Kentucky Educational Television and Discovery Education Renew Multiyear Partnership Providing Students Statewide with High-Quality Digital Content

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:
Stephen Wakefield, Discovery Education
(240) 662-2893
[email protected]

Sandy Fash, C. Blohm & Associates
608-839-9800
[email protected]

Silver Spring, Md. (Aug. 12, 2010) –Discovery Education and Kentucky Educational Television (KET) have agreed to a multiyear extension of its five-year partnership providing Discovery Education content to all public schools in the state. KET delivers Discovery Education content through their KET EncycloMedia service.

“During the five years of our collaboration, KET EncycloMedia’s high-quality digital content has become a critical tool educators across this state use each day to engage students in learning and to improve academic achievement,” said KET Executive Director Shae Hopkins. “We are pleased to continue offering Discovery Education content as a core component of the KET EncycloMedia service.”

KET is Kentucky’s most accessible and comprehensive educational institution, and a leading example of how statewide public television can work with education systems to improve teachers’ skills and students’ learning. KET’s PreK-12 educational resources – all aligned to Kentucky academic standards – are used by 97 percent of Kentucky public schools. KET also produces and delivers Kentucky-focused arts, cultural, documentary, and public affairs productions , as well as PBS programming and adult education programs to viewers throughout Kentucky and in parts of seven surrounding states.

KET EncycloMedia, which is produced and delivered by KET and the Kentucky Department of Education, features Discovery Education content and offers teachers and students more than 125,000 digital learning objects, including videos, interactives, images, articles, and more, that integrate seamlessly into existing curriculum. Aligned to Kentucky standards and assessments, and searchable by keyword, content area and grade level, KET EncycloMedia provides educators throughout the commonwealth with the digital content and resources they need to engage 21st century students in learning.

“Ensuring Kentucky’s educators and students have relevant, appropriate and engaging instructional materials is a key goal of the Department of Education,” commented David Couch, Kentucky Department of Education Chief Information Officer. “We believe strongly in the power of digital content and educational technologies to reach today’s students in the digital world they inhabit, and we are pleased to continue our partnership with KET and Discovery Education.”

Kentucky is one of the largest single-state users of digital content in the nation. In May of this year, KET, the Kentucky Department of Education, Discovery Education and Kentucky educators statewide celebrated the 5 millionth view of educational on-demand videos from KET EncycloMedia with a series of activities featuring Discovery Education’s Chief Spokesperson for Environmental Education, Philippe Cousteau.

“The tremendous use of KET EncycloMedia by students and teachers across the state is a testament to how embedded in instruction this service has become,” said Andy Schaefer, Discovery Education Vice President. “Discovery Education looks forward to continuing our partnership with KET and the Kentucky Department of Education, and to working together on our joint mission to improve student academic achievement.”

For more information on Discovery Education, please visit www.discoveryeducation.com or call 800-323-9084.

About Discovery Education
Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISAD, DISBD, DISCK) revolutionized television with Discovery Channel and is now transforming classrooms through Discovery Education. Powered by the number one nonfiction media company in the world, Discovery Education combines scientifically proven, standards-based digital media and a dynamic user community in order to empower teachers to improve student achievement. Already, more than half of all U.S. schools access Discovery Education digital services. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com.

About KET
As a leader in lifelong learning, KET is in every Kentucky community providing in-school and at-home educational programs for children and adults, as well as professional development seminars for educators and training programs for child care providers. As Kentucky’s only statewide public media resource, KET serves the Commonwealth via digital and high-definition broadcast technology, producing and presenting programming unique to Kentucky. Learn more at www.ket.org .

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