At a time when a united front is beneficial for the union, there is some opposition to the blanket statement of “no confidence,” especially for delegates from states with strong proposals for education grants before the Department of Education. According to Education Week, some educators believe the vote does not accurately reflect the diversity of opinion that exists within and outside of the union.

One supporter quoted in Education Week said, “The Race to the Top is a gun with bullets in it to take out teachers, public education, and the union itself.”

In the age of reform, it seems as if no one can quite agree on the best strategy or route to get the necessary results. State decision makers want more money to keep their districts in the black; teachers are skeptical of programs in which they may be held accountable and perhaps fired because of a particular school’s low performance; and everyone wants data-driven decision making to pinpoint trouble spots and make a correction.

The question I don’t hear in this discussion is “What are the best ways to make sure our kids are learning?” It’s the kids that need to win the Race to the Top – not schools, teachers, unions, or politicians.

What do you think about the Blueprint for Reform? Is it a roadmap for success or a race students cannot win?

ODYSSEYWARE^® is committed to providing innovative, digital curriculum with exceptional technical support, so schools can provide an exceptional learning experience to students. As social media increasingly becomes a significant component of the educational landscape, we are excited to tap into this popular microblogging platform to provide additional access to our team of experts.

We hope that Twitter will facilitate communication and make ODYSSEYWARE even more user-friendly.  How can Twitter and other social media support communication and learning in your classrooms?

Containing five instructional units and a cumulative test, Spanish II, Semester II is a multimedia-rich course that is built upon basic skills and concepts taught in Spanish I and Spanish II, Semester I. Students enrolled in this advanced world language course not only explore the language, but they are also immersed into the culture and origins of the language. Engaging course materials support student learning, promote cultural competency, and encourage proficiency in speaking, listening, and writing.

Spanish II, Semester II is the latest addition to ODYSSEYWARE’s learner-centric, technology-based courses. Providing comprehensive and engaging curriculum for students in grades 3-12, ODYSSEYWARE features the core subjects of history and geography, language arts, math, and science, as well as a broad mix of electives. In addition, ODYSSEYWARE includes anytime access, enriching multimedia, automatic grading, built-in teacher-student messaging, and other technology-driven tools, making it the ideal curriculum for forward-thinking decision makers in 21st century schools.

For more information about ODYSSEYWARE’s Spanish II, Semester II elective and innovative online curriculum, visit www.odysseyware.com or call 877-795-8904 to speak with an education specialist today!

About ODYSSEYWARE, Inc.:

ODYSSEYWARE, Inc. is a leading provider of online curriculum and e-learning solutions for schools across the nation. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, ODYSSEYWARE has revolutionized online education by offering an innovative, multimedia-rich curriculum for grades 3-12. Currently used in over 1,500 school districts across the United States, ODYSSEYWARE was founded to develop a complete, web-based curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students. Providing 21st century educational solutions, ODYSSEYWARE offers the core subjects of history and geography, language arts, math, and science, enriching electives, and placement testing. ODYSSEYWARE curriculum is sold directly through regional education specialists. To learn more, visit ODYSSEYWARE online at www.odysseyware.com or call 877-795-8904.

Contact:

ODYSSEYWARE

Contact: Abay Melaku

Phone: 877-795-8904 ext. 1843

Email: amelaku@odysseyware.com

Website: www.odysseyware.com

Designed to allow teachers to accommodate individualized learning plans or supplement content with additional information, the built-in course customization tool creates greater versatility with customized lessons. In addition, internal messaging now includes additional response options and better functionality for messaging in Spanish and French. 

Security parameters are also more efficient, so teachers and students can quickly change their passwords. Plus, reporting and other teacher functions within the curriculum have been updated, giving teachers more time with their students. Adjustments have also been made to the eCash system, improving accuracy, enabling more detailed customer reports, and simplifying administrative tasks for users. 

ODYSSEYWARE has been and remains committed to speeding up the market in the delivery of quality educational materials in a totally web-delivered environment. While most educational publishers are content to deliver five-year-old information through printed textbooks, ODYSSEYWARE thrives in a weekly release of courses, content additions, changes, and improvements at no additional charge to ensure the most current curriculum is always available to our schools. 

For more information on ODYSSEYWARE’s features, call an education specialist at 877-795-8904. 

