources that keep students connected to learning at home, in school, or wherever learning is taking place.

This new effort is aided by the Subaru of America Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting the communities in which Subaru employees live, work, and serve. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

Through this new collaboration, the Subaru of America Foundation is providing CCSD educators, students, and families equitable access to Discovery Education’s award-winning K-12 digital content, as well as unique online resources. Altogether, these resources support the District’s mission to put students first by leaving no child offline as they continue remote learning through 2021 in response to COVID-19.…Read More

Discovery Ed and Leading Corporate and Community Partners Offering Access to Digital Resources Supporting STEM

Discovery Education and leading corporate and community partners are partnering to offer engaging, no-cost digital learning resources to students, teachers, and families to support National STEM Day observances. Held annually on November 8th, National STEM Day unites communities around the importance of teaching science, technology, engineering, and math to students in grades K-12. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

The STEM Careers Coalition™ is a leading contributor to the vast array of new STEM-focused resources now available. A coalition of industry partners joining forces with Discovery Education to create a culture of STEM education in K-12 schools nationwide, the STEM Careers Coalition™ empowers educators to teach STEM effectively in the classroom, fosters equity and access to quality education, and is building the next generation of solution-seekers.

Among the new resources now available to educators, parents, and families are a series of new Career Exploration resources. Sourced from industry leaders like API, Boeing, Chevron, and Microsoft, as well as content contributors Sanofi and GAF, these resources help educators and families connect what is being learned in the classroom to possible STEM careers in a variety of fields.…Read More

Discovery Education Keeps Students, Educators, and Families Connected to Curiosity Throughout November with Exciting Series of No Cost Virtual Events

To keep students, educators, and families connected to curiosity, Discovery Education presents six new no cost virtual events during the month of November. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

Discovery Education’s Keeping You Connected to Curiosity initiative is anchored by a team of celebrity scientists sharing how curiosity has played an important role in their lives and what they’re most curious about today. Discovery Education is supporting this initiative through its award-winning services, a host of new content designed to spark curiosity in teachers and students about the world around us, and events, community activities, and more focused on promoting science education scheduled throughout Fall 2020.

Among the no cost activities are four new Virtual Field Trips open to students, educators, and their families, a professional learning event from the STEM Careers Coalition, and the Discovery Education’s celebrated Discovery Educator Network VirtCon. Details on these exciting events are as follows:…Read More

Discovery Education Acquires Mystery Science

Discovery Education—the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms—today announced the acquisition of the popular K-5 science and STEM curriculum Mystery Science. Created in San Francisco, California, Mystery Science is used in more than 50% of United States’ elementary schools each month. Terms were not disclosed.

The acquisition of the Mystery Science curriculum supports Discovery Education’s ongoing effort to keep students and teachers connected to curiosity. Mystery Science will complement Discovery Education’s other successful digital services supporting science education, which include Discovery Education Experience, the Science Techbook series, and STEM Connect.

“The extraordinary team developing and delivering Mystery Science to students across the country share Discovery Education’s dedication to helping students understand and make sense of the natural world around them,” said Discovery Education President of K-12 Education, Scott Kinney.  “Like educators and students nationwide, we deeply admire Mystery Science, and we look forward to adding it to our existing suite of award-winning digital resources currently supporting instruction in classrooms everywhere.  Together, we are better positioned to deepen our impact by providing all learners endless opportunities to investigate real-world problems, uncover understanding, inspire innovation and pursue unlimited possibilities.”…Read More

Discovery Education Names SMASH CEO Eli Kennedy to Board of Directors

Discovery Education, the Charlotte, NC, based leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms worldwide, today announced the appointment of Eli Kennedy, the CEO of SMASH, to the company’s Board of Directors.  In his new role, Kennedy’s expertise will support Discovery Education’s mission to prepare all learners for tomorrow by creating innovative classrooms connected to today’s world.

Kennedy has served as SMASH CEO since 2016, and leads that company’s efforts to build a strong, diverse and socially conscious tech workforce by leveling the playing field through academic learning and experiential engagement for high school and college students.  Before joining SMASH, Kennedy was the Senior Vice President of Redbird Advanced Learning, a research based EdTech company.

Kennedy has also served as a Director at the Broad Foundation, and was on the leadership team at Platform Learning, a tutoring company focused on supporting low-income students. Prior to focusing on education, Kennedy worked in a strategic management capacity for a technology startup and as a strategy consultant for Andersen Consulting and USWEB/CKS.…Read More

All-New Science Techbook for Middle School and STEM Connect

Discovery Education today launched Keeping You Connected to Curiosity, a new initiative keeping the continuity of curiosity alive for teachers and students everywhere. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

Keeping You Connected to Curiosity is anchored by a team of celebrity scientists sharing how curiosity has played an important role in their lives and what they’re most curious about today. Discovery Education is supporting this initiative through its award-winning services, a host of new content designed to spark curiosity in teachers and students about the world around us, and events, community activities and more focused on promoting science education scheduled throughout Fall 2020.

Among the services delivering Keeping You Connected to Curiosity to teachers and students everywhere are Discovery Education Science Techbooks. Discovery Education Science Techbooks—which are currently used in classrooms across the United States and Canada—are a comprehensive, research-backed science solution for grades K-12 that combine digital-first teaching and learning resources to deliver impactful, blended instruction in person or at a distance.…Read More

Virginia Discovery Education Science Experience Wins Approval

Following a comprehensive evaluation, Virginia’s State Board of Education has approved Virginia Discovery Education Science Experience for statewide use as a core instructional resource through its state adoption process.  The State Board of Education’s adoption of Virginia Discovery Education Science Experience empowers the state’s school systems to purchase and integrate this innovative digital curriculum into teaching and learning.  Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

Virginia Discovery Education Science Experience is aligned to Virginia’s 2018 Standards of Learning. In addition, Virginia Discovery Education Science Experience provides educators detailed lesson plans, embedded formative assessments, hands-on activities, digital simulations, and robust teacher supports that immerse students in instruction by sparking their natural curiosity about the world around them.  Virginia Discovery Education Science Experience is comprised of the following award-winning Discovery Education services that are updated regularly at no cost:

Discovery Education Science Techbook.  Science Techbook empowers K-12 educators to transform science instruction through a seamless print and digital curriculum that includes video, audio, text, interactives, hands-on activities, and virtual labs that help educators differentiate instruction and provide a rich and engaging learning experience for students. Additional student features include Spanish/English text-to-speech, leveled reading tools, note-taking and highlighting capabilities.  Science Techbook also includes valuable STEM resources including STEM Project Starters that encourage students to connect math, technology, and engineering to their understanding of science concepts to produce creative solutions to real world problems. Also, the STEM In Action resources help students connect their work to STEM careers, which promotes a clearer understanding of how skills used in school can be applied to jobs “in the real world.”…Read More