ePals Announces Commercial Launch of New Learning Products in China
November 27 2013 - 5:02AM
Marketwired
ePals Announces Commercial Launch of New Learning Products in China
First School Customers in Shenyang Have Subscribed to Curricula
and Collaboration Tools for Safe, Global, Skills-Based Learning
WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwired - Nov 27, 2013) - ePals Corporation
(TSX-VENTURE: SLN), an education media company and leading Global
Learning Network, today announced the commercial launch in China of
a new product line for collaborative learning through its joint
venture NeuPals, as well as the first customers for this offering
in a district of over 10,000 students in the city of
Shenyang. NeuPals' new products -- the result of two years of
planning and pilots -- provide Chinese schools with curricula,
media products and collaborative experiences with other schools
around the world. The product line promotes cultural
understanding, provides language learning practice and builds
skills that meet the new innovative teaching and learning goals set
by China's Ministry of Education as well as U.S. Common Core State
Standards.
The NeuPals launch in Shenyang was developed in cooperation with
the city's Hunnan District Bureau of Education. Currently, six
schools in the Hunnan District have signed three-year contracts
with ePals/NeuPals to provide the products via monthly
subscription. The agreements signed by the schools include approval
for NeuPals to offer premium services, such as ePals Media digital
children's content.
Approximately 50 percent of all classrooms in the Hunnan
district are being paired with U.S. classrooms from across 20
states for online exchanges. The program, which represents an
important source of revenue growth for the NeuPals joint venture,
is intended to expand throughout the 2013-2014 school year and into
fall 2014. Students, teachers and parents will be using the
ePals safe, policy-managed platform to exchange emails, documents
and live streaming video to share information about each other's
cultures, including traditions, holidays, music, cuisine and
everyday life.
China represents a rapidly expanding marketplace, where schools
and parents have shown enthusiasm for purchasing digital services
that increase their students' academic performance. The new
product line allows NeuPals to immediately support the Chinese
Ministry of Education's 2010-2020 Medium and Long-term National
Educational Reform and Development Plan, a strategy to promote
openness in the Chinese education system, elevate the level of
internationalization and enhance global collaboration and
communication. The ePals/NeuPals products are designed to directly
support the 10-year initiative, aiming to impact more than 150
million Chinese students from primary through secondary levels.
"We are extremely excited about the launch of this innovative
new product line for global learning in China," says ePals
President and COO, Katya Andresen. "It is a significant
accomplishment to be one of the first U.S. companies accepted into
Chinese schools, and we are working closely with NeuPals to ensure
as many students as possible in both China and the United States
gain access to this offering."
Says NeuPals CEO, Charles Dou, "The
Chinese Ministry of Education is dedicated to finding new ways of
motivating students, empowering teachers and engaging parents. The
ePals global platform, rich digital content and exploratory
learning model is opening up a new world of possibilities for all
of our learners and providing them with the broader world vision
necessary to become successful global citizens."
Administrators, teachers and parents in Hunnan District schools
are enthusiastic about the program. "The program increases
students' and parents' exposure to international schools, classes
and students, and allows them to share their education philosophy
and ideas," says Lei Jun, the Headmaster of Hunnan Number 1 Middle
School.
About ePals Corporation
ePals Corporation (TSX-VENTURE: SLN) is an education media
company and leading Global Learning Network. Focused on the K-12
market, ePals offers school administrators, teachers, students and
parents worldwide trusted content, interactive learning
experiences, and a collaborative learning community. ePals'
award-winning products include: popular children's educational
publishing brands from toddlers to teens, including Cricket® and
Cobblestone®; the ePals Global Community®; and In2Books®, a common
core eMentoring program that builds reading, writing and critical
thinking skills. ePals also offers SchoolMail365 and
ToolsforSchool.com, a teaching resource marketplace connecting
educators to classroom-tested content. Also new is a full service
content-licensing, clearance and production service for education
publishers. ePals serves approximately one million classrooms and
reaches millions of teachers, students and parents in 222 countries
and territories. Product websites include: www.ePals.com;
www.Cricketmag.com; In2Books.com; and www.ToolsforSchool.com.
ePals Media Contact: Susan McLester smclester@corp.epals.com
Investor Relations Contact: Cory Pala Investor Relations Phone:
(416) 657-2400 cpala@corp.epals.com
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