Products

November 2011, What’s New

11/3/2011 By:

19Pencils has launched an online resource to help K–8 teachers guide their students in finding specific Web content aligned to the curriculum. Teachers can search hundreds of Web sites for content or provide their own sites and share that content with other subscribers. The site also keeps track of the time students spend on tasks and includes a Playground where students can interact with one another and share their thoughts about the assigned subject matter.

Apperson has launched an individualized online supplemental tool that helps instructors teach while it monitors students’ progress. Apperson Prep includes animated unit and lesson movies, practice questions, and quizzes that currently focus on algebra but will eventually include geometry.

Bearport Publishing now offers Web-hosted award-winning nonfiction e-books for grades pre-K–8. Available with unlimited simultaneous user access, the e-books help round out school and library print and digital collections.

Kensington Computer Products has introduced a series of solutions for reducing the risk of iPads and iPhones’ being stolen or lost. BungeeAir alerts users if their iPhones are taken or left behind, and SecureBack allows the iPad to be physically locked to a stationary device. When an iPhone moves a certain distance from a fob on Bungee Air, an alarm is triggered. SecureBack provides a lock that can attach the iPad to a variety of objects while permitting user access.

Pearson’s automated identitymanagement tool is now available for Google Apps for Education, a free suite of hosted email and collaboration applications for schools. CloudConnect connects to the school’s student-information system, Google Apps, or Office 365 application and creates, removes, and updates accounts as needed.

School Improvement Network just launched a Common Core training resource complete with videos and documents; a library and mobile app are soon to come. Common Core 360 helps teachers understand how the Common Core standards work, what the vision for education is, and how to help students better.

Dukane’s software platform provides an easy-touse interface while gathering student-performance data and providing access across the school district. Convey supplies teachers with real-time information on whether students understand concepts in each lesson, and students are engaged in the process because they use a responder (iPad, iPod, laptop, or handheld device). A built-in data-aggregation engine gives leadership personnel important information about key student-performance indicators.

eChalk has launched a mobile app to extend its school-communication and instruction-management software to more computing devices. The app, which has versions for iOS and Android devices, provides access to the eChalk online platform, allowing users to view grades, homework assignments, learning resources, and class discussions. Teachers can notify students and parents from their mobile devices.

Sunburst has launched its newest brand of digital instructional solutions. ESS! was designed to answer a growing demand from school districts looking for products tailored to students of Hispanic heritage. The brand will debut Sparkito! Kinder, Comprendo! Elementary, and Claro! Middle School programs in the next month.

Gale, part of Cengage Learning, has released an international online business resource that helps students progress from basic research to higher levels of understanding. The program integrates case studies, analytical tools, and in-depth statistical data with narrative content.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Promethean have teamed up to create the next generation of digital math textbooks. The textbooks will feature interactive lessons with embedded hands-on activities and will be compatible with interactive whiteboards and mobile devices.

Kaplan K12 Learning Services has launched an online tool kit that has instructional and professional-development resources. Based on pedagogical best practices and aligned to state-specific and Common Core standards, Teach! Strategies & Resources offers an online library of more than 3,000 lessons, assessments, and videos that educators can filter by grade (2–12), subject, state-specific standards, and/or Common Core State Standards to find tools for classroom use.

ClassLink’s new cloud-based program delivers a course-centered, flexible learning experience. Teachers and students have access to the same suite of tools, which facilitate blended learning and provide the digital instruments they need in the classroom, the computer lab, the library, and beyond.

Learn360 has announced its newest series of videos. Both series offer streaming video that has engaging characters and concepts. Math Park supports national math learning standards and helps students learn core-curriculum topics. Two new Write Right series from MetaFour Productions have been added to Learn360’s content library. Learning to Print and Learning Cursive include 25 full videos and 56 video clips also targeted to grades K–5.

