Going into effect on August 1, 100,000 students across 25 Louisiana school districts will have access to Amira's proven AI tutor to support reading fluency and comprehension
SAN FRANCISCO, July 25, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Amira Learning (Amira), the first AI-powered reading assistant that has helped millions of students with reading fluency and comprehension, today announced it has signed a deal with the Louisiana Department of Education to expand its reach statewide to 100,000 students across 25 school districts for the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years – growing from 25,000 students in the 2023-2024 school year. Furthermore, the Louisiana Department of Education has approved Amira as a tutoring option that can be purchased with ACT 771 funds throughout the 2024-2025 school year, allowing many more districts to access the platform. The deal will go into effect on August 1.
School districts across the state began using Amira at the start of the 2022-2023 school year as a targeted effort to support English Language Learners (ELLs), with some quickly shifting to include the platform in their core curriculum. Districts that have expanded usage beyond ELLs include Jefferson Parish, Lafourche Parish, FirstLine, and KIPP New Orleans Schools. Additionally, Jefferson Parish, East Baton Rouge Parish, St. Tammany Parish, and Tangipahoa Parish have all expanded access to students throughout their respective districts.
"Research shows that Amira works for all students, but especially well for Emerging Multilingual students," said Mark Angel, CEO of Amira Learning. "That's why we're happy to partner with the state to expand our reach across schools in Louisiana – helping not only multilingual students, but students of all backgrounds succeed in their literacy journey."
Amira's AI tutor is known for its sophisticated speech recognition, which has exceeded 10 billion spoken words with students globally, strengthening its Large Language Model (LLM) and making it well-versed in an extensive range of accents and dialects. This advanced AI capability makes Amira especially helpful for ELL students, those from low-income families, and those with disabilities.
Just like a human teacher, Amira engages in dialogue, probes students' comprehension, and tailors questions to enhance a student's understanding and fluency. Rooted in the Science of Reading (SoR), Amira is the perfect companion for Louisiana educators as they complete their training in SoR as a separate state initiative. Witnessing its strength to supplement their teachings and effectively engage students, Amira's expansion became highly requested by teachers throughout the state.
"Louisiana has been a national leader in our innovative approach to providing all students with access to high-dosage tutoring," said Dr. Cade Brumley, State Superintendent of the Louisiana Department of Education. "Our collaboration with Amira has been critical in offering this extra support during the school day."
Embracing advances in educational technology like Amira, prompted the Louisiana Department of Education to create a new role committed to researching and supporting academic innovation, including AI. Adam DiBenedetto is the LDOE's new Director of Academic Innovation.
"As a teacher, I saw firsthand Amira's impact on the students of the Tangipahoa Parish School System, and I'm excited to lead the rollout of this platform across Louisiana," said DiBenedetto. "Supporting our students in their foundational learning is critical, and we are confident we will continue to see improved literacy rates as districts become fully immersed."
About Amira Learning
Amira Learning has developed the first intelligent reading assistant that listens to students as they read out loud, assesses mastery, ensures comprehension, and delivers personalized tutoring to accelerate reading mastery. The company was founded by a team of former engineers and executives from Pearson, IBM, ACT, and Renaissance and built from a foundation of 20 years of research from Carnegie Mellon University. Amira Learning's mission is to help close the 43 million-person literacy gap in America by creating personalized and engaging reading experiences for children.
Headquartered in San Francisco, the company has raised more than $40M from investors, including Owl Ventures, Authentic Ventures, Vertical Venture Partners, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Outcomes Collective, Google Assistant Fund, Amazon Alexa Fund, ReThink Education, and GSV AcceleraTE. It is currently being used by more than 3,000 schools, reaching over two million students across eighteen countries.
To learn more about Amira Learning, visit amiralearning.com.
Media Contact
Kira Wolfe, Amira Learning, 415-299-1145, [email protected]
SOURCE Amira Learning
Share this article