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VSchoolz Aligning AP Digital Materials with Common Core

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 06/18/12

A company that provides a platform for helping schools to deliver online learning to their students as part of blended learning programs will be adding meta-data to digital media in the archives of Associated Press for use in classrooms. VSchoolz, which sells a hosted, customizable learning environment with curriculum, teacher training, and support, said it would tag content pieces from AP's repository. That tagging will include content type and level of rigor, as well as alignment with Common Core State Standards.

AP's content includes video, text stories, graphics, other forms of multimedia, and 11 million new and archived photographs. The educational products provided by VSchoolz that will encompass the AP resources are available in both English and Spanish.

"VSchoolz' decision to use AP journalism to create educational products ... is innovative and reflects AP's reputation for accuracy and independence," said Jim Baltzelle, AP's Florida bureau chief and Caribbean sales manager.

"This is a groundbreaking move for digital learning," added VSchoolz Chief Operations Officer Trina Trimm. "In a time when traditional textbook sales are declining by an average of 20 percent per year, schools and districts are seeking alternative sources of high-quality, accurate information to use in curriculum development. Reaching digital students on a wide variety of devices means looking to nontraditional sources for academic content, and The Associated Press is a valid, authentic and trusted provider of accurate information."

VSchoolz' platform includes a student information system, a content repository, a learning management system, performance tracking, an administrative suite, and reporting functions. Lessons are delivered in an online environment that includes collaborative tools, message boards, digital drop boxes, chat rooms, and teacher-to-teacher file sharing.