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.

Crunch the numbers: Edtech data you can use right now

2023 calculations by the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report reveal that fewer than 1 in 5 countries have legislation in place to prevent and act on cyberbullying in school. Some other key findings on cyberbullying show that:

      *Only 16% of countries currently have adopted legislation to prevent and act on cyberbullying in school; of those, 38% did so since the COVID-19 pandemic (visit UNESCO GEM Report PEER profiles for more)

      *In 2019, at least 10% of learners aged 8-10 had experienced cyberbullying in the past year, rising to 20% of learners aged 12-14 in 26 countries with data.…Read More

Clearlake Capital-Backed Discovery Education to Acquire DreamBox Learning  

Charlotte, NC — Discovery Education, a global education technology company backed by Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. (together with its affiliates, “Clearlake”), today announced it has agreed to acquire DreamBox Learning®, a PK-12 education technology provider serving more than 6 million students and 600,000 educators nationwide. DreamBox Learning’s current investors Elliott Investment Management L.P. and TPG’s The Rise Fund will retain minority stakes in the company.  Financial terms were not disclosed. 

Headquartered in Bellevue, WA, DreamBox Learning offers the only dual-discipline solution rated “Strong” by Johns Hopkins University’s evidenceforESSA.org in both mathematics and reading. Through its high-quality adaptive learning solutions independently proven to accelerate student growth, DreamBox Learning empowers educators with data analytics and content-specific professional development solutions to complement instruction.

“Discovery Education is excited to welcome DreamBox Learning, a brand synonymous with quality, research-based math and reading edtech solutions to our growing family of services,” said Discovery Education Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Cowdrey. “Combining an expertise in learning science with adaptive, effective instructional solutions, DreamBox Learning’s solutions can help students excel regardless of who they are or where they live. Through this latest acquisition, Discovery Education is better positioned to broaden its impact on student success by providing our existing network of partner school systems access to DreamBox Learning’s collection of supplemental math, reading, and professional learning solutions.” …Read More

Number crunch: Edtech data you can use right now

The 2023 Global Education Monitoring Report launched last week at an event in Montevideo, Uruguay, hosted by UNESCO, the Ministry of Education and Culture of Uruguay and Ceibal Foundation with 18 ministers of education from around the world. It proposes four questions that policymakers and educational stakeholders should reflect upon as technology is being deployed in education:

Is it appropriate?

Using technology can improve some types of learning in some contexts. The report cites evidence showing that learning benefits disappear if technology is used in excess or in the absence of a qualified teacher. For example, distributing computers to students does not improve learning if teachers are not involved in the pedagogical experience. Smartphones in schools have also proven to be a distraction to learning, yet fewer than a quarter of countries ban their use in schools.…Read More

The simplest elementary school science edtech

During the spring of 2020, the global education community faced tremendous disruption as it transitioned to emergency remote teaching in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfamiliar with the challenges of integrating edtech into instruction within a remote environment, elementary science teachers struggled to apply best practices—such as three-dimensional instruction, collaborative learning, and hands-on experimentation—into instruction.

While teachers in my region have traditionally met technology integration with trepidation, during the pandemic they embraced edtech and learned to rely on it as a mechanism to engage students in the learning process. Today, edtech is as much a part of the fabric of instruction as pencils and paper.

During emergency teaching, the innovative educators I work with sought to implement any edtech tool that purported to help keep students engaged in learning. But, as the pandemic recedes into the rearview mirror, educators have become choosier about the edtech they use. …Read More

Renaissance Completes Acquisition of GL Education, Positioning Renaissance as a Global Education Leader

BLOOMINGTON, MINN. (PRWEB) — Renaissance, a leader in pre-K–12 education technology, completed the acquisition of  GL Education, a provider of formative assessments for schools and school groups in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and over 100 countries worldwide. The acquisition completed as planned on March 31, 2023.

The acquisition of GL Education supports Renaissance’s mission to accelerate students’ growth and learning on an international scale through a suite of integrated solutions. Together with GL Education, Renaissance can reach and impact more students and teachers, delivering personalized teaching solutions that deliver differentiated insights.

“GL Education’s formative assessments, paired with Renaissance’s interconnected solutions, further empower our educators and help leaders leverage data to make meaningful change based on each individual students’ needs,” said Chris Bauleke, Chief Executive Officer at Renaissance. “We look forward to joining GL Education in driving growth for our students both in the US and abroad.”…Read More

Conga Empowers Edmentum to Boost Operational Efficiency and Increase Contract Processing Speed by 75 Percent

BROOMFIELD, COLO. –  Conga, the global leader in Revenue Lifecycle Management solutions, has partnered with   Edmentum, a global education leader in K-12 learning technology solutions, to streamline its contract management processes with a unified, end-to-end solution to simplify and accelerate the sales cycle. 

