SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Of the more than 500,000 young U.S. elementary students using Waterford Institute’s Waterford Early Learning education software, more than 100,000 have moved to the cloud version since it was first made available in January 2014 — and that number is increasing quickly.
“We are seeing exciting growth in the number of students, teachers and school districts across the U.S. using the Waterford curriculum,” said Benjamin Heuston, Ph.D., president and COO of Waterford Institute, a nonprofit research center. “The cloud makes it easier and more cost effective for classrooms to access and use Waterford for their early learning programs. It also makes it much easier for us to provide support for our users.”
Waterford Early Learning is a reading, math and science program for preschool through second grade. Its digital-based curriculum utilizes adaptive learning software to personalize learning for each child’s pace and level. Made up of thousands of interactive activities, illustrated books and fun songs, this program has won awards such as ISTE Best in Show, Parents for Choice in Education and SIIA’s CODiE finalist in multiple categories.
In early 2014, Waterford moved its curriculum to a new web-based Software as a Service (SaaS) model. Schools only need a computer with Internet to access Waterford in the cloud — making it the only comprehensive curriculum delivered fully in the cloud.
With cloud-based curriculum, Waterford helps schools reduce their overall curriculum, reporting, hardware and IT maintenance costs, and more easily access and use Waterford’s standards-aligned, research-proven software.
Additionally, Waterford Institute recently made its first move in making the curriculum completely mobile with the release of its first mobile app, MyBackpack. The app allows students to access select learning activities from the convenience of an iPad. Eventually, the entire curriculum will be available from any device that has Internet access.
MyBackpack is available for free directly from the App Store. Schools, school districts, teachers and others can get more information about subscribing to WEL at the Waterford Institute website www.waterford.org.
About Waterford
Waterford Institute is a nonprofit research center that creates personalized cloud-based instruction through award-winning curriculum, content and assessment for children aged pre-K through 2nd grade. As a nonprofit, Waterford is uniquely focused on providing accessibility, equity and excellence for our youngest learners to position them for a lifetime of learning and success. For more information, visit www.waterford.org or call 801-349-2200.
