Next generation media-on-demand service from PBS makes public media available free to teachers and students nationwide
WASHINGTON, Nov. 7, 2011 – In a move that brings vast digital educational resources together for teachers to use in the classroom, content shared through the U.S. Department of Education’s Learning Registry will be accessible for free through PBS LearningMedia. An expansive collection of resources, including photos, video, and audio files from federal organizations like NASA, the Library of Congress, and the National Archives, will now be easier to find, access and integrate into educational environments.
PBS LearningMedia, which features a robust content library with over 16,000 digital assets, includes lesson plans, background essays, and discussion questions for PreK-12 educators that are designed and aligned to core standards. PBS’ online media-on-demand service combines links to resources from the Learning Registry with original content from public broadcasting producers and programs like WGBH, NOVA, FRONTLINE, AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, SID THE SCIENCE KID, and THE ELECTRIC COMPANY, all in one place and free. PBS LearningMedia’s growing library of curriculum-based assets is designed to support classroom and student achievement across math, science, reading/language arts, social studies, health/physical education, as well as world languages.
“This is a unique opportunity for PBS to work with the Department of Education and its partners on the Learning Registry initiative to underscore the importance of public media and increase openness, sharing and use of digital learning resources,” said Rob Lippincott, Senior Vice President for Education, PBS. “This is the first time schools will have open access to photos, video, and audio files from such a wide variety of federal organizations, but we’re not just pushing multimedia content to educators. We’re tracking and sharing ratings, comments, downloads, and standards alignment, so we can identify and analyze the most effective educational content to fit their unique needs.”
PBS LearningMedia features a set of tools that allow teachers and students to utilize the content easily, including the ability for a teacher to create custom class pages and assign content to students, keyword searching and dynamic browsing through a curriculum hierarchy, and tagging, sharing, and saving content. Administrators also have the ability to implement state standards correlations, student management tools, analytics, online professional development, staff training, and a curriculum gap analyzer tool. Currently, public television stations in 39 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S Virgin Islands are offering the PBS LearningMedia service to their education communities. For more information on PBS LearningMedia for local schools and districts, visit www.pbslearningmedia.com.
PBS LearningMedia is © 2011 PBS & WGBH Educational Foundation - All rights reserved.
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About the Learning Registry:
The Learning Registry makes digital learning resources easier to find, easier to access and easier to integrate into learning environments wherever they are stored -- around the country and the world. This will enable teachers, students, parents, schools, governments, corporations and non-profits to build and access better, more interconnected and personalized learning solutions needed for a 21st-century education.
About PBS
PBS, with its nearly 360 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and online content. Each month, PBS reaches 124 million people through television and 20 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’ broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. PBS’ premier children’s TV programming and its website, pbskids.org, are parents’ and teachers’ most trusted partners in inspiring and nurturing curiosity and love of learning in children. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the Internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.
Media Contact: Mike Rush 360 Public Relations (617) 585-5792 mrush@360publicrelations.com