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CARROLL COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS TRANSFORMS MATH INSTRUCTION THROUGH EXPANDED PARTNERSHIP WITH DISCOVERY EDUCATION

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Shawnee Cohn, Discovery Education
240-662-2661
shawnee_cohn@discovery.com

–School System Adopts Dynamic Digital Math Textbook to Engage Students in Real-World Problems That Motivate and Excite Learners–

SILVER SPRING, Md. (March 23, 2015) – Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS), Maryland’s ninth largest school system, announced today a deepening of its partnership with Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms. Through this expanded relationship, Carroll County Public Schools will bring Discovery Education’s groundbreaking new digital math textbook to middle and high school classrooms districtwide. Math Techbook™, the latest addition to the company’s award-winning line of digital textbooks, transforms the way students and teachers experience math through engaging instructional strategies and real-world problems that motivate and excite students with diverse learning styles. 

CCPS and Discovery Education began their partnership in 2013 with support from a competitive grant from the Maryland Digital Learning Innovation Program. For the past two years, CCPS has provided its students in grades 3-8 with access to the award-winning Discovery Education Science Techbook™, a fully interactive digital textbook with state-of-the-art lesson plans that can be used on any computer, laptop or tablet. All CCPS classrooms also have access to Discovery Education’s Streaming Plus, a comprehensive digital library offering more than 150,000 dynamic digital learning objects that support all subject areas and learning styles. This content has supported Superintendent Stephen Guthrie’s five-year organizational plan, CCPS Vision 2018, by empowering CCPS educators with digital resources and learning objects that meet students’ instructional needs.

To encourage inquiry-based learning among their students, middle and high school educators will now integrate Math Techbook into classroom instruction. Developed by Discovery Education’s team of expert math educators with the input of teachers and administrators from across the country, Math Techbook features dynamic, Common Core and state standards-aligned content, interactives, videos, digital tools, and game-like activities that increase students’ motivation to learn math. Useful student tools including a graphing calculator, geometry tool, whiteboard tool, and matrix solver are also embedded into each Techbook.  In addition, students interact with content in a manner familiar and exciting to them, and can monitor their own progress in real-time with the Student Dashboard.

“Carroll County Public Schools is pleased to expand its partnership with Discovery Education,” said Dr. Margaret Pfaff, Director of Curriculum and Instructional Resources at Carroll County Public Schools. “Discovery Education’s new Math Techbook empowers our teachers to deepen students’ understanding of mathematics and helps support the district’s mission to prepare each child for life-long learning and success.”

Math Techbook’s innovative all-in-one design saves teachers time with model lessons, a wide array of real-world problems, and teacher notes. The notes include tips for classroom discussion, as well as ways to demonstrate mathematical practices.  In addition, Math Techbook features the newest generation of technology enhanced items and formative assessments throughout the instructional cycle that helps prepare students for high-stakes assessments.  Real-time feedback and easy-to-read data on the Teacher Dashboard make it easier to differentiate instruction and support the success of each learner.

To promote the effective integration of digital textbooks into classroom instruction, Discovery Education is providing CCPS educators using the Math Techbook customized, job-embedded professional development.  This professional development not only helps educators explore the engaging resources embedded in Discovery Education Math Techbook, but also provides the strategies needed to engage students in inquiry-based instruction, math investigations, and collaborative, real-world problem-solving on any device and in any classroom configuration.

The Discovery Educator Network (DEN) will continue to support CCPS educators in their efforts to transform students’ learning experience with digital media. A global community of education professionals, the DEN connects members across school systems and around the world through social media, virtual conferences, and in-person events, fostering valuable networking, idea sharing, and inspiration.

“Discovery Education is honored to deepen its collaboration with Carroll County Public Schools and we look forward to continuing to support Superintendent Stephen Guthrie and the entire CCPS team in their mission to prepare globally competitive students,” said Matt Monjan, vice president, Discovery Education. “Together, we are providing educators the exciting resources they need to connect students to the real world mathematics necessary to achieve college and career readiness.”

As part of its continued commitment to enhancing math education, Discovery Education is also offering a series of no cost professional development events nationwide to help educators use the latest technologies and digital media to build students’ mathematical literacy and problem solving skills. During Discovery Education’s Math Academies, area teachers and administrators learn practical instructional strategies for using digital tools and resources in classroom instruction they can immediately implement to help students reach higher levels of math achievement.

For more information about the new Math Techbook, the Math Academies, or other Discovery Education services, please visit www.discoveryeducation.com.

About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital content and professional development for K-12, transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional development, assessment tools, and the largest professional learning community of its kind.  Available in over half of all U.S. schools and primary schools in England, community colleges and in 50 countries around the world, Discovery Education partners with districts, states and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that accelerate academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.