Memphis City Schools Choose Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Reading Programs and Learning Village Platform to Transform Learning through Technology
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt brings research-based reading education to Memphis with Destination Reading and Bailey’s Book House
MEMPHIS, Tenn.— January 13, 2010 — Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today announced that Memphis City Schools and HMH will begin partnering in the district’s aggressive Pre-K–3 Learning Continuum by adopting two of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s innovative reading programs, Destination Reading and Bailey’s Book House. The Memphis school district, which already uses Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Learning Village, is made up of more than 200 schools that educate 117,000 students.
“Providing young children with a solid foundation in literacy and mathematics in the first four years of their pre-collegiate education is the most important responsibility of Memphis City Schools,” said Irving Hamer, Deputy Superintendent for Academic Operations, Technology and Innovations. “By partnering with HMH, Memphis City Schools is positioned to deliver enriched, aligned and rigorous instructional content along with highly effective, value-added teaching, diagnostic and predictive data and individualized tracking and monitoring.”
Based on scientific research, Destination Reading is a powerful early literacy program that correlates to state standards and includes an explicit instructional pathway with frequent assessments to help guide individualized, data-driven instruction. Using proven technology, Destination Reading assesses, prescribes and engages students to increase reading proficiency. With Bailey’s Book House, students can access nine playful activities to learn about letter names and sounds, rhyming words, adjectives, how text relates to visual symbols, positional words, letter recognition and sentence building. The program helps build the language concepts and thinking skills students will need for future communication.
“Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is proud to partner with Memphis City Schools to positively impact reading habits in students,” said Mike Lavelle, K–12 President, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. “As a district that already utilizes the innovative Learning Village platform, the leadership in Memphis has clearly dedicated its efforts to enhance learning. These programs incorporate cutting-edge technology that engages students while laying a vital foundation for their future success.”
Both Destination Reading and Bailey’s Book House were chosen as ideal complements to the Pre-K–3 Learning Continuum employed by Memphis City Schools. By aligning curriculum, instruction and assessment from grades pre-K–3, these reading programs help students transition smoothly from grade to grade while providing teachers with the best in professional development. In addition to the reading programs, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has extended its commitment to the district by providing three full-time educational experts that have been on-site providing hands-on professional development since October 2009.
“When the 37,800 students in our Pre-K–3 Learning Continuum receive the high-quality education they need and deserve, they will graduate from high school and take advantage of post-secondary opportunities,” concluded Hamer.
For more information about Destination Reading, visit http://www.hmlt.hmco.com. For more information about Learning Village, visit: http://hmlt.hmco.com/LV.
About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Boston-based Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company is a global education leader and the world’s largest publisher of educational materials for pre-K–12 schools. The Company publishes a comprehensive set of best-in-class educational solutions, ranging from research-based textbook programs to instructional technology to standards-based assessments for students and educators. The Company also publishes an extensive line of reference works and award-winning literature for adults and young readers. With origins dating back to 1832, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt combines its tradition of excellence with a commitment to innovation. To learn more about Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, visit www.hmhpub.com.
CONTACT:
Josef Blumenfeld
Vice President, Communications
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
617-351-5432
josef.blumenfeld@hmhpub.com