Florida Regional Consortium Program to Continue to Provide Digital Content and Tools to State Rural School Districts During 2015-16 School Year
Portland, Ore., and Tallahassee, Fla. (PRWEB) November 03, 2015 -- For the second year, the Florida Regional Consortium Program (FRCP) announced that it will provide digital literacy and digital content solutions to North East Florida Educational Consortium (NEFEC), Panhandle Area Educational Consortium (PAEC) and Heartland Educational Consortium (HEC) member districts and non-consortia qualifying schools at no cost. The FRCP was developed through a partnership with Learning.com and the Florida Department of Education (DOE) and is funded by the Florida legislature.
Florida passed legislation in 2011 requiring that by the 2015-16 school year, all adopted K-12 student instructional materials would be available in a digital format and that half of textbook budgets were to be spent on digital instructional materials. In 2014, the Florida DOE announced that it would be moving forward with an online statewide assessment known as the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA). The goal of the FRCP is to support the DOE’s guidelines by providing solutions to rural districts in Florida that increase the availability of digital content in the classroom and equip students to succeed on online assessments. Last year, 238 schools participated with a combined enrollment of 144,750 students and the program is expected to grow well beyond that this year.
“Learning.com is focused on supporting districts’ digital education programs to help them ensure their students build digital literacy skills and have access to quality digital instructional content,” said Keith Oelrich, CEO of Learning.com. “We’re proud to be partnering with the forward-thinking school districts participating in the FRCP that are committed to preparing their students for success in school, college and their future career opportunities.”
Through the program, schools have access to Learning.com’s digital literacy solutions, EasyTech and Inquiry, as well as Curriculum Foundry, which helps districts build and share custom digital curriculum with a comprehensive set of curriculum building tools that includes a repository of OER and other free digital resources. Professional development is also included as part of the program, with Learning.com hosting webinars and face-to-face training at regionally selected sites.
"NEFEC and our 15 member school districts are thrilled to be partnering with Learning.com again this year to provide our students with a comprehensive program to build keyboarding and other critical digital literacy skills,” said Jim Surrency, executive director of NEFEC. “By using Curriculum Foundry, districts can create their own digital curriculum – helping them meet their core subject-area instructional goals, while saving time and resources.”
About Learning.com
Founded in 1999, Learning.com currently partners with nearly 15,000 schools, 2,500 districts and serves 5 million students. Learning.com provides K-12 solutions to help students, teachers, and schools excel in a digital world. Districts equip their students with the technology and 21st century skills needed for success on online assessments, college, and the workforce using Learning.com’s digital literacy solutions. Learning.com’s digital content tools help districts build and share custom digital curriculum helping them meet their instructional goals, facilitate personalized learning, and address budget challenges. Through implementation services and professional development, Learning.com serves educators as they integrate technology and digital content into instruction.
Heather Blackwell, Learning.com, http://learning.com, 5035174452, [email protected]
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