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Does your district need a fully digital, comprehensive Algebra program? Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of Edmentum’s Texas Algebra I. Edmentum Algebra I is a fully digital, comprehensive program.  The goal of the program is to provide rigorous, relevant curriculum through interactive, media-rich content.  The design of the program supports an independent, self-paced instructional model, but would equally support a teacher facilitated, blended model. The program is flexible and can be customized to meet a variety of student learning needs. Learning is carefully sequenced, building on prior knowledge to provide increasingly complex instruction. Learning List’s reviewers noted the variety of assignment types and how the numerous digital tools contribute to the rigor of the material. Read Learning List’s alignment report to see how well this material is aligned to the TEKS and our full editorial review to learn more about the degree to which the material supports a rigorous instructional experience for students.    Learning List has also completed a review of the technology compatibility for the material. To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Edmentum* Edmentum’s Courseware is a standards-based online learning program grounded in a tradition research, pedagogy, and innovation. Edmentum develops curriculum that challenges students with a 21st century approach - engaging them with interactive, media-rich content. Whether students are falling behind, at grade level, or advanced, Edmentum accommodates their unique needs in an environment in which they will thrive. Courseware can be used in a lab setting, a blended model in which online courses supplement the traditional classroom, or through a completely virtual experience. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Edmentum .

Is your district in need of a new material for integrated high school math courses? Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of National Geographic Learning/Cengage Learning’s Big Ideas Integrated Math. Big Ideas Integrated Math is a comprehensive high school math program, available in print and digital formats.  The design of the material is consistent with the Common Core’s Integrated Pathways and is provided in three levels. Each of the three courses integrates instruction in algebra, geometry, probability, and statistics at increasingly complex levels. Big Ideas Integrated Mathorganizes instruction around major topics in mathematics, such as solving linear equations or parallel and perpendicular lines. Learning List’s editorial reviewers were impressed by the material’s use of essential questions and performance tasks to connect each new mathematical concept to a real-world situation or problem. They also noted the material’s numerous resources for differentiating instruction to support all students, including separate, differentiated lessons to present the material in a more concrete manner for students who benefit from reteaching. Learning List’s alignment reports reveal how well the Standards for Mathematical Practices are integrated throughout the material.   Read Learning List ’s alignment reports, qualitative reviews technology compatibility reports to learn more about this and thousands of the most widely used  PreK-12 instructional materials. , contact Learning List for subscription information. About National Geographic Learning/Cengage Learning* National Geographic Learning, part of Cengage Learning, believes education is one of the great transformative forces of this century. Among the company’s goals is to help learners and teachers to achieve personal success and be better citizens of the 21st century. National Geographic Learning/Cengage Learning wants teachers and their students to experience the excitement and joy of learning, and to bring their classroom to life. Their mission is to inspire students to learn and acquire the skills they need to be successful in their careers or educational experiences, as well as to become lifelong caretakers of the planet. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from National Geographic Learning/Cengage Learning .

Recently, at a friend’s birthday party, the conversation quickly turned to back-to-school issues. Several friends began discussing their school district’s continuing adoption of online materials. One friend commented that when her older son’s school had moved to online materials almost exclusively last year, he did fine in his Economics class but really struggled in Physics. She told him to check out a textbook for that course, and almost immediately, his grades improved. My friends then began comparing how their children each learn and debating the relative virtues of printed versus online materials. That conversation reminded me of the blog post we published recently about a Hechinger Report article titled, “A Textbook Dilemma: Digital or Paper?” Several of the points in this article align with distinguishing features we observe in our reviews of online materials.  If your district is considering online materials, here are five features that may speak to the likely impact those materials will have on students’ comprehension and learning: Density of text : Will students have to read extensively or are there videos and other features to support student learning of key concepts? Distracting Content:  Does the product feature ads, graphics, colors, or other content that will divert students’ attention and/or detract from the instruction? “Chunking” of Instruction: How frequently are activities and checks for understanding embedded in the instruction to help students process what they have read? How well does the material employ the use of text features to support comprehension? Available Adaptions: Does the material contain the adaptions your students need to access and understand the text? For example, can text be enlarged? Does the material provide a text-to-speech reader? Can the text be leveled up or down?  Compatibility: Does the core instruction and do the online tools students will need to complete the course work on the devices and/or the LMS your students will be using? As online instructional materials become more prevalent, parents and teachers around the globe will undoubtedly continue to debate whether their children learn better from print versus digital materials. Research on this topic is sure to continue, too, and as it does, digital instructional materials will evolve.  And, Learning List’s reviews will continue to highlight the features that districts need to focus on in determining which materials will meet their students’ needs best.

