Los Angeles, Oct.18, 2023 — Age of Learning, the leading education technology innovator and creator of the widely popular ABCmouse® Early Learning Academy, today released a new ESSA-validated research report that found Palm Beach County pre-k students using My Reading Academy and My Math Academy dramaticallyimproved their school readiness in reading and math during the 2022-2023 school year.

The research, carried out in partnership with The Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County, showed that after a semester-long implementation at seven Voluntary Pre-K centers in Palm Beach County, Florida, sites using My Reading Academy and My Math Academy helped close the learning gap between research sites and non-research sites by 84% in STAR Early Literacy test scores. The research further found that students who were not kindergarten ready on the winter STAR assessment experienced 62% greater growth in their spring scores when using Age of Learning solutions, compared to students who did not use the programs.

In addition, participating educators at the research sites indicated that they would “definitely” like to continue using My Reading Academy and My Math Academy, noting that their students not only improved their test scores, but also improved self-confidence and enjoyment in learning. The data was collected during the 2022-2023 school year and compared STAR Early Literacy scores across fall, winter, and spring between children that used Age of Learning’s personalized digital learning programs with those who didn’t.

“Addressing kindergarten readiness ensures that all children, regardless of socio-economic or cultural background, have an equal opportunity to succeed in school. Through our collaboration with The Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County, and their investment in their educators and students we’ve been able to effectively bridge this gap with My Reading Academy and My Math Academy,” said Sunil Gunderia, Chief Innovation Officer at Age of Learning. “The positive outcomes in Palm Beach County aren’t just a testament to our programs’ effectiveness, but a beacon of what’s achievable when innovation meets dedication. Together, we’re nurturing a future of confident, capable young learners ready to embrace their academic journey.”

“The State of Florida has instituted accountability measures to ensure our prekindergarten providers prepare our students to be school ready in literacy and math. To help our providers deliver these results, we knew it was crucial to invest in a partner that had solutions with proven effectiveness, was easy for our providers to implement, and empowered our educators and us with actionable data,” said Aruna Gilbert, Executive Vice President & Chief Program and Policy Officer, The Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County. “Our partnership with Age of Learning, through My Reading Academy and My Math Academy, brought us proven solutions that validated our investment in early education with tangible results. Since the initial stages of implementation, we have received terrific feedback from the provider community. Now, with data in hand, we see the material impact these programs have had as our youngest learners are not only catching up but thriving, paving the way for a promising academic journey ahead.”

This research is the latest study of the company’s solutions that has been independently validated by Learn Platform by Instructure, a third-party educational research company that evaluates the studies’ alignment with ESSA standards. Our Palm Beach study is the 13^th ESSA-aligned validation overall for My Reading Academy and My Math Academy.

About Age of Learning

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources to help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. The company’s research-based digital education programs, developed by an experienced team of education experts, have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is an award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s school solutions programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program proven to significantly accelerate math learning outcomes, and My Reading Academy, an adaptive program designed to help young learners build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy and become fluent readers. With over 11 billion learning activities completed by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more about Age of Learning, visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

About The Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County

The Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County (Coalition) is dedicated to supporting local families and their children with a wide range of resources aimed at school readiness and positive educational outcomes. As a data-driven organization, the Coalition strives to offer innovative programs that promote family self-sufficiency and confidence as their child’ first teacher. The Coalition also serves as a connector to developmentally appropriate and research-based early education programs. Our vison is every child in Palm Beach County is ready to succeed in school and life.

Coalitions were legislatively created in 1999 under Florida Statute 411.01,) the School Readiness Act. Each Coalition is legislatively responsible for developing a comprehensive service delivery plan for administering the School Readiness and Voluntary Prekindergarten Programs. 

The post Palm Beach County Pre-K Students Using Age of Learning’s My Reading Academy and My Math Academy Significantly Reduced the Kindergarten Readiness Gap first appeared on Age of Learning.

