–Immersive New Content Empowers Educators to Create Dynamic Digital Learning Environments for All Students –
Silver Spring, Md. (September 13, 2018) – Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, announced today it has added new digital assets to its services that boost teachers’ ability to engage students in a variety of subjects including Science, STEM, and Social Studies. Among the new resources added to Discovery Education’s award-winning supplemental and digital textbooks are:
- All new Shark Week 2018 resources: Three new instructional resources from Discovery Channel’s Shark Week 2018 are now live in the Science Techbook and featured in a curated content collection within Discovery Education Streaming Plus. The new resources include Monster Tag, which follows a group of well-known athletes as they join forces with top shark scientists to learn about the ocean’s top predators; Great White Abyss, which features a team of experts visiting Great White hotspot Guadalupe Island to look for the biggest sharks of their kind; and Great White Shark Babies which follows experts as they head to a biosphere reserve on the coast of Baja, Mexico and use genetics to identify mother sharks and their pups.
- Speak Truth to Power: To inspire the next generation of human rights defenders, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights (RFK Human Rights) and Discovery Education have launched Speak Truth to Power – a new initiative to inspire global citizenry in students and teachers who stand ready to champion justice in their communities. The program offers multi-platform online learning tools, with digital resources including: an interactive map, video vignettes, biographies and thought-provoking classroom activities to help students further explore how to help prevent human rights abuses and violations around the world. Speak Truth to Power’s video vignette series, Defenders in Their Own Words, profile Sonita Alizadeh, an Afghan rapper who uses her story to speak out for girls’ rights and increase awareness about child marriage; Marian Wright Edelman, a leading voice in civil rights activism who has dedicated her life to protect children from abuse, neglect, poverty, and homelessness; and Ka Hsaw Wa, a Burmese human rights activist and co-founder of Earth Rights International. All three vignettes are now available in Discovery Education Streaming Plus and the Social Studies Techbook.
- Energy 101 series: Now available in Discovery Education Streaming Plus and the Science Techbook, 22 new videos from the Energy 101 series highlight the next generation of clean, sustainable energy technologies. With these resources, students will learn about biofuels, electric vehicles, cool roofs, energy efficient data centers, clean energy manufacturing, and more.
- This Is A.I.: New from the Discovery Channel, This Is A.I. looks at how artificial intelligence is changing the world, the scientists who are shaping it, and the lives affected by this nascent technology. The documentary examines the history of A.I., the ethical issues with autonomous technology, how A.I. has changed the workforce landscape, and A.I.’s potential to transform industries like education, business, and health. This Is A.I. is now available in Discovery Education Streaming, Science Techbook, and STEM Connect.
- Ignite My Future Webisodes: Computational thinking is not just about computers. Much like critical thinking, computational thinking equips learners with essential skills for solving complex problems to find innovative solutions through skills such as collecting and analyzing data, modeling solutions, or applying algorithmic thinking. In four new webisodes produced by Discovery Education and Tata Consultancy Services as part of the Ignite My Future program, educators learn practical strategies for helping students solve real-world problems using computational thinking. Available in Discovery Education Streaming Plus, the Science Techbook, and STEM Connect.
- Siemens STEM Day Career Profile series: Available now in Discovery Education Streaming Plus, the Science Techbook and STEM Connect, four new additions to this career profile series feature a senior technical instructor, lathe operator, senior quality engineer, and project manager. Each individual describes how his or her passion, skills, and education paved the way for an exciting career in STEM.
“The beginning of each school year offers teachers the perfect opportunity to update their instructional materials,” said Jerry "Jay" McKinney, an educator with Louisiana’s Rapides Parish School Board. “With these new resources from Discovery Education, I now have even more content I can choose from to refresh my lessons and increase my students’ engagement in classroom activities.”
Discovery Education’s Techbooks are award-winning digital textbooks aligned to rigorous standards, supportive of a comprehensive curriculum, and updated regularly at no cost. The Social Studies Techbook uses an inquiry-based instructional approach that emphasizes informational text literacy, analytical writing, and problem-solving skills, and includes primary source documents, digital investigations, a multimedia reference library, interactive maps, and more. Utilizing an inquiry-based format built on the 5E model, Discovery Education’s Science Techbook helps teach students to read, write, and think like scientists through hands-on labs, digital explorations, an interactive glossary, and data analysis activities.
Discovery Education Streaming Plus is a comprehensive digital service supplementing instruction across all K-12 curricular areas that helps build students’ mastery in interpreting, understanding, and evaluating information across all subject areas. Students can access a variety of digital assets such as images, primary source documents, podcasts, articles, and videos, then are empowered to become content creators with a suite of content creation tools that help teachers and students safely and easily collaborate in real-time on virtual projects. Teacher resources include lesson plans, instructional strategies, and content collections organized around themes, as well as a collection of STEM resources designed to fuel a cultural shift in teaching and learning.
Discovery Education’s STEM Connect enhances core curriculum and brings STEM to life in classrooms. A cutting-edge, web-based, interdisciplinary K-8 supplemental resource built on a 4Cs STEM skills framework, STEM Connect helps students develop the creative, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration skills they need for success beyond graduation. Featuring flexible, modular learning units, STEM Connect provides students an easy-to-follow educational experience that includes real-world challenges, career connections, and hands-on activities.
“Discovery Education is excited to add this engaging new content to our digital services,” said Marty Creel, Discovery Education’s Chief Academic Officer. “Today’s students are accustomed to interacting with high quality digital content in their lives outside the classroom and we believe their experience with content inside the classroom should be no different. The addition of these new resources to our digital services is part of our ongoing effort to ensure educators have the highest quality digital resources at their disposal as they create exciting and immersive learning experiences.”
For more information about Discovery Education’s Streaming Plus, STEM Connect, or other digital services, visit www.discoveryeducation.com. Stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through Facebook, follow us on Twitter at @DiscoveryEd, or find us on Instagram and Pinterest.
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About Discovery Education
As the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12 classrooms worldwide, Discovery Education is transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional learning, and the largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 4.5 million educators and over 50 million students, Discovery Education’s services are available in approximately half of U.S. classrooms, 50 percent of all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries around the globe. Inspired by the global media company Discovery, Inc., Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that increase academic achievement. Explore the future of education at DiscoveryEducation.com.
