Press Release - November 4, 2005
Los Angeles Unified School District Selects Vantage Learning to Improve School Writing Achievement
Web-based MY Access! writing program proven successful; large secondary school deployment underway district-wide Sacramento, CA
Newtown, PA, November 4, 2005 - Vantage Learning (www.VantageLearning.com), the world's leading provider of online assessment, today announced that the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has selected Vantage's MY Access! assessment and instructional writing program for a 3-year, multi-million dollar deployment throughout the district's secondary schools. The LAUSD Board of Education approved this purchase this summer. The announcement was made at the Association of CA School Administrators (ACSA) annual conference. Vantage Learning is a sponsor of ACSA.The MY Access! program is being deployed to over 60,000 students in 93 schools based upon the results demonstrated with a large number of users over the past several years. Both STAR (Standardized Testing And Reporting) and CAHSEE (California High School Exit Examination) scores have risen in schools that have implemented MY Access!, with a model of success that includes the integration of the tool with Internet-accessible computers, plus professional development and training.
"We are proud to play a key role in helping LAUSD teachers and students achieve great success with MY Access!," says Harry Barfoot, VP of Sales and Marketing for Vantage Learning. "We have been fortunate to work with passionate educators both at the district office as well as the individual local districts and schools. The willingness to fully integrate this 21st century writing tool, and the incredible teamwork between individual people, are what will ultimately be the critical success factors leading to improved student achievement. It isn't just about the software, it's about a commitment to helping the students."
MY Access! implementations across the country are showing consistent results in improving student achievement and raising test scores. The new version of MY Access! includes powerful capabilities for English Language Learners, peer review of student writing, and integration of writing prompts aligned to popular adopted reading programs. Combined with additional opportunities for writing practice, students are able to write and revise as often as they like. Data suggests that the level of proficiency achieved increases the more students have the opportunity to engage in the writing process. And with the highest quality scoring engines in the industry, teachers can use the program to grade literally thousands of papers instantly and accurately, which lets them focus on the weakest skills for improvement.
The National Commission on Writing, founded by The College Board, believes Americans must improve the quality of writing in our schools if students are to succeed in college and in life. Its first report to Congress, The Neglected "R", called for a writing revolution to return writing to its proper place in the American classroom. The Commission's latest report surveyed 120 major American corporations employing nearly eight million people, and concluded that in today's workplace, writing is a "threshold skill" for hiring and promoting among salaried employees, and a "ticket" to professional opportunity.
About Vantage Learning
Vantage Learning (www.VantageLearning.com), an affiliate of Vantage Laboratories and the leading provider of online assessment and automated essay scoring, developed IntelliMetric® to meet the needs of business, education, and government agencies needing a comprehensive Internet-based test authoring, delivery, scoring and reporting platform. IntelliMetric administers and scores responses to open-ended questions over the Internet using advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technology. An individual can enter a response to a question posed, submit the response, and receive an immediate score with feedback within seconds.
Eduventures has selected Vantage Learning as one of the eight most innovative educational technology companies. MY Access!™), Vantage's instructional writing program that utilizes Intellimetric essay-scoring, earned a 2003 District Administration Top 100 Award and was included in Technology and Learning Magazine's Top 10 Smart Technologies for Schools. A Codie Awards finalist three years in a row, MY Access! recently won the 2005 Codie Award in two categories, "Best Secondary Education Instructional Tool" and "Best English Language Learning Instructional Solution". In addition, MY Access! was awarded the 2004 Award of Excellence from Technology and Learning Magazine.
Vantage Learning provides services in all 50 states directly to end-user clients and provides services to educational leaders such as The College Board, ACT, Harcourt Educational Measurement, CTB/McGraw Hill and Thomson Learning.