About ODYSSEYWARE, Inc.: 

ODYSSEYWARE, Inc. is a leading provider of online-based curriculum and e-learning solutions for schools across the nation. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, ODYSSEYWARE has revolutionized online education by offering an innovative, multimedia-enriched curriculum for grades 3-12. Currently used in over 1,500 school districts across the United States, ODYSSEYWARE was founded to develop a complete, web-based curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students. Providing 21st century educational solutions, ODYSSEYWARE offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, enriching electives, and placement testing. ODYSSEYWARE curriculum is sold directly through regional education specialists. To learn more, visit ODYSSEYWARE online at www.odysseyware.com or call 877-795-8904.

 Contact: 

ODYSSEYWARE
Contact: Abay Melaku
877-795-8904 ext. 1843
Email: amelaku@odysseyware.com

Interactive and multimedia-enriched, Personal and Family Living is designed to teach and foster practical life skills, as they relate to personal development, positive communication, home and family life, health and safety practices, financial responsibility, and career preparation. Helping students become independent and well-rounded individuals, this course focuses on the development of skills necessary for a successful transition to adulthood. 

Personal and Family Living is the latest addition to ODYSSEYWARE’s learner-centric, technology-based courses. Providing comprehensive and engaging curriculum for students in grades 3-12, ODYSSEYWARE features the core subjects of history and geography, language arts, math, and science, as well as a broad mix of electives. In addition, ODYSSEYWARE includes anytime access, enriching multimedia, automatic grading, built-in teacher-student messaging, and other technology-driven tools, making it the ideal curriculum for forward-thinking decision makers in 21st century schools.

For more information about ODYSSEYWARE’s Personal and Family Living elective or their innovative online curriculum, visit www.odysseyware.com or call 877-795-8904 to speak to an education specialist today! Also, make sure to look for the expanded version of Spanish II, which completes the year-long course with five additional units and a cumulative semester exam. This online course is scheduled to be released on December 4, 2009.

About ODYSSEYWARE, Inc.: 

ODYSSEYWARE, Inc. is a leading provider of online-based curriculum and e-learning solutions for schools across the nation. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, ODYSSEYWARE has revolutionized online education by offering an innovative, multimedia-enriched curriculum for grades 3-12. Currently used in over 1,500 school districts across the United States, ODYSSEYWARE was founded to develop a complete, web-based curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students. Providing 21st century educational solutions, ODYSSEYWARE offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, enriching electives, and placement testing. ODYSSEYWARE curriculum is sold directly through regional education specialists. To learn more, visit ODYSSEYWARE online at www.odysseyware.com or call 877-795-8904.

Contact:
ODYSSEYWARE
Contact: Abay Melaku
 877-795-8904 ext. 1843
Email: amelaku@odysseyware.com

Chandler, AZ (June 9, 2009) – ODYSSEYWARE^®, Inc., a leading provider of web-based curriculum and e-learning solutions to schools nationwide, is pleased to announce the release of our new text-to-speech online curriculum feature for the 2009-2010 school year. ODYSSEYWARE® Online is an Internet-based program delivering interactive, multimedia-enriched content to students in grades 3-12. Developed for 21st century learners, ODYSSEYWARE’s technology-based curriculum offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, along with a variety of electives.

Accommodating the needs of students with various learning styles, ODYSSEYWARE’s text-to-speech feature allows students to have either a portion of text or an entire lesson from the curriculum read aloud. The ODYSSEYWARE® text-to-speech tool helps students with challenged by grammar, pronunciation, reading comprehension, and vocabulary development. Promoting independent study and concept mastery through audio learning, this text-to-speech tool is especially helpful for English as a Second Language (ESL) students, as well as students with impaired vision or dyslexia.

The ODYSSEYWARE® Online text-to-speech feature gives students the opportunity to listen and read lessons, furthering engagement in learning through the use of multiple senses. This audio tool also enables teachers to easily play a lesson to individual students or an entire class.

“At ODYSSEYWARE®, we recognize that each child learns differently,” said Kevin Youngblood, President of ODYSSEYWARE®, Inc. “We’re excited to add this new text-to-speech tool to our online curriculum, so students can choose from more learning options that will enhance their educational experience.”

To learn about other exiting ODYSSEYWARE® Online features, click here.

About ODYSSEYWARE®:

ODYSSEYWARE®, Inc. is a leading provider of web-based curriculum and e-learning solutions for schools across the nation. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, ODYSSEYWARE has revolutionized online education by offering an innovative, multimedia-enriched curriculum for grades 3-12. Currently used in more than 1,500 school districts across the United States, ODYSSEYWARE® was founded to develop a complete, web-based e-learning curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students. Providing 21st century educational solutions, ODYSSEYWARE® offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, along with electives and placement testing. ODYSSEYWARE curriculum is sold directly through regional Education Specialists.

