Digital Media & Touch Screen Technology: An Increasing Trend In Education

WGBH Teachers' Domain Expands Digital Media for use in the
Classroom
BOSTON--(Business Wire)--
Just in time for back to school, Teachers' Domain, a free online
educational website, is expanding digital media content in science,
math, language arts, social studies and art, as well as introducing
two new editions; Teachers' Domain College Edition (a subset of online
resources for higher education), and VITAL New York on Teachers'
Domain (resources for NY state educators tied to the New York State
Core Curriculum). Teachers' Domain is a digital library of free media
online resources for teachers, and online professional development
courses created by public television station WGBH. To access the
educator resources, online lesson plans and course information, log on
to http://www.teachersdomain.org.

First launched in 2002 with a small set of resources in science,
Teachers' Domain has quickly grown in content and popularity. Today,
Teachers' Domain has over 260,000 registered users that represent
about 56% of US K-12 schools, and expanded content to more than 1,500
digital media resources that support state and national education
standards. Unlike many competitor sites, resources are available free
of charge to anyone who registers for the site.

New content on Teachers' Domain includes open educational
resources that allow downloading, sharing, and remixing capabilities
for use in the classroom. The ease of access to digital media makes
these resources a continued trend in education because it allows
teachers to access them at any time while they engage their students
in the learning process. One example is the use of interactive white
boards, a teaching tool that captivates students with the touch of a
screen by using their finger as a cursor. By integrating digital media
resources with this technology, teachers have everything accessible in
one place, and create a two-way teaching and learning connection that
engages students with their fingertip. "Students today learn with
media and technology because they've grown up in a multimedia world,
so these resources are something they relate to easily," said Eleri
Merrikin, Science Teacher at Brockton High School in Massachusetts.

Teachers' Domain website content is drawn from popular PBS shows
such as NOVA, Frontline, and American Experience, and includes video
and audio segments, background essays, lesson plans, discussion
questions and activities for the classroom. Resources supplement a
teacher's lesson plan while addressing topics that are hard to teach.
"When I teach an abstract topic like the nitrogen cycle, I supplement
the textbook with a Teachers' Domain video segment, diagram or Flash
interactive on the topic and these often become the centerpiece of our
class lesson. These resources are invaluable because they support
about 45% of my students who have a visual learning preference and
have difficulty reading science text. My students directly benefit
from the resources and I know for sure that without them, they would
continue to struggle," said Eleri Merrikin, Science Teacher at
Brockton High School in Massachusetts.

For additional information or a demo on Teachers' Domain, contact
Daniella Quinones. Teachers' Domain digital media resources for the
classroom and new editions are now available at
http://www.teachersdomain.org. Teachers' Domain is a Pathways Project
of the National Science Digital Library (NSDL).

About Teachers' Domain

Teachers' Domain is an online library of more than 1,500 free
media resources as well as online professional development courses for
teachers developed by Boston public television station WGBH. Classroom
resources support state and national standards, and draw from the best
in public television and its content partners. With over 260,000
registered users in over 163 countries around the world, Teachers'
Domain strives to strengthen teacher knowledge by providing innovative
teaching methods that inspire students to learn. Teachers' Domain is a
Pathways portal to the National Science Digital Library (NSDL). To
access Teachers' Domain resources and course information, visit
www.teachersdomain.org.

WGBH Teachers' Domain
Daniella Quinones
Marketing Coordinator, 617-300-3995
http://www.teachersdomain.org

Copyright Business Wire 2008