DISCOVERY EDUCATION AND CLASSROOM 2.0 HOST SOCIAL LEARNING SUMMIT FOR EDUCATORS WORLDWIDE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:
Heidi May, Discovery Education
240-662-2661
heidi_may@discovery.com

– Featured speakers to discuss strategies to integrate social media and Web 2.0 technologies into classroom instruction to inspire and engage students and improve achievement –

Silver Spring, Md. – Silver Spring, Md. (April 19, 2012) – Discovery Education`s Discovery Educator Network (DEN) and Classroom 2.0 are proud to present the 2012 Social Learning Summit, a free, virtual conference for educators worldwide discussing the use of social media and Web 2.0 technologies in transforming teaching and learning. During the conference, education experts from around the globe will conduct sessions on proven techniques for integrating these tools into classrooms to inspire and engage students.

The conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 21 at http://www.SocialLearningSummit.com. Featured speakers include:

Hall Davidson, senior director for Discovery Education`s global learning initiatives, who will give a presentation at noon ET about the differences between kids today and kids in the past, and why it is critical to integrate technology into classroom instruction. Davidson, who began his career as a teacher and co-authored TechWorks, an internationally distributed classroom technology kit, travels the world addressing educators about the importance of digital technology in the classroom.

Dean Shareski, community manager for the DEN Canada, will conduct a presentation at 10 a.m. ET on the importance of being social, and the ways the lines blur between professional and personal uses of social media. Shareski, a renowned speaker and blogger, has helped educators around the world build technology-rich learning environments.

Other sessions throughout the day include:

“Becoming Social(er): Why Does Community Matter?”

“Ten Media Tips-n-Tricks You Can Use in Your Classroom Tomorrow”

“Anywhere, Anytime Learning”

“Transforming Lessons with Technology”

In addition to participating in sessions, educators will have an opportunity to interact with presenters, share ideas and resources with one another, and learn from STAR Discovery Educators. STAR Discovery Educators are active members of the DEN who share resources and teaching methods with fellow educators across their district and state. DEN Leadership Councils, which are groups of STAR Discovery Educators, will also host in-person events across the country for local educators participating in the conference.

The DEN is a global community of educators who are passionate about teaching with digital media, sharing resources, collaborating and networking. Through blogs, virtual conferences and in-person events, the DEN connects educators and supports them in leveraging digital media and technology in their classrooms to engage students in learning. As one of the largest professional education learning communities, the DEN has impacted more than 1 million educators worldwide.

Classroom 2.0 is a social network for educators who are interested in using Web 2.0, social media and participative technologies in the classroom.

For more information about the 2012 Social Learning Summit, visit http://www.classroom20.com/page/sociallearningsummit.

About Discovery Education
Discovery Education transforms classrooms, empowers teachers and captivates students by providing high quality, dynamic, digital content for grades K-12 and community colleges. Powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world, Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital media, professional development, assessment tools and a passionate educator network to support districts in accelerating student achievement. Discovery Education services like Discovery Education streaming, Discovery Education Techbook and Discovery Education Higher Ed, are in more than half of all US schools and 35 countries around the world. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.

###