Technology
Tech Impact Awards 2012: Education
By Gianni Truzzi September 12, 2012
Livemocha
1011 Western Ave., Seattle
Employees: 35
livemocha.com
Learning a language is best done through workaday practice and real conversation and this five-year-old company employs the models of social media to do just that. Livemocha combines proven teaching techniques with the power of the internet to connect language learners to other learners from more than 195 countries in a global online community. Students perform written and spoken exercises that are submitted to native speakers in the Livemocha community for feedback and tips. Learners can practice with others via text, video or audio chat at any time. Through partnerships with public libraries (including Seattles), schools in Brazil and word of mouth, Livemocha has grown its collaborative online community to 14 million members in more than 35 languages, bringing the world a little closer together.
Silver Award
Edvation
400 112th Ave. NE, Bellevue
Employees: 15
edvation.com
Edvations TechSteps is rooted in the conviction that students really need four Rs, not three: Reading, riting, rithmetic and reasoning. The technology literacy curriculum blends all core subject areas with technology instruction to teach the skills of todays workplace, including collaboration, innovation and higher-order thinking. The TechSteps program is used in more than 100 school districts nationwide to help elementary-, middle- and high-school students develop the thinking and reasoning skills needed for the 21st century.
Silver Award
Panopto
315 First Ave. S, Seattle
Employees: 50 (worldwide)
panopto.com
Panoptos software takes the idea of note sharing a step beyond the traditional, enabling universities to record and store