| Press Release |
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For Immediate Release CONTACT: Charlene Blohm |
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Students Enter School Year Eager to Tap Into Online Resources
Nearly 6000 schools partner with Thinkronize
to customize Internet resources
for students’ individual learning
needs
Cincinnati, OH - Embarking on the 2005-2006 school year, educators recognize that the Internet is an inseparable part of students’ lives. According to a recent study from Knowledge Networks/Statistical Research, one-third of children ages eight to 17 say that the Internet is the medium they would choose if they could only have one exceeding the demand for television, telephone and radio. Last month, the Pew Internet & American Life Project reported that teen use of the Internet at school has grown 45% since 2000.
With so many children relying on online resources for educational purposes, the way educators use the Internet to help children learn is also evolving. For instance, Thinkronize, Inc., creator of the award-winning netTrekker academic search engine, introduces a new, safe Internet search tool for accessing more than 180,000 educator-selected, standards-based online resources. netTrekker d.i. supports teachers and librarians in differentiating their instruction by matching online resources to individual students’ learning needs.
netTrekker d.i. works by assigning each online resource a readability measure based on Lexile® ratings and eight other popular methods. This rating system allows educators to target search results to find grade-level content at an appropriate reading level for every child. Additionally, netTrekker d.i. offers an entire section of resources devoted to helping instruct English language learners, which is significant as the ELL student population is reportedly growing at 10 times that of total student enrollment. A final new addition is an image database that provides over 80,000 suitable, school-friendly images for use in multimedia projects or classroom presentations.
“Using netTrekker d.i., our teachers can filter their search results by readability level, which helps them match resources to individual students’ needs,” said Linda Morrell, Director of Instructional Technology for Cobb County School District, Ga. “netTrekker d.i. also helps our English language learners translate learning resources so the material actually makes sense to them, minimizing their frustration.”
Ninety percent of the more than 6,000 schools subscribing to “netTrekker classic” began using the upgraded netTrekker d.i. on Sept. 1. The Pennsylvania Department of Education also signed an agreement to provide netTrekker d.i. to 1.8 million students in the state's 500 districts this fall.
As educators continue to seek easy access to standards-based online resources that provide the best educational content to their students, more schools are expected to move toward the differentiated instruction approach afforded by the netTrekker d.i. search engine. Districts wishing to preview the new Internet search tool can contact Thinkronize at 877-517-1125 for a free trial.
Introductory pricing for netTrekker d.i., which can be as low as 86 cents per student annually, is available through October 31st. Affordable pricing options, such as volume discounts, are based on a district’s total number of buildings or student enrollment, allowing districts to choose the option that best meets their needs.
For more information, visit www.netTrekker.com.
About the netTrekker Product Suite
The netTrekker product line, including netTrekker classic
and netTrekker d.i., features award-winning academic search engines
specifically designed for school use. Unlike ordinary search engines, products
from the netTrekker suite provide fast and easy access to only the
best educational resources from the entire Internet in a safe, organized, standards-aligned
format, helping to increase student achievement. Using netTrekker
search engines, educators, school librarians, students, and parents save valuable
time because their Internet searches are powerfully productive. A netTrekker
search engine delivers only safe, relevant, educator-selected results - meaning
less time spent on searching and more time focused on learning. To learn more
about the netTrekker suite, visit www.netTrekker.com.
About Thinkronize
Thinkronize, an Internet developer of award-winning K-12 educational products,
was founded by Robert Reinders in
July 1999 and grew out of a commitment to enhancing teaching and learning with
the Internet and standards-based online resources. The company's flagship
product, netTrekker classic, the trusted search engine for schools,
was launched in October 2000. Since the initial launch of netTrekker classic,
Thinkronize has enjoyed continued growth, success, industry recognition and
awards. The netTrekker product suite now includes netTrekker
d.i., which organizes online resources by readability level to meet individual
students' learning needs and also includes ELL content. Thinkronize serves
nearly 4.7 million students in 47 states, and the netTrekker product
suite has been adopted by key districts nationwide. For more information visit
visit www.thinkronize.com or phone
877-517-1125.
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