Ideal Learning Environment Contest to Uncover the Best Ideas in K–12 Personalized Learning from Students, Teachers and Community

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The majority of students report¹ they are bored in school. Teachers, who are being asked to do more with less, report² they are demoralized and even burned-out. With reports like this, it is clear we have work to do to create the ideal learning environment for each and every student. Yet, there is hope. Americans are the most innovative and creative people in the world. Teachers pursue careers in education with a passion to reach students and unlock their potential—inspiring students to be prepared for 21^st century success. Technological innovation is moving at warp speed, and today’s students are engaged as digital natives on a level never imagined just a decade ago.

“When learning is personalized to the ability level, interests, learning style and expression style of each student, their capacity to learn and succeed improves”

The team at Compass Learning is excited about the opportunity to make learning personal for each and every student, while also empowering every teacher to do what they do best: help students learn. To that end, Compass Learning is launching a contest encouraging students, educators and the public to define the “Ideal Learning Environment.”

The Compass Learning “Ideal Learning Environment” video contest invites students, teachers and others with an interest in education to submit videos that describe their ideal learning environment. To enter, applicants must visit Compass Learning’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/CompassLearningInc) and click the “Like” button to get details. Contestants will submit video recordings through the contest platform that define or demonstrate their ideal learning environment—one that fosters creativity, sparks curiosity and encourages 21^st century skill development—and makes them want to learn.

“When learning is personalized to the ability level, interests, learning style and expression style of each student, their capacity to learn and succeed improves,” said Eric Loeffel, chief executive officer for Compass Learning. “We see students and teachers using our software, content and curriculum to personalize learning and achieve significant academic gains and personal growth by centering education on the individual needs and interests of each student. Now we want to hear how students and teachers would use personalized learning to create the ideal learning environment.”

Video entries may be as simple as a recording made on a cell phone or as elaborate as a produced video. Videos must be three minutes or less in length. The winner will be selected through a combination of public votes and a panel of judges. This will be a three-round selection process. The cash prize of $10,000 will go to the winning contestant; an additional award of $5,000 will go to: (1) the winning entrant’s school, if the entrant is a student; or (2) if the entrant is home-schooled or not a student, to a non-profit organization that supports educational programs, such as a children’s museum or library.

Finalists and other creative entries will be shown during Compass Learning’s meet-up and other events during SXSWedu in March of 2013. The videos will also be shared with education innovators, teachers, administrators and others with an interest in improving student learning to determine if the ideas can be implemented or supported across a broader educational spectrum and/or in classrooms across the country.

Judges for Compass Learning’s “Ideal Learning Environment” will be:

You, the public
Tom Vander Ark, founder, GettingSmart.com
Ron Reed, founder, SXSWedu
Tom Norris, executive director, Move Learning Forward Foundation
Ben Steinbauer, Patriot, heartbreaker, country doctor, happy eater and film director, writer
Ann Henson, vice president, curriculum and instruction, customer support and services, Compass Learning
Arthur VanderVeen, vice president of business strategy and development, Compass Learning
Kierstan Schwab, executive director, Texas PBS

About Compass Learning, Inc.

Compass Learning, Inc. provides K-12 educational software that empowers teachers to unlock every student’s potential for academic success and personal growth. Compass Learning takes a student-centered approach by providing comprehensive solutions that address the needs of every student and student-type to create personalized learning and differentiation programs that reach, engage and inspire students to succeed. Teachers and administrators can more efficiently and effectively manage and measure progress, freeing time to focus on delivering academic results. Both of the company’s software solutions, CompassLearning Odyssey® and the Renzulli Learning™ System deliver academic rigor that is based on more than 40 years of research into how students learn and are aligned to state and Common Core State Standards to support classroom and district accountability. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Compass Learning serves more than 7,800 schools across the United States.

1 – Center for American Progress, “Do Schools Challenge Our Students? By Ulrich Boser and Lindsay Rosenthal, July 10, 2010

2 – 2012 MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, March 2012

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