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Silver Spring, Md. (Aug. 26, 2013) - Forsyth County Schools, the ninth largest school system in Georgia, and Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content for K-12 classrooms, announced today an expansion of their partnership.  This expansion supports Forsyth County Schools' nationally recognized Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT) program, which encourages students to bring their personal technology tools to school for learning.

Forsyth County Schools began its BYOT initiative several years ago.  The initial pilot phase for BYOT involved 40 teachers in seven schools who explored innovative uses for students' technology tools through the 4 C's of Digital Age Learning - Creativity, Collaboration, Communication, and Critical Thinking. Over time, teachers have also developed strategies to address the following issues: equity of devices, responsible use, and classroom management.  Now, BYOT is supported in every school within the district, and as devices and tools continue to change, new instructional skills and strategies are evolving to promote their use.

Since 2001, Forsyth County Schools have used Discovery Education Streaming to transform teaching and learning in classrooms district-wide.  However, beginning in the 2013-2014 school year, Forsyth will begin implementingDiscovery Education Streaming Plus in all district classrooms as part of an effort to have students utilize their personal technology devices in school for collaboration, research, problem solving, content creation and more.  Discovery Education services have been designed to be cloud-based and platform neutral to work with any hardware - iPad, tablet, mobile device, laptop or desktop.

"We are pleased to expand our relationship with Discovery Education," said Dr. L.C. (Buster) Evans, superintendent of Forsyth County Schools. "While the device is an important component of our effort, it is world-class teaching and high-quality content that really engages students and facilitates the growth of the critical skills we know they need for college, careers and citizenship.  We will continue to look to Discovery Education to provide the videos, games, text and more that, when integrated effectively into instruction by great teachers, bring key ideas and concepts to life."

Discovery Education Streaming Plus features more than 155,000 dynamic digital learning objects that support all subject areas and learning styles, including videos, skill builders, games, audio files, images, writing prompts and encyclopedia articles. It also includes customized assessments as well as hundreds of model lessons and instructional exemplars.

In addition, interactive student features like My DE and Board Builder transform classrooms by creating an environment that encourages engagement, inquiry and creativity. My DE provides students individualized learning and exploration resources via different pathways through content. Board Builder enables students to create content by gathering evidence, forming arguments and supporting their claims.

Discovery Education Streaming Plus also saves teachers valuable time by putting curriculum, instruction and assessment resources all in one place. It also engages students with dynamic and interactive digital resources and promotes the development of literacy, critical thinking, problem solving and higher order thinking skills to prepare students for college, careers and citizenship.

"Discovery Education is proud to be a part of Forsyth County Schools' effort to leverage each student's personal technology to increase student learning," said Andy Schaefer, vice president, Discovery Education. "We look forward to continuing to collaborate with Dr. Evans and the entire Forsyth County team on our joint mission to accelerate achievement and inspire life-long learning."

The Discovery Educator Network (DEN) supports Forsyth County Schools' educators in their efforts to transform the learning experience with digital media.  A global community of education professionals, the DEN connects members across school systems and around the world through social media, virtual conferences, and in-person events, fostering valuable networking, idea sharing, and inspiration. 

School districts are invited to visit Forsyth County Schools to learn more about how they harness the power of BYOT in their schools.  More information about these tours can be found at BYOT Tours.

Visit www.discoveryeducation.com for more information about free Discovery Education Streaming Plus trials and other Discovery Education services and initiatives.

About Discovery Education

Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12, transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content that supports the implementation of Common Core, professional development, assessment tools, and the largest professional learning community of its kind.  Available in over half of all U.S. schools, community colleges and in 50 countries around the world, Discovery Education partners with districts, states and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that accelerate academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world, Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.