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EasyTech by Learning.com Earns ISTE Seal of Alignment for NETS-S 2007

EasyTech provides teachers with easy ways to integrate technology into core curriculum and help students gain critical 21st century skills

Portland, Ore. – December 15, 2008
EasyTech, a K-8 technology literacy curriculum by Learning.com, has been awarded the ISTE Seal of Alignment by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). The Seal assures educators that a product or resource is in alignment with ISTE’s National Educational Technology Standards (NETS), refreshed in 2007 to emphasize 21st century skills. Nearly all states use NETS for Students (NETS-S) in their curriculum planning and assessment.

EasyTech provides teachers with a model to integrate 21st century skills into their core curriculum, while also providing self-paced, interactive tutorials that engage students in activities they find relevant and fun. Students feel a sense of accomplishment as they exercise critical thinking skills to authentically apply what they are learning.

EasyTech’s research-based instructional design, coupled with guided practice and immediate feedback, means students gain technology skills more effectively than merely following steps through a rote exercise or lesson. For example, they understand how and why to apply technology skills to real-world challenges by

• creating pie charts in spreadsheets to understand fractions of a whole,
• organizing data in a table or line graph to identify trends or test a hypothesis,
• outlining a writing assignment using visual mapping software, and
• applying their understanding of social and ethical implications to their Internet use.

“This Seal demonstrates that EasyTech continues to meet the needs teachers have to support students to become proficient 21st century learners,” says William S. Kelly, Learning.com CEO. “Best of all, teachers and students continue to tell us how much they enjoy using EasyTech, and find it a great tool.”

In its report, ISTE wrote that EasyTech “clearly supports implementation of the ISTE National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS-S 2007) in a specific, carefully reviewed and documented manner.” Additionally, the report said, “the materials on the whole were very well written and provided excellent opportunities for learning in the context of technology.”

EasyTech is delivered through Learning.com’s powerful management system that lets teachers plan and deliver technology-rich instruction and evaluate and report student progress toward technology literacy goals at the district, school, class and student levels. Because it is Web-delivered, Learning.com provides seamless updates to EasyTech’s content, including a recently added “Communicating Online” unit that helps students develop their communication and collaboration skills while learning about tools such as blogs and podcasts, as well as updates that added information about portable data storage devices.

EasyTech has won numerous awards, including the prestigious Codie Award, and is approved as SMART Ready, for use with the SMART Board interactive whiteboards. Used in more than 1,000 districts across the United States, EasyTech is helping educators transform the learning experience to meet the needs of 21st century learners.

About Learning.com
Learning.com, the premier provider of Web-delivered curriculum and assessment, partners with schools and districts to improve student learning outcomes. The Portland, Ore.-based company transforms learning experiences through its understanding of the art and science of Web-based teaching and learning. Founded in 1999, it serves nearly two million students in schools across the United States. Its award-winning solutions are EasyTech, a proven, K-8 technology literacy curriculum that helps students develop and apply technology skills in math, language arts, social studies and science; TechLiteracy Assessment, provides valid measurement and reports for critical technology skills and knowledge; and Aha!Math, an interactive K-5 supplemental math curriculum that supports teachers to improve students’ foundational math skills while developing their higher level problem-solving and reasoning skills. For more information, please visit www.learning.com or call 800-580-4640.