Los Angeles, Aug. 30, 2023 – Age of Learning, leading education technology innovator and creator of the widely popular ABCmouse® Early Learning Academy, today announced it has appointed former Chief of Staff for the Idaho Department of Education Luci Willits as Vice President of Public Policy. Willits will focus on expanding the availability of Age of Learning’s evidenced-based school solutions My Math Academy® and My Reading Academy, by overseeing collaborations with public policy leaders and organizations at the local, state, and national levels.

In her role at the Idaho Department of Education, Willits advised the elected superintendent on multiple policy initiatives designed to improve public education, including academic standards, teacher compensation, graduation requirements, and federal law. She also worked closely with lawmakers to create and execute legislative strategies, helping to pass significant education legislation in Idaho.

Prior to joining Age of Learning, Willits served as Senior Vice President of Government Relations at MetaMetrics, where she oversaw the company’s state portfolio, leading engagement with policymakers and state education departments nationwide. She has also held leadership positions at Curriculum Associates, where she established a national governmental affairs division, and at Smarter Balanced, where she oversaw the successful rollout of online testing for the nation’s largest testing consortium.

“Luci has a proven track record of achievement and brings invaluable insight into how effective education policy is shaped, thanks to her extensive experience as a public sector leader,” said Sunil Gunderia, Chief Innovation Officer at Age of Learning. “Age of Learning’s personalized math and reading solutions are dramatically improving outcomes for young students, and with Luci joining our team we have the opportunity to increase the scale of this impact.”

“Age of Learning stands out for its best-in-class programs and unparalleled evidence of the effectiveness which is a priority for policymakers,” said Willits. “Students using My Math Academy and My Reading Academy are showing strong academic gains across the U.S. I look forward to working with Sunil and the world-class Age of Learning team to develop new partnerships and collaborate with education stakeholders to help more learners benefit from My Math Academy and My Reading Academy.”

Age of Learning’s My Math Academy® and My Reading Academy adaptive, personalized solutions are based on learning science principles and are supported by a body of ESSA-aligned research demonstrating their effectiveness. To date, the company has received 10 ESSA-aligned validations for My Math Academy and My Reading Academy.

About Age of Learning 

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources to help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. The company’s research-based digital education programs have been developed by an experienced team of education experts and have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is an award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s school solutions programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program proven to significantly accelerate math learning outcomes, and My Reading Academy, an adaptive program designed to help young learners build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy and become fluent readers. With over 11 billion learning activities completed by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more about Age of Learning, visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

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Los Angeles, June 27, 2023 — Age of Learning, leading education technology innovator and creator of the widely popular ABCmouse® Early Learning Academy, today announced that it has won the 2023 SIIA CODiE Award for Most Innovative Edtech Company. The prestigious SIIA CODiE Awards recognize the companies producing the most innovative Education Technology products across the country and around the world. This year marks the first time that SIIA has awarded a CODiE for the Most Innovative Edtech Company. The category recognizes the Edtech company that, according to SIIA, “is charting new pathways, showing others in the industry what is possible in instructional design.”

SIIA awards are based on thorough assessment of a company’s products, approach, and commitment to proven outcomes. Criteria for the “Most Innovative Award” set a high bar:

• Does this company’s product(s) approach teaching and learning in a way that we have not widely seen?
• Does the company open up our imaginations to new possibilities?
• Is the company’s product(s) innovative but still grounded in instructional meaningfulness and standards alignment?
• Does the company have evidence for its product(s) to prove it’s not just innovative but making a difference in the classroom?

“We are grateful to SIIA and our peer judges for this award, and most of all to our school district partners for their dedication to empowering teachers and students with effective solutions,” said Sunil Gunderia, Chief Innovation Officer at Age of Learning. “This award is especially meaningful, since the judging criteria, which assess impact, evidence, and efficacy, are intrinsic to our development approach. Innovating for impact is at the heart of our organizational purpose, because we know the profound impact education has on every child’s future.”

