OOXML Reaffirmed, ISO/IEC Reject Appeals

The boards of the ISO and IEC standards bodies last week rejected the appeals of four participating members (Brazil, India, South Africa, and Venezuela) that had questioned the process by which Microsoft's Office Open XML (OOXML) document format specification was approved as an international standard, called "ISO/IEC 29500."

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Animation Academy 2009 Incorporates Maya, 3ds Max, Mudbox

3D software developer Autodesk this month launched the 2009 edition of Animation Academy, learning suite focused on 3D modeling and animation, targeted toward STEM skills and incorporating software, curricula, and various learning materials. It's designed specifically for secondary schools.

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Maryland Adopts TechLiteracy for Statewide Assessments

Maryland is implementing Learning.com's TechLiteracy Assessment to gauge it's seventh-grade students' knowledge of 21st century technology skills. The assessments are being funded under the Measuring Student Technology Literacy grant program and will measure the skills of about 62,000 students during the 2008-2009 school year.

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NSBA '20 To Watch' Nomination Deadline Nears

Nominations for the National School Boards Association's "20 To Watch" program are coming to a close within the next two weeks. The program aims to recognize innovators in the field of education technology.

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Michigan Nabs $60k Thinkfinity Grant

The Verizon Foundation has awarded a $60,000 grant to the Michigan Department of Education aimed at training teachers throughout the state to use Thinkfinity.org, a Web-based program that provides access to about 55,000 educational resources, including lesson plans and interactive tools and materials for K-12 students.

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Vorex Upgrades Web-based Data Collection Tool for Schools

Vorex has released an update to its Vorex Online Survey, a Web-based data collection tool designed to allow schools to collect information and gather feedback from education stakeholders.

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AlertNow Discounts Communications Service for Nebraska Schools

AlertNow has announced that it will be offering its service to all Nebraska Educational Service Unit (ESU) members at a 10 percent discount. The deal, said to be in recognition of an alliance formed July 30 between the company and Nebraska ESU Cooperative Purchasing, will apply to all purchases made prior to July 31, 2009.

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Share Your Best Practices

T.H.E. Journal is currently looking for the following types of articles for future issues and for our eNewsletter, T.H.E. SmartClassroom:

• School Perspectives -- discuss a specific topic, trend, or concern about education technology.
• Case Studies -- have you implemented technology and learned a lot from the experience? If so, share your efforts about what worked -- and what didn't.

If you have a potential article, or questions about the above topics, please e-mail [email protected]

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