Learning.com’s Webbased assessment program “21st Century Skills Assessment” now prescribes lessons and activities from the EasyTech digital-literacy curriculum. This allows teachers to individualize learning and help students progress faster. EasyTech is a self-paced interactive K–8 curriculum that teaches critical technology skills and higher-order thinking in the context of core curriculum.

ePals Corporation has launched the next generation of its social-learning network. LearningSpace 2.0 combines the best features of Google+, Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms with SchoolSafe safety and privacy features to manage online social interaction. Administrators can customize their learning communities and set varying permissions for teachers, parents, and students.

M86 Security has released its latest version of M86 WebMarshal featuring the integration of its successful M86 VuSafe service. M86 WebMarshal 6.9 includes a new default policy that simplifies managing access to social-networking sites. Additionally, teachers can share approved online videos with their students via M86 VuSafe, a video library that helps users find, tag, organize, and share YouTube videos while preventing access to inappropriate videos, advertisements, and viewer comments.

Lightspeed Systems has announced the release of a free app for iOS devices. My Big Campus provides easy mobile access to education resources such as YouTube videos, online assignments, activity feeds, and group discussions. Designed to give educators and students constant access to safe content and classroom discussion, the app also supplies the tools for continued collaboration and learning beyond the classroom.

Ginger Labs recently released the first integrated note taker for the iPad. Notability continues to integrate tools that help students capture information and automatically links notes to audio recordings. All the essential tools will now be within one app: audio recordings, full-featured handwriting, word processing, PDF annotation, media support, a library, and automatically synced to Dropbox, iDisk, and WebDAV.

OnCourse Systems for Education recently launched a mobile application (compatible with Android and Apple) for OnCourse Lesson Planner administrators that allows them to review and comment on teachers’ lesson plans. These features enhance an administrator walk-through and track teachers’ effectiveness.

This month Ooka Island is premiering its Adventure literacy program, a game that combines reading science and gaming theory and incorporates 3-D animations, engaging storylines, and characters to keep students engaged. Adventure is aligned with the Common Core Standards and facilitates tracking by parents and teachers.

Print Manager announced the availability of its WebAdvantage Suite, an add-on for Print Manager Plus that helps schools control user printing and printing security both locally and remotely through the Internet. A school can create its own Private Print Cloud, which is easy to install and requires minimal setup. The software supports Windows, Mac, Linux, and any other OS running a Web browser.

Aviom has announced the availability of a new version of its Pro64 Network Manager PC control application. Version 2.0 delivers the flexibility of a full crosspoint switch on inputs as well as outputs throughout a Pro64 audio network. It also adds support for the AllFrame Multi-Modular I/O System, the newest addition to the Pro64 Series of audio networking products.

Revolution Prep has expanded its academic-subject tutoring program to incorporate its REACH method. The program matches academicsubject tutors with each student based on the student’s strengths, needs, learning style, personality, and extracurricular interests. Then the tutor works with the student’s family to create a customized plan based on the student’s school curriculum and the REACH approach: Reteaching, Exploration, Advanced, Capstone, and Homework.

Konica Minolta Business Solutions, U.S.A. has announced the launch of a customized suite for managing documents electronically that helps schools migrate to electronic document-management processes. SchoolFlow, designed for K–12 schools and districts, reduces operating costs by improving the creation, archiving, and retrieval of student records. It can be integrated with a library of e-forms with automatic routing.

Shmoop has announced a Dashboard for its Enhanced 2012 SAT and ACT exam prep courses. The Dashboard gives students, parents, and teachers access to more practice exams, instant feedback, full diagnostic exams and skill breakdowns, relative-performance reporting, and neatly printed summaries in PDF- and XLS-friendly formats.

Skype in the classroom has announced several improvements of its free online resource for helping teachers create projects and collaborate with other instructors. Users can now create end dates for their projects, hyperlink to additional content, and add school affiliation, among other things.