Age of Learning has invested over a decade of research and development into personalized and adaptive learning solutions based on well-established principles of learning science, broad and deep curricular expertise, and industry-leading design, engineering, and artistic talent. The company’s learning solutions for classrooms, My Math Academy® and My Reading Academy, are research-validated digital learning solutions supported by multiple studies demonstrating their effectiveness. These solutions can help close gaps and are designed to accelerate learning in as little as 10–12 weeks for students in pre-K through 2nd grade.

To date, 10 studies for My Math Academy and My Reading Academy have been validated as meeting the various evidence requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

“The 2023 Education Technology CODiE Award winners exemplify the outstanding products, services and overall innovation that enables learners of all types to connect with educators and educational materials,” said SIIA President Chris Mohr. “We are so proud to recognize this year’s honorees – the best of the best – that provide solutions to many of the critical challenges facing learners today – from access and equity, to personalized and tailored learning and beyond. Congratulations to all of this year’s CODiE Award winners!”

The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the principal trade association for the software and digital content industries, announced the full slate of CODiE winners during a virtual winner announcement. Awards were given for products and services deployed specifically for education and learning professionals.

A SIIA CODiE Award win is a prestigious honor, following rigorous reviews by expert judges including educators and administrators whose evaluations determined the finalists. SIIA members then vote on the finalist products, and the scores from both rounds are tabulated to select the winners.

Details about the winning products can be found at https://siia.net/codie/celebrate-finalists/.

About Age of Learning 

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources to help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. The company’s research-based digital education programs have been developed by an experienced team of education experts and have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is an award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s school solutions programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program proven to significantly accelerate math learning outcomes, and My Reading Academy, an adaptive program designed to help young learners build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy and become fluent readers. With over 10 billion learning activities completed by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more about Age of Learning, visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

About the CODiE Awards

The SIIA CODiE Awards is the only peer-reviewed program to showcase business and education technology’s finest products and services. Since 1986, thousands of products, services and solutions have been recognized for achieving excellence. For more information, visit siia.net/CODiE.

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In the Virginia districts, 619 kindergarten students participated, with 180 in the treatment group using My Reading Academy an average of just over 40 minutes per week. Performance was measured by the state-administered assessment, the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screener. My Reading Academy was found to be especially beneficial for kindergarteners who started out with lower baseline literacy skills.

In Texas, the study measured performance among 473 prekindergartners, using the state-administered end-of-year literacy assessment CIRCLE Progress Monitoring System. Analyses conducted by Age of Learning found that, of the prekindergartners who mastered at least half of the Alphabet Knowledge skills in My Reading Academy, 95% were significantly more likely to end the school year “On Track,” the highest possible benchmark, than their peers.

My Reading Academy is a personalized and standards-aligned reading program for early learners designed to accelerate learning outcomes in as little as 12 weeks of usage. Grounded in the science of reading and cognitive development research, this fully individualized, adaptive program delivers explicit and systematic phonemic awareness and phonics instruction paired with rich reading and language experiences to develop strong foundational reading skills.

“The most recent national scores for grade 4 and 8 showed a significant drop in reading proficiency, with 4th grade scores the lowest since 2005. Education leaders who are working to address the learning crisis in this country need research-based solutions that are proven to accelerate student achievement,” said Sunil Gunderia, Chief Innovation Officer at Age of Learning. “This study demonstrates that My Reading Academy’s adaptive technology is empowering teachers to personalize learning to meet the needs of each student, and helping young learners master foundational literacy skills.”

This research—which was funded by Age of Learning and conducted by SRI International’s Education Division—is the latest study of the company’s School Solutions products that has been independently validated by Learn Platform, a third-party educational research company that evaluates the studies’ alignment with ESSA standards. This most recent study is the third ESSA-aligned validation for My Reading Academy to date, and the 10th overall for My Reading Academy and My Math Academy.

ESSA-aligned validations of research evidence help education leaders and decision-makers understand the effectiveness of various educational programs. Underscoring the need for validated, ESSA-aligned evidence, the United States Department of Education recently released an EdTech Evidence Toolkit, which offers educational leaders support in using evidence to inform edtech adoption decisions in schools.