If your district is gearing up for an adoption this year, part of your selection calculation likely will be whether to purchase print or digital/online materials.  An article in the Hechinger Report  titled, “A Textbook Dilemma: Digital or Paper?” may be useful. The article discusses Patricia Alexander’s review of research on this topic. Ms. Alexander is an educational psychologist and a literacy scholar at the University of Maryland. Despite numerous (878) potentially relevant studies on the topic, Ms. Alexander pointed out that “only 36 directly compared reading in digital and in print and measured learning in a reliable way.” Despite the need for further research on this topic, Ms. Alexander found that numerous studies affirm the finding that: “if you are reading something lengthy – more than 500 words or more than a page of the book or screen – your comprehension will likely take a hit if you’re using a digital device.” This pertained to college students as well as students in elementary, middle, and high school.     The research highlights several reasons why: Reading online is more physically and mentally demanding (e.g, “the nuisance of scrolling and the tiresome glare and flicker of the screen") than reading a textbook. Online readers may not concentrate as well, distracted by social media alerts, the temptation to browse the internet, etc. Reading a printed book leaves spatial impressions in your mind (i.e., where something was on a page) that may not occur with the same frequency online. Ms. Alexander also addressed whether “note taking on paper offers measurable advantages for learning?” For example, whether highlighting and underlining online versus on paper affected comprehension more positively. She concluded, “Those kind of motor responses have never been of highest value in terms of text processing strategies.” Rather, “the studying strategy with ‘the greatest power,’ …. involves deeply questioning the text — asking yourself if you agree with the author, and why or why not.” The point of the research is not to identify a winner; print and digital materials are here to stay. As Ms. Alexander put it, “The core question when is a reader best served by a particular medium? And what kind of readers? What age? What kind of text are we talking about? All of those elements matter a great deal.” For more research on this topic, see " Don't throw away your printed books: A meta-analysis on the effects of reading media on reading comprehension ."

