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netTrekker d.i., the Number-One
Safe Search Engine for Schools, Matches
Online Resources With Students' Reading Levels
Thinkronize is the first company to apply
Lexile® Framework to online resources
Cincinnati, OH - With more than 20 million students estimated
to have received a Lexile measure in the 2005-2006 school year
alone, the Lexile Framework for Reading is the most widely adopted
reading measure in use today. Because the use of online resources
for learning has become an everyday occurrence, Thinkronize, Inc.,
the developer of the netTrekker suite of safe educational
search products, has assigned readability ratings to its bank of
award-winning online resources for the classroom. netTrekker
d.i. is the first online search product to include readability
ratings for websites.
The netTrekker d.i. safe Internet search engine, specifically
designed to support differentiated instruction, provides educators
with fast and easy access to more than 180,000 educator-selected,
standards-based online resources. The search engine goes a step
further by assigning each resource a readability measure based
on Lexile® ratings and eight other popular methods. Using the standards-based
search results generated by netTrekker d.i., an educator
can find grade level content at one of five reading levels match
to a particular student’s abilities.
"Our district is spending a lot of time and energy working with
Lexile scores for differentiated instruction," said Lori Baird,
Information Technology Coordinator, School District #1 in Brighton,
Wis. "netTrekker d.i. will make this process much easier
because it allows us to search for resources by readability level
and state standards, which is invaluable."
The Lexile Framework for Reading is a scientific approach to reading
measurement that matches readers to text. The Lexile Framework
measures both reader ability and text difficulty on the same scale,
called the Lexile scale. Using the Lexile scale as a guide for
assigning readability measures to the online resources in netTrekker
d.i. gives educators the confidence to choose materials that
will improve each student's reading skills.
The kind of differentiated instruction afforded by netTrekker
d.i. is especially effective for schools serving at-risk populations.
For instance, a teacher can use netTrekker d.i. to point
students toward web sites written at one of five readability levels,
ensuring that each student will get search results appropriate
for his or her reading level. This process allows teachers to assign
online activities on the same topic but at various levels of difficulty.
Houston Independent School District (HISD), the nation's seventh-largest
district, with two large minority populations, has found netTrekker
d.i. to be an ideal solution for serving the district's diverse,
urban student body.
"The real power behind netTrekker d.i. is that for the
first time our students are able to find information and resources
at THEIR reading level. This is very powerful and significant in
helping all HISD students achieve," said Jim Hundemer, Manager,
Library Services.
The readability feature within netTrekker d.i. further
aids instruction of English Language Learners by making it possible
for teachers to find content-appropriate web sites with high interest
at lower readability levels.
Nearly 7 million students in 11,000 schools across the country
are currently using the netTrekker d.i. search engine
following its launch in Fall 2005. The Pennsylvania Department
of Education and Michigan Virtual University, in conjunction with
the Michigan Department of Education, have partnered with Thinkronize
to provide netTrekker d.i. access to educators statewide.
Districts wishing to preview the Internet search tool can contact
Thinkronize at 877-517-1125 for a free trial. For more information,
visit www.netTrekker.com.
About the netTrekker Product Suite
The netTrekker product line includes award-winning educational
search products for both the school (netTrekker classic
and netTrekker d.i.) and consumer markets (netTrekker
home). Unlike ordinary search engines, products from the netTrekker
suite provide fast and easy access to only the best, pornography-free,
educational resources from the entire Internet in a safe, organized,
standards-aligned format. Using netTrekker search engines,
educators, school librarians, students, and parents save valuable
time because they are directed to relevant, reliable, educator-selected
websites every time - meaning less time spent on searching and
more time focused on learning. For more information about the netTrekker
suite, visit www.netTrekker.com.
About Thinkronize
Thinkronize, an Internet developer of award-winning K-12 educational
products, was founded
in 1999 and grew out of a passion and commitment to enhancing teaching
and learning with the Internet and standards-based online resources.
The company's flagship product, netTrekker classic, was
launched in October 2000 and has won 11 industry awards for excellence
since its inception. Thinkronize currently serves nearly 7 million
students in 48 states, including adoptions by key districts and
states nationwide, making it one of the fastest growing companies
in the education industry. In recent years, the company has expanded
the netTrekker product line to include netTrekker
d.i., designed for use in schools to help educators meet individual
students' learning needs, and netTrekker home, available
for purchase by parents whose district or school has not yet purchased
a netTrekker school subscription. For more information
visit www.thinkronize.com
or phone 877-517-1125.
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