About Age of Learning 

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources to help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. The company’s research-based digital education programs have been developed by an experienced team of education experts and have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is an award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s school solutions programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program proven to significantly accelerate math learning outcomes, and My Reading Academy, an adaptive program designed to help young learners build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy and become fluent readers. With over 10 billion learning activities completed by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more about Age of Learning, visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

The post Kindergarteners Using Age of Learning’s My Reading Academy™ Significantly Outperform Peers on State-Administered Literacy Assessments first appeared on Age of Learning.

Botel began his career teaching at Booker T. Washington Middle School in West Baltimore as a Teach For America corps member. He went on to become a founding principal and executive director of KIPP Baltimore, as well as executive director of MarylandCAN. At the U.S. Department of Education, he served as Acting Assistant Secretary and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. Prior to joining Age of Learning, he held the role of Vice President of Strategic Partnerships for FullBloom, a company specializing in education and behavioral health solutions.

In his new role, Botel will focus on expanding the reach of Age of Learning’s School Solutions, My Math Academy® and My Reading Academy. These adaptive, personalized solutions are based on well-established principles of learning science and are supported by a body of ESSA-aligned research demonstrating their effectiveness. To date, the company has received 10 ESSA-aligned validations for My Math Academy and My Reading Academy.

“Jason has dedicated his career to advocating for high-quality learning opportunities for all students,” said West. “His background as a teacher and principal, along with his experience at the U.S. Department of Education, gives him a deep understanding of the need for scalable solutions to help students build a foundation for academic success. His experience makes him the ideal leader to partner with prominent education organizations that share a commitment to supporting students and teachers across the country.”

“Age of Learning stands out for the effectiveness of its programs in accelerating learning outcomes and its commitment to research. Efficacy data is critically important for district leaders, and it enables us to demonstrate the impact in a measurable way,” said Botel. “I look forward to expanding the company’s partnerships with leading education organizations that play an important role in empowering educators and inspiring a love of learning among children.”

About Age of Learning 

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources to help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. The company’s research-based digital education programs have been developed by an experienced team of education experts and have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is an award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s school solutions programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program proven to significantly accelerate math learning outcomes, and My Reading Academy, an adaptive program designed to help young learners build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy and become fluent readers. With over 10 billion learning activities completed by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more about Age of Learning, visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

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Throughout his more than 30-year career in education, Dr. Cavazos has been recognized for his success driving academic achievement gains among students. He previously served as Superintendent of HCISD from 2013–2021, leading Harlingen’s transformation into a district of choice that provides a quality education grounded in strong character. In 2019, under Dr. Cavazos’s leadership, HCISD was given the prestigious Neuhaus Education Center Lighthouse Literacy Legacy Award for inspiring excellence in others. In 2017, Dr. Cavazos was recognized as the Region 1 Superintendent of the Year and the Texas PTA’s Superintendent of the Year. In addition, Texas Governor Greg Abbott selected Dr. Cavazos to serve a six-year term, beginning in 2016, on the State Board for Educator Certification. In this role, Dr. Cavazos worked to help advance the importance of strong teacher preparation programs that place value in training certified teachers to be able to work with children as of day one of their teaching career. Dr. Cavazos currently serves as an Executive Coach for superintendents in Texas.

Dr. Cavazos was also selected by the U.S. Department of Education as one of the 100 top school leaders from across America to participate in the first-ever National ConnectED Superintendents Summit at the White House, which featured promising approaches to using technology in classrooms. That same year, he was awarded the Distinguished School Administrators Award by the American Association of School Librarians for his efforts to advance library and literacy services. Dr. Cavazos formerly served as a board member of the University of Texas College of Education Advisory Council, FIRST in Texas, and the University of Texas’ Cooperative Superintendency Program Executive Advisory Committee.