Contact:

ODYSSEYWARE
Contact: Abay Melaku
Phone: 877-795-8904 ext. 1843
Email: Abay Melaku

ODYSSEYWARE^®, Inc., a leading provider of web-based curriculum and e-learning solutions to schools nationwide, is pleased to announce nine new and newly revised elective courses for the 2009-2010 school year. ODYSSEYWARE® Online is an Internet-based program delivering interactive, multimedia-enriched content to students in grades 3-12. Developed for 21st century learners, ODYSSEYWARE’s technology-based curriculum offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, along with a variety of electives.

New one-semester electives for grades 7-12 include High School Health, Spanish II – Semester I, and Twentieth Century American History. In addition, new one-year electives for grades 7-12 include French I, French II, Pre-algebra, Spanish I, U.S. History: Foundations to Present, and U.S. History: Reconstruction to the Present. Designed to give schools more options, the new ODYSSEYWARE® electives come with convenient 24/7 access, colorful multimedia tools, automatic grading, and interactive learning activities.

“Congratulations to the ODYSSEYWARE® product development team,” said Kevin Youngblood, president of ODYSSEYWARE, Inc. “Once again, they delivered exactly what our clients have been asking for on schedule. ODYSSEYWARE has been and remains committed to speeding up the market in the delivery of quality educational materials in a totally web-delivered environment. While most educational publishers are content to deliver five-year-old information through printed texts, ODYSSEYWARE thrives in a weekly release of courses, content additions, changes, and improvements at no additional charge. ODYSSEYWARE is organic. This is one of the major reasons our clients continue to renew at astronomical rates. Congratulations team!”

For detailed information about ODYSSEYWARE Online core and elective courses, click here.

About ODYSSEYWARE®:

ODYSSEYWARE® is a leading provider of web-based curriculum and e-learning solutions for schools across the nation. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, ODYSSEYWARE has revolutionized online education by offering an innovative, multimedia-enriched curriculum for grades 3-12. Currently used in over 1,500 school districts across the United States, ODYSSEYWARE was founded to develop a complete, web-based e-learning curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students. Providing 21st century educational solutions, ODYSSEYWARE offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, along with electives and placement testing. ODYSSEYWARE Online is sold directly through regional Education Specialists.

Contact:

ODYSSEYWARE
Contact: Abay Melaku
Phone: 877-795-8904 ext. 1843
Email: Abay Melaku

Chandler, AZ (June 4, 2009) – ODYSSEYWARE^®, a leading provider of web-based curriculum and e-learning solutions to schools nationwide, is pleased to announce the release of their new customizable online curriculum feature for the 2009-2010 school year. ODYSSEYWARE® Online is an Internet-based program delivering interactive, multimedia-enriched content to students in grades 3-12. Developed for 21st century learners, ODYSSEYWARE’s technology-based curriculum offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, along with a variety of electives.

Convenient and flexible, ODYSSEYWARE® Online allows teachers to modify the curriculum to correlate with state standards and meet students’ individual learning needs. Using ODYSSEYWARE® Online, teachers can customize a course by combining, adding, unassigning, or creating lessons, assignments, tests, and quizzes. Teachers may select material from existing subjects or create new material, such as personalized student assignments with graphics and videos. The ODYSSEYWARE® customizable curriculum feature can be used to quickly address learning gaps, improve response to intervention (RTI), enable credit recovery, provide remedial work, challenge advanced students, and design student-specific courses.

Adding to ODYSSEYWARE’s technology-based solutions, the customizable curriculum feature empowers schools with the ability to choose and modify content according to specific needs.

“At ODYSSEYWARE®, we recognize that each child learns differently, and every school has different needs,” said Kevin Youngblood, President of ODYSSEYWARE®. “To meet this need, we’re excited to offer schools the ability to create personalized educational solutions that successfully meet their academic needs and goals.”

For more information about ODYSSEYWARE Online customizable courses, click here.

About ODYSSEYWARE®:

ODYSSEYWARE® is a leading provider of web-based curriculum and e-learning solutions for schools across the nation. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, ODYSSEYWARE has revolutionized online education by offering an innovative, multimedia-enriched curriculum for grades 3-12. Currently used in over 1,500 school districts across the United States, ODYSSEYWARE was founded to develop a complete, web-based e-learning curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students. Providing 21st century educational solutions, ODYSSEYWARE offers the core subjects of social studies and history, math, language arts, and science, along with electives and placement testing. ODYSSEYWARE Online is sold directly through regional Education Specialists.

Contact:

ODYSSEYWARE
Contact: Abay Melaku
Phone: 877-795-8904 ext. 1843
Email: Abay Melaku