FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - 05.15.08

Contacts:
Stephen Wakefield , Discovery Education
240-662-2893
stephen_wakefield@discovery.com

Charlene Blohm, C. Blohm & Associates
608-839-9800
charlene@cblohm.com

School Districts in Florida and Maryland Recommit to Providing Educators and Students Proven Digital Classroom Resource

Diverse districts serving over 140 schools renew agreements for Discovery Education streaming

Silver Spring, MD (May 15, 2008) – Empowering educators to improve student achievement through engaging digital content, Polk County Public Schools in Florida and Charles County Public Schools in Maryland recently renewed their district-wide agreements with Discovery Education to offer Discovery Education streaming to educators and students. Together, these two unique districts comprise more than 140 schools reaching approximately 120,000 students.

The only digital video-based learning resource scientifically proven to increase academic achievement, Discovery Education streaming enhances local educator’s curriculum with digital media and engages today’s technology-savvy generation. Today, 1 million educators in more than half of U.S. schools learn with Discovery Education streaming.

“Polk County Public Sch ools is a district with more than 90,000 students and 100 school sites,” explained Polk County Public Schools Technology Resource Specialist/Trainer, George Lussier. “As the district works to place mounted projectors in more than 4,000 classrooms, teachers have rapidly integrated Discovery Education streaming content into curriculum maps and lesson plans. Great professional development, great content and ease-of-use have made this product a winner for Polk’s students.”

As the pressure for students to master 21st century skills within the framework of the No Child Left Behind Act continues to grow, the use of technology in the classroom becomes more important. Administrators continue to address this trend by offering educators seamless access to online digital content correlated to individual state educational standards. With more than 4,000 full-length videos segmented into 40,000 content-specific clips at their fingertips, educators in the Polk County and Charles County public schools maintain their ability to seize teachable moments and illustrate for students concepts or ideas visually in every subject area.

“A part of the Washington, DC metro area, Charles County Public Schools is one of the fastest growing public school systems in Maryland,” commented Bijaya Devkota, Chief Information Officer, Charles County Public Schools. “Our district is currently transitioning to a fully digital curriculum utilizing our investment in high-speed voice, data and video services for core subject areas , which will save teachers time and promote collaboration. Discovery Education streaming’s high-quality video is a critical part of this important endeavor.”

Supporting the teachers served by all Discovery Education customers is the Discovery Educator Network, a global community of 30,000 educators passionate about integrating media into classroom curriculum. Through the Discovery Educator Network, educators have free access t o a wide range of technology training, as well as a resource library of teacher generated projects and tools.

According to Discovery Education Vice President, Andy Schaefer, “Discovery Education is thrilled to continue our partnership with these two districts. Each is a unique entity, products of their distinctive geography and demographics. They are united, however, in their shared goal of empowering teachers to improve student achievement through high-quality digital content.”

For more information on Discovery Education streaming, or any other products and services from Discovery Education, please visit www.discoveryeducation.com or call 800-323-9084.

About Discovery Education
Discovery Communications revolutionized television with the Discovery Channel and is now transforming classrooms through Discovery Education. Powered by the #1 non-fiction media compan y in the world, Discovery Education combines scientifically proven, standards-based digital media and a dynamic user community in order to empower teachers to improve student achievement. Already, more than half of all U.S. schools access Discovery Education digital services. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.