“Dr. Cavazos is a transformational leader who has spent his career championing equity in education and driving learning outcomes for students, while creating innovative learning opportunities. This makes him the natural choice to serve as our inaugural Superintendent-in-Residence,” said Doug Dohring, Founder and CEO of Age of Learning. “As Superintendent in Harlingen, Dr. Cavazos experienced first-hand how our programs are empowering educators in the classroom, addressing learning variability by creating individual learning paths as they help young students gain essential knowledge, skills, and abilities in both reading and math. He shares our commitment to helping all students succeed, and we will benefit from his experience, wisdom, and pursuit of educational excellence.”

“As school leaders, we have to lean into solutions that move the needle for all our students, and there is a tremendous opportunity to better support our youngest learners to ensure they achieve proficiency in reading and math,” said Dr. Cavazos. “I have personally seen the impact that Age of Learning’s My Math Academy and My Reading Academy had in my district, and I’m thrilled to work with them to replicate those results in districts across the country.”

HCISD began using My Math Academy in 2020 with nearly 1,000 prekindergarten students and has since expanded the program to include over 5,000 students and 300 teachers from pre-K through 3rd grade. Additionally, the District implemented My Reading Academy in early and elementary classrooms during the 2022–2023 school year.

About Age of Learning 

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources that help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. The company’s curriculum is developed by an experienced team of education experts, and its research-based digital education programs have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is a multi-award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s school solutions programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program that helps students master foundational math concepts, and My Reading Academy, which helps young learners become fluent readers as they build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy. With more than 10 billion Learning Activities completed to date by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

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Los Angeles, September 29, 2022 Age of Learning®, leading education technology innovator and creator of the widely popular ABCmouse® Early Learning Academy, today announced it has appointed industry veteran Ty West to the newly created role of Chief Revenue Officer, Schools Division. West will lead the expanding division in its next phase of growth, focusing on Age of Learning’s School Solutions, which include the adaptive, personalized mastery learning programs My Math Academy® and My Reading Academy. West joins the company’s executive leadership team and will report to Age of Learning Founder, Chairman, and CEO, Doug Dohring.

Prior to Age of Learning, West spent nearly 15 years at Imagine Learning, where he served as Vice President, responsible for defining market strategies, building high performing sales teams, and collaborating with education leaders at the local, state, and federal levels.

West will focus on district implementations of Age of Learning’s patented Personalized Mastery Learning System, including the newly released My Math Academy and My Reading Academy programs, which are the result of more than eight years of research and development, and extensive in-classroom testing with multiple efficacy studies involving thousands of students.

“Based on the unprecedented outcomes we’ve seen in implementations, and the extremely positive reception to these programs from district leaders and educators, we are ready to accelerate our expansion into more districts across the country,” said Dohring. “With Ty’s strong vision for bringing our effective learning solutions to the schools market on a broad scale and his proven record of success, he is an outstanding addition to our executive team.”

“Age of Learning is the clear leader in developing innovative, next generation edtech solutions that will have the greatest impact on our youngest learners,” said West. “The best education solutions must be evidence-based, research-proven, and support all learners, no matter their background or circumstances, so all children have the chance to be successful. Doug and his team have the vision, resources, and dedication needed to scale the best possible programs for students. I’m proud to join such a committed and respected team working to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children.”

About Age of Learning 

Age of Learning® is the leading education technology innovator, creating engaging and effective learning resources to help children build a strong foundation for academic success and a lifelong love of learning. Our research-based digital education programs have proven efficacy in increasing children’s learning gains, and our curriculum is developed by an experienced team of education experts. Age of Learning’s flagship product, ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy, is an award-winning comprehensive curriculum for children. The company’s School Solutions Programs include My Math Academy®, an adaptive, personalized program that helps students master foundational math concepts, and My Reading Academy, which helps young learners become fluent readers and build a foundation for reading comprehension and literacy. With over 10 billion learning activities completed by more than 50 million children worldwide, Age of Learning is a global leader in efforts to advance equity, access, and opportunity for all children. To learn more about Age of Learning, visit www.AgeofLearning.com.

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