ECS Learning Systems Partners with Magic Software Inc. to Offer STAAR MASTER® eBooks Amid COVID Pandemic
Industry: Education
ECS has partnered with Magic Software to offer their market-leading STAAR MASTER® work-texts and practice tests on e-books and e-readers for the first time, in July 2020. This is in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures, as well as the recent guidance by TEA to Texas Schools for Fall 2020 school reopening.
San Antonio, TX (PRUnderground) June 9th, 2020
ECS Learning Systems, a San Antonio, Texas, based education company that has pioneered the Integrated Standards Prep™ approach, this week announced a strategic partnership with New York-based technology company, Magic Software to release eBooks, eReaders, and full-length, interactive, Practice Tests for the STAAR® in July 2020.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures, as well as the recent guidance by TEA for Texas Schools to consider alternative educational approaches for the fall 2020 semester, ECS has partnered with Magic Software to offer their market-leading STAAR MASTER® work-texts and practice tests on e-books and e-readers for the first time.
“It’s no secret we are enduring an incredibly unique, challenging, and pivotal moment in education today as we are encouraged to stay home to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” said David Cumberbatch, President, and CEO of ECS Learning Systems. “In an effort to make learning and instruction easier for Texas teachers, schools, and educational programs in 2020, we have teamed up with an acclaimed technology platform to take our educational solutions to the next virtual level.”
All STAAR MASTER® publications will be accessible to schools and students as e-books. These publications include Math, Reading, Writing, Social Studies, and Science for Grades 1-9, all 100% aligned to the current TEKS. Spanish language versions will also be available. Schools participating will be able to leverage the STAAR MASTER® Student Practice Book, Companion Work Text, and Quick Review in e-book format to facilitate hybrid and blended classroom introduction.
Notable benefits of the STAAR MASTER® eBook learning platform include: the ability to note-take, two-way messaging and sharing of notes with teachers; integrated learner engagement analytics and usage reporting; cloud-based web browser access; mobile apps for Android and Apple iOS devices with offline usage for students without broadband at home; and finally, text to speech for enhanced accessibility and ESL students.
Magic Software’s MagicBox platform is considered a leader in the remote Learning and digital content publishing space, delivering state-of-the-art learning experiences to over three million students globally. ECS’s new STAAR MASTER® eBook learning platform, powered by MagicBox, provides single-sign-on (SSO), online-offline access to e-books, and detailed learning analytics with COPPA and FERPA compliance. Despite the interoperability challenges in the K12 fragmented technology landscape, MagicBox ensures seamless integration into several LMS using LTI, as well as supports Clever, Google Classrooms, ClassLink, and OneRoster. MagicBox recently won the 2020 Gold Award from IMS Global Learning Consortium under its Learning Impacts Program.
“It was our intention to ensure that STAAR MASTER® eBooks reach all students easily. Our synchronization features simplify the onboarding process and allow the e-reader app to easily pull roster information from student information systems and share learning data with existing learning management infrastructures,” said Acky Kamdar, CEO of Magic Software. “We’re on a mission to ensure education doesn’t lag in the coming months, which is why digitizing all of these excellent assets is more important than ever.”
STAAR MASTER® eBooks will also include interactive Practice Tests that are integrated with learner analytics for instant scoring and analysis. Teachers will be able to assign Form A or B of the Practice Tests to students.
To learn more about the STAAR MASTER® eBook Learning platform, call 855-500-1640 or visit staarmaster.com.
For more information about ECS Learning Systems, visit ecslearn.com.
To learn more about Magic Software or MagicBox, visit magicedtech.com or getmagicbox.com.
About ECS Learning Systems
ECS Learning Systems, headquartered near San Antonio Texas, pioneered the Integrated Standards Prep™ approach in its quality education solutions that build core knowledge, are fully-aligned to state standards, and work to ensure students complete tests with confidence. Founded in 1982 in San Antonio, Texas, ECS Learning Systems is the Integrated Standards Prep company that helps over half a million students annually with STAAR MASTER®, TEST SMART®, and PREPWORKS®. Building on its strong presence in Texas with STAAR MASTER, the Company operates a line of Learning Centers under the TEST SMART brand and offers PREPWORKS® software solutions and worktexts nationwide. The Company offers computer adaptive learning solutions on the award-wining Learning Positioning System® (LPS).