Edmentum is the leading provider of K-12 digital curriculum, assessments, and services to 43,000 schools in all 50 states and 100 countries worldwide. Edmentum’s customer base largely includes schools and districts with many business transactions for these customers consisting of purchase orders (PO) and contracts.

 Edmentum previously faced cumbersome processes with order forms and POs, causing delays in time-to-close for the sales teams and more manual work for operations. Edmentum’s legal team also sought an improved process for signing order forms and the consolidation of saved vendor contracts. Overall, the organization lacked a cross-department solution to unify and streamline its processes, leading to more steps to complete an order, resulting in a longer time-to-close.…Read More

Edalex selected for the HolonIQ 2022 ANZ EdTech 50

MELBOURNE, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA, / EINPresswire.com/ —  Edalex, the EdTech company that unleashes the power of skills data, digital assets, and personal credentials, are thrilled to be included in HolonIQ’s 2022 Australia & New Zealand EdTech 50 – for the third year in a row! The 2022 Australia & New Zealand EdTech 50 is an annual list of the most promising EdTech startups from Australia and New Zealand, selected from more than 750 candidates.

HolonIQ is an industry leading market intelligence platform that provides data and analysis of developments in the global education market, providing updates and commentary on companies, countries and industries and how their innovation activities form patterns and trends in the market.

“We are beyond pleased to be recognised for the third year running as one of the most promising EdTech startups in the region by HolonIQ,” said Dan McFadyen, Managing Director of Edalex. “We feel that this continuing recognition is reflective of the large strides made by our team in placing the learner at the centre, fostering cross-sector collaboration, and introducing enhanced features and services that more directly meet their needs as the skills ecosystem continues to evolve,” he continued.…Read More

Incident IQ Releases Integration With ClassLink Single Sign-on

ATLANTA (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Incident IQ, the workflow management platform built for school districts, released an integration with ClassLink—a global education provider of access and analytics products that create more time for learning and help schools better understand digital engagement.

As school districts continue to rely on more technology in today’s classrooms, Incident IQ offers advanced integrations that provide data-rich help requests to K-12 IT teams, while being easy to use for end-users. ClassLink’s single sign-on platform gives teachers and students access to classroom resources with a single login. Using this integration, tech support is only a click away, providing users with immediate access to support workflows. 

“Keeping classroom time dedicated to teaching and learning is essential for Incident IQ and ClassLink,” said Matthew Krivanek, Vice President of Marketing. “Incident IQ and ClassLink work together to eliminate the unnecessary back-and-forth that can come with classroom technology support. This integration allows teachers and students instant access to the Incident IQ platform and relevant support workflows using their ClassLink credentials, returning more time to teaching and learning, instead of troubleshooting tech issues. We are dedicated to providing a supportive, streamlined support environment for K-12 districts through our continued partnership with ClassLink.”…Read More

Promethean Works With Merlyn Mind To Increase Classroom Productivity and Support Innovative Teaching

SEATTLE /PRNewswire/ —  Promethean®, a leading global education technology company, today announced it has entered into a US-based exclusive distribution agreement with  Merlyn Mind, Inc. With the new agreement, Promethean will distribute Symphony Classroom™, the artificial intelligence (AI) solution that brings the Merlyn digital assistant to teachers powered by voice-activated AI. With the alliance, customers will be able to purchase Symphony Classroom directly through Promethean’s network of resellers.  

Symphony Classroom delivers the Merlyn digital assistant custom-built for the unique needs of education — enabling teachers to use voice commands or a remote to control their laptops, interactive displays, internet browsers, apps, and more. Powered by Symphony Classroom’s EdgeAI® technology that provides lightning-fast responsiveness, Merlyn frees teachers to move around the classroom so they can interact with students, simplifies everyday classroom tasks, and improves overall efficiency and productivity.

“Promethean’s  ActivPanel is the interactive display of choice for millions of teachers who rely on technology to drive student engagement and spark their imagination,” said Vin Riera, chief executive officer at Promethean. “By adding Symphony Classroom to our portfolio, we will make it easier for educators to teach untethered, supporting a student-centered environment that increases participation.”…Read More