With school starting, districts across the country are scrambling to find teachers for their classrooms.  Yesterday, educators and policymakers gathered in Tulsa, Oklahoma to attend the Oklahoma Teacher Pipeline Summit to discuss long-term solutions to the teacher shortage.  Some of the policy-based solutions that were discussed include: State-funded loan forgiveness, scholarships or signing bonuses for university-prepared teachers who commit to working in a public school; State funded paid student teacher internships; University-created courses to prepare future educators for subject specific knowledge (e.g., the Tulsa University is creating a STEM minor for future teachers), pedagogical knowledge, and skills educators need to support today’s students, including courses in childhood trauma. An interim legislative study on policy solutions to address teacher shortages is anticipated. The problem of how to find qualified teachers and how to keep them working in schools is not unique to Oklahoma. Though not optimal, a practical, short-term solution that many districts turn to are online courses. As one rural Texas principal said, “We’re having to rely on online courses more heavily than ever before.  High school math teachers are hard to come by in small Texas towns. So, smaller districts like ours are using self-paced online courses when we can’t find a teacher for the course. What’s scary is that we don’t really know how good the courses are.”   Students can’t learn what they’re not taught. A material’s alignment to state standards becomes  even more crucial  when there’s not a certified teacher in the classroom to act as a safety net for a material’s deficits.  In such cases, students have to rely exclusively on the online course for the knowledge and skills he/she needs to master the state tests.  If the material is not well aligned, the district is setting the student up to fail. Learning List  gives districts peace of mind that the materials they are using will teach their students what they need to know to be successful.  Our detailed alignment reports show specifically where the material (e.g., specific page numbers, lesson titles) is aligned to each standard and which standards the material is not aligned to at all. If a material is not aligned to 100% of the state’s standards for a grade and subject, our Fill-in-the-Gap™ tool recommends additional materials that fill in the gap to ensure that students are getting materials that teach 100 percent of the state’s standards. These may be other comprehensive or supplemental products; they may be publisher-produced materials or free open educational resources we have reviewed. Beyond the alignment, our editorial reviews asses each product’s instructional quality, including the rigor, student engagement, adaptions for special student populations and ease of use. We also test which devices and operating systems each material works on and does not. Online materials not only differ in their alignment to standards, their instructional quality and design vary significantly.  Some products are text heavy, requiring students to read extensively; others provide text features and videos to support student learning of key concepts.  Some products require students to work through long segments of instruction before activities or checks for understanding are provided. Others chunk learning in manageable segments with regular checks for understanding and consistently embedded activities.  Some provide supports to help all learners access and understand the content; other do not. And, some online products are device agnostic while others only work on specific devices. With reviews for over 3000 of the most popular materials, Learning List has reviewed hundreds of online, self-paced courses aligned to most states’ English and Math standards. For Texas districts, we have reviewed online courses in all four core subjects. Contact us for access to reviews of online courses that can help your district support inexperienced teachers or fill in where teachers are not available.