STI has introduced a professional-development service designed to help schools integrate their existing technologies into daily instructional practices so they can improve students’ engagement and achievement. i21 Zone provides a custom plan that helps teachers transform their classrooms into dynamic learning environments tailored to students’ individual needs. To provide ongoing collaborative support to teachers, i21 trainers observe and model classroom practices and guide teachers in reflection and lesson planning.

Teachscape has developed a system for managing and reporting observations, allowing teachers to move from paper forms to a technology-enabled process that helps them schedule classroom observations, collect and organize the resulting data, align evidence with a framework, and store all work on one secure platform. Reflect Live can be used with any Internetconnected tablet or laptop, and users can take notes in the system during the live observation. Districts have the flexibility of loading any instructional rubric and pre- or postobservation forms.

The new Texas Instruments system uses a school’s existing wired or wireless network and desktop or laptop computer infrastructure to help teachers manage interactive math and science instruction on the classroom network. Teachers can transfer files from the classroom computer to all student computers simultaneously. They can also create TI-Nspire documents for homework and assessment that the system collects and grades automatically.

Root-One, Inc. has launched three learning apps: Word Joust K–5, Word Joust 6–8, and StoryLines. Word Joust helps students improve their vocabulary and performance on scholastic tests by constantly adjusting the level of difficulty according to interaction with the user. StoryLines is a free tool that helps students improve their creative writing skills and fosters collaboration. The free Word Joust apps are available for iOS devices at the iTunes App Store, and StoryLines is available for the iPad.

Epson (www.epsonbrighterfutures.com) has introduced the PowerLite S11 and X12 projectors. These models replace the S9 and X9 and deliver enhanced connectivity, increased brightness, flexible setup, and extended lamp life. Because they have plus-or-minus 30-degree horizontal and vertical keystone correction, they can be set up easily in any classroom. The lamp life of the projectors is 5,000 hours in economy mode. The S11 and X12 can be powered on and off with a wall switch, and they offer USB connectivity for computer-free presentations.

SMART Technology (www.smarttech.com/podiumforeducation) has announced the SMART Podium 500 series. The 518 and 524 (pictured) interactive pen displays provide the functionality of interactive whiteboards and let educators turn any classroom into an interactive collaboration space. The wide-screen HD series features SMART’s DViT technology, which enables accurate digital writing. Both models comply with high-bandwidth digital-content protection to ensure safe file transfer.

ViewSonic (www.viewsonic.com) has announced the availability of the PLED-W200 and PLED-W500, the first models in the company’s line of portable LED projectors. The devices feature 20,000-hour lamp life and 3-D–ready capabilities, as well as an SD-card reader for displaying documents, photos, videos, and other multimedia files without a PC.

Shure (www.shure.com) has released a microphone that’s a great fit for schools’ conferencing needs. The MX415 Gooseneck Microphone provides premium sound and ease for speakers, and it can be mounted on a desktop or a base. The microphone is available in wired and wireless options and offers interchangeable cartridges.

Aver Information Inc. (www.averusa.com) has announced the release of the HVC310 and HVC110, the next generation of its videoconferencing solutions. The HVC110 is an H.323, 720 p, HD, 30 fps end-point solution with a fivemegapixel PTZ camera, full duplex audio and echo cancellation, external third-party microphone support, and an included directional microphone. The HVC310 adds an integrated MCU for connecting as many as four locations plus content sharing, meeting recording to a USB flash drive, and two included directional mikes.

Broadcast Pix (www.broadcastpix.com) has introduced a cost-effective live-videoproduction system. Powered by native HD technology from Granite systems and Broadcast Pix Fluent software, which integrates video and file-based content, Mica allows even a solo operator to create a live production.

JBL (www.jblpro.com) has unveiled the EON 210P, a lightweight (33-pound), portable PA system that features two 10-inch two-way speakers, an eight-channel powered stereo mixer with four digital effects, two 15-foot speaker cables, and a convenient storage compartment for microphones and accessories. The mixer and storage compartment attach to the rear of the speakers, allowing a person to move easily when transporting the system.