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Press Releases |
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Holt Launches Web-based Professional Development Courses for Literacy and Reading Powered by ACTV’s eSchool® Online Austin, Texas - February 5, 2003 - Holt, Rinehart and Winston today announced the launch of two web-based professional development courses that will help teachers work with struggling readers and give administrators tools to build effective school-wide literacy programs. ACTV, Inc. (Nasdaq: IATV), in collaboration with The San Diego County Office of Education (SDCOE), originally developed the online professional development series to focus on improving reading instruction for teachers. Holt will make the two courses—Holt Professional Development: Teaching Reading to All Students, Grades 6-8 and Holt Professional Development: Teaching Literacy to All Students, Grades 6-12—available to schools outside of California in May 2003. “Teachers and administrators across the country need accessible, cost-effective training solutions to help them comply with requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act,” said Judy Fowler, president of Holt. “The courses we selected to meet this need are effective and based in sound research. Furthermore, San Diego County Office of Education has evidence that the learner's experiences are sustainable and replicable.” “In our pilot tests and course evaluation, we found many metrics that confirmed the success of these courses. One of the most telling, however was the significant gain in fluency demonstrated by struggling learners during a six-week pilot test,” said Dr. Rudy Castruita, San Diego County Superintended of Schools. “It is gratifying to us that Holt will make this curriculum available to schools outside of California so that more students will benefit from their teacher’s hard work.” The courses are delivered via ACTV’s eSchool® Online version 4.0 which uses ACTV’s patented HyperTV software technology to combine video segments of “best practices in the classroom” with customized interactive web pages intended to extend and reinforce the training. Each lesson focuses on an area of reading instruction (e.g., assessment, content area reading, teaching decoding) and includes presentations by area experts or master teachers, model lessons, and various resources including articles, assessment forms, and links to related sites on the Internet. The lessons also address issues such as standards-based instruction, ongoing assessment and monitoring, organizational planning, and working with parents. “By using ACTV’s eSchool® Online 4.0 platform, users of this professional development product will have the best multimedia and interactive Internet-based learning environment available to them, ” said Bruce Crowley, president of ACTV’s HyperTV Networks, Inc. “This technology ensures that the user learns the concepts quickly. Also, the district administrators are able to track usage and performance data through elaborate accountability measures.” The courses focus on improving teaching skills regardless of the curriculum or text being used in the school. “We wanted to make sure that any teacher or administrator could use this training to improve student reading and literacy, ” Fowler added. “These courses address professional development standards recommended by the National Staff Development Council for content, context and process,” said Bridget Hadley, Holt vice president for professional development. “Sound pedagogy combined with ACTV’s patented convergent media technology makes this a tremendous resource for schools.” These are the first online courses Holt is adding to its growing professional development portfolio. In recent months, Holt has refined its offerings and added new products and services to its professional development portfolio. It has established stronger ties with the award-winning Classroom Connect and enhanced professional development features in Holt’s print-based and online teacher resource materials. Holt will also broaden consulting services offered through its Professional Development Speakers Bureau, made up of Holt’s well-respected authors and consultants. About Holt, Rinehart and Winston Holt, Rinehart and Winston is a leading publisher of textbooks and educational materials for grades six through 12 and is part of Harcourt Education, a global education provider serving students and teachers in PreK through grade 12, adult learners, and readers of all ages. The Harcourt companies are Harcourt School Publishers; Holt, Rinehart and Winston; Harcourt Supplemental Publishers (including the Rigby and Steck-Vaughn imprints); Harcourt Educational Measurement; The Psychological Corporation; Harcourt Interactive Technology; Classroom Connect; Harcourt Canada; Harcourt Religion Publishers; and Harcourt Trade Publishers. For further information, please call (800) 992-1627 or visit www.hrw.com or www.harcourt.com. Harcourt Education is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc. About Reed Elsevier Reed Elsevier Group plc (www.reedelsevier.com) is a world-leading publisher and information provider. It is owned equally by Reed Elsevier PLC (NYSE: RUK) and Reed Elsevier NV (NYSE: ENL). Operating in the science and medical, legal, education and business-to-business industry sectors, Reed Elsevier provides high value and flexible information solutions to professional end users, with increasing emphasis on the Internet. Building on its strong position in key markets and its established brands and content, the company is investing aggressively in the migration of its portfolio to electronic delivery, with links to a wide range of content-related services and transactional capabilities. About ACTV, Inc. ACTV, Inc. (Nasdaq: IATV) is a digital media company providing proprietary technologies, tools, and technical and creative services for interactive TV advertising, personalized programming applications and enhanced media. For more information, visit www.actv.com. |
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