Are your teachers ready for new ELA materials for high school?  Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Into Literature. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Into Literature is a comprehensive literacy program that supports English language arts instruction for grades 9 through 12. Content is available in print and digital formats. Instruction develops students’ reading, writing, listening, speaking, and thinking skills with learning activities that provide numerous opportunities and structures for effective group and partner work. Into Literature integrates reading and writing instruction. The program provides an abundance of high-quality, thought provoking reading selections.  Text sets for each unit correlate to numerous themes and topics. Formal writing instruction occurs at the end of units and generally serves as a culminating task. Into Literature supports a blended learning environment with numerous online tools and resources. Online teacher and student resources are housed in Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Ed: Your Friend in Learning platform.  A robust set of online teacher resources provide content knowledge, pedagogy, and implementation assistance. Successful implementation of this program will require time for professional learning and planning throughout the school year. Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment report, qualitative review of the instructional content and a review of the technology compatibility for each grade level covered by this material.  These reviews and the online tools available on LearningList.com not only inform selection decisions, they facilitate curriculum mapping and instructional alignment, as well. To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt* Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is a global learning company committed to delivering integrated solutions that engage learners, empower educators and improve student outcomes. As a leading provider of K–12 core curriculum, supplemental solutions and professional learning services, HMH partners with educators and school districts to uncover solutions that unlock students’ potential and extend teachers’ capabilities. HMH serves more than 50 million students and 3 million educators in 150 countries, while its award-winning children's books, novels, non-fiction, and reference titles are enjoyed by readers throughout the world. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Does your district need instructional materials to support implementation of the NGSS? Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Science Dimensions. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Science Dimensions is a comprehensive science program for grades K-12. Learning List has reviewed the materials for middle school Life, Earth and Space, and Physical Science. Science Dimensions provides relevant, real-world opportunities for students to work and think like scientists and engineers. The material supports the intention of the Next Generation Science Standards by consistently providing students with three-dimensional learning experiences, integrating the Cross-Cutting Concepts and Science and Engineering Practices with the Disciplinary Core Ideas. Students are consistently required to synthesize new information and find answers to challenging questions and problems. Critical thinking is further supported through projects and labs that address real-world problems, such as sound in a theater and selecting the best types of fencing. Material includes resources to support the needs of a variety of learners, including limited support for English language learners. The digital platform, Ed Your Friend in Learning, provides an abundance of resources to support students’ learning experience. However, teachers will require training and ongoing planning time to effectively use these resources. Learning List’s editorial review analyzes the instructional content and rigor, explaining how the material’s design, features and instructional strategies support the effective implementation of the NGSS. Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment report, qualitative review of the instructional content and a review of the technology compatibility for each grade level covered by this material.  To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt* Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is a global learning company committed to delivering integrated solutions that engage learners, empower educators and improve student outcomes. As a leading provider of K–12 core curriculum, supplemental solutions and professional learning services, HMH partners with educators and school districts to uncover solutions that unlock students’ potential and extend teachers’ capabilities. HMH serves more than 50 million students and 3 million educators in 150 countries, while its award-winning children's books, novels, non-fiction, and reference titles are enjoyed by readers throughout the world. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Are you looking for a fully digital product for high school science? Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of Edmentum’s high school science courses. Edmentum’s High School Science is a comprehensive high school science program. Learning List recently reviewed the material for high school biology, chemistry, and physics. The goal of the courses is to provide rigorous, relevant instruction  through interactive, media-rich content.  Edmentum provides a comprehensive digital experience with a learning management system (LMS) that is easy to navigate and encourages students to monitor their own progress through progress reports, portfolios, and self-evaluation. Numerous digital tools support a multi-modal presentation of instruction through text, video, images, animation, and technology-enhanced items. Students participate in a variety of lessons and can collaborate with other students in the class through the online platform. Labs are included, and they provide detailed procedures and instructions. The courses can be customized by teachers to meet the needs of individual students.  Course content is available in twenty languages and digital adaptions support students with specific learning needs.  Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment review, a qualitative review of the instructional content, and a review of the technology compatibility for each of the three science courses. These reviews not only inform selection decisions, they facilitate instructional alignment and curriculum mapping, too. To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Edmentum* Edmentum’s Courseware is a standards-based online learning program grounded in a tradition research, pedagogy, and innovation. Edmentum develops curriculum that challenges students with a 21st century approach - engaging them with interactive, media-rich content. Whether students are falling behind, at grade level, or advanced, Edmentum accommodates their unique needs in an environment in which they will thrive. Courseware can be used in a lab setting, a blended model in which online courses supplement the traditional classroom, or through a completely virtual experience. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Edmentum .

Center for the Collaborative Classroom’s Being a Writer is a supplemental writing program for students in grades K-5. The program provides genre-based writing instruction intended to help students develop a love of writing and an appreciation for expressing their thoughts in writing. The program focuses on academic as well as social and ethical learning through the creation of a classroom writing community. Being a Writer s caffolds and vertically aligns writing and social skills instruction across grade levels. The lesson structure includes daily independent writing time. Writing instruction throughout the program is genre based and focused on authentic writing. The program does address preparation for standardized writing tests beginning in grade three. Being a Writer e ncourages students to think critically and creatively by selecting their own topics, structuring their own ideas, and providing evidence to support their opinions. Intentional connections between reading and writing are evident in the program. Teachers use authentic texts as models for writing, and students consistently write about what they have read. Extensive professional development resources, a teacher’s guide with notes and instruction, and robust online instructional resources support teachers at each step in planning, instruction, and assessment. Teacher materials support work in teacher teams and professional learning communities. Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment report, qualitative review of the instructional content and a review of the technology compatibility for each grade level covered by this material.  To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Center for the Collaborative Classroom * Collaborative Classroom, a nonprofit organization, improves the school experience of children around the globe by providing teachers with engaging curricula and ongoing professional learning that support the academic as well as the social and emotional development of the students we all serve. Our mission is to provide a sustainable, scalable, and affordable way for schools and districts to implement  research-supported teaching practices  that support teachers with helping students grow as readers, writers, and thinkers as they develop the social and emotional skills necessary to thrive. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Center for the Collaborative Classroom .

