Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


In2Books To Be Free for Economically Disadvantaged Schools

##AUTHORSPLIT##<--->

ePals this week announced that it will make its In2Books series of digital literacy tools available to Title I schools at no charge beginning in fall 2008. The company has also announced some enhancements to the 2008-2009 classroom edition of In2Books.

In2Books is an online literacy curriculum based around a dialog between a student and an adult mentor. Designed to improve student achievement on standardized tests and increase critical thinking and writing proficiency, it combines digital books with collaborative technologies linking students, mentors, and teachers.

"Technology enables ePals to bring adult role models, an authentic, rigorous curriculum and high-quality teacher resources into economically disadvantaged classrooms everywhere, for free," said Nina Zolt, founder of In2Books and co-founder of ePals, in a statement released this week. "These learning opportunities help all students build the foundational comprehension and communication skills necessary for 21st century success and increase their motivation and aspirations."

In addition to making the literacy tools free for disadvantaged schools, ePals also announced enhancement to the 2008-2009 classroom edition of In2Books. Among other things, the new edition will include a resource called Student Place, which provides students with self-direction tools to help them pick the books they will read based on "genre, sampling passages from the book, trying out the readability, and exploring the author's style," according to ePals. It also provides scaffolded writing and literacy tips. Further information about In2Books can be found here.

Get daily news from THE Journal's RSS News Feed

About the author: David Nagel is the executive editor for 1105 Media's online education technology publications, including THE Journal and Campus Technology. He can be reached at [email protected].

Proposals for articles and tips for news stories, as well as questions and comments about this publication, should be submitted to David Nagel, executive editor, at [email protected].

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


Featured

  • Double exposure image of coin stacks on technology financial graph background

    The Budget Cut that Changes Everything in K-12

    ESSER funding, the post-COVID lifeline that enabled many districts to invest in data collection and research, is coming to an end. For districts that relied on those dollars to conduct surveys and gather community feedback, the impact is significant.

  • abstract data flow

    Google Announces New Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform

    Google Cloud has introduced a new platform for building and managing enterprise AI agents, as the company seeks to turn its Gemini models and Vertex AI tooling into a broader system for automating business workflows.

  • tool icons with variety of business icons

    SETDA Releases Free EdTech Quality Action Toolkit

    The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) has put together a free K-12 EdTech Quality Action Toolkit that provides a framework for evaluating education technology products as well as guidance on regulatory compliance, templates for communicating with vendors, training resources, and more.

  • closeup of hands typing with data analytics overlay

    Instructure Expands Access to Mastery Predictive Assessments

    Instructure, maker of the Canvas learning platform, has announced a national expansion of its Mastery Predictive Assessments.