Glencoe’s iScience is a set of comprehensive materials for middle school science. Materials are available in print and online. Each discipline of science (life, earth and space, physical) is a separate set of materials designed to encourage students to learn scientific concepts and apply those concepts to the real world. iScience supports the intent of the Next Generation Science Standards with numerous opportunities for students to be scientists and do science. Materials encourage students to make connections between scientific concepts and real-world scientific phenomena. Units include a variety of labs that increase in complexity throughout the unit.  Consistent application of the 5E model as well as labs, questions, and lesson activities provide numerous opportunities for student to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. This material provides substantial resources for instruction in blended learning environments. Adaptions for students with specific learning needs include text-to-speech narration and specific activities for above-, on-, and below level learners. However, support for speakers of languages other than English is limited to a multilingual glossary and translation of some materials into Spanish. A robust set of teacher materials includes an interactive teacher edition and numerous online resources. Teacher resources also include professional learning videos to support implementation, planning, assessment, and pedagogy, including content area reading strategies. Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment report, qualitative review of the instructional content and a review of the technology compatibility for each grade level covered by this material.  To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About McGraw Hill * McGraw-Hill Education’s mission is to accelerate learning through intuitive, engaging, efficient and effective experiences – grounded in research. By partnering with educators around the globe, McGraw-Hill learning engineers, content developers and pedagogical experts are developing increasingly open learning ecosystems that are proven to improve pass rates, elevate grades and increase engagement for each individual learner while improving outcomes for all. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from McGraw Hill Education .

Do you need a free engaging game for math practice?  Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of Prodigy Math Game. Prodigy Math Game is a free, supplemental, online math role-playing game for grades 1 through 8. The game provides math practice problems in a game-based format that is self-paced and adaptive to address multiple levels of achievement. The game focuses on moving a student-created wizard through various challenges as the student solves math problems. Students may spend more time playing the game than practicing math problems. The game context and storyline is substantially the same across all grade levels. Student performance is recorded in the online system, and the teacher dashboard generates reports for teachers to use to evaluate student performance and determine next steps in instruction. Teachers can set up classes and add students. Students can play the game at school or at home. Prodigy is free, but students have the option to purchase a full subscription and additional game accessories. Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment report, qualitative review of the instructional content and a review of the technology compatibility for each grade level covered by this material.  To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Prodigy* Prodigy provides an online math game for students in grades 1 through 8. The company’s goal is to provide an engaging math platform that addresses students’ individual needs in all major topics of math. Prodigy is free to teachers. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Prodigy.

Do you need a comprehensive reading assessment for students in kindergarten through grade 6?   Take a look at Learning List’s reviews of Scholastic’s Next Step Guided Reading Assessment . Scholastic’s Next Step Guided Reading Assessment(NSGRA), is an assessment tool designed to support teachers using responsive teaching to make data-driven decisions about reading instruction. This product is designed for use in grades K-6, with one kit for grades K-2 and another kit for grades 3-6. The four-step NSGRA process provides a comprehensive, data-based view of students’ reading strengths and needs, including reading level. This material is primarily a set of assessments. All the materials required to administer the four assessments are included, along with general instructional planning guidance. Daily lesson plans and student instructional materials are not included with this product. Teachers enter data into the online platform, Scholastic Digital Manger, which provides reports teachers can use to link assessment to instruction. Administration of assessments, data entry, and analysis of data will require a significant time commitment for teachers. The online platform includes extensive resources to support and guide teachers in administering the assessments, entering the data, and using the resulting reports to inform instruction. Learning List has completed a standard-by-standard alignment report, qualitative review of the instructional content and a review of the technology compatibility for each grade level covered by this material.  To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About Scholastic* Scholastic was founded in 1920 as a single classroom magazine. Today, Scholastic books and educational materials are in tens of thousands of schools and tens of millions of homes worldwide, helping to  Open a World of Possible  for children across the globe. Scholastic’s mission is to encourage the intellectual and personal growth of all children,  beginning with literacy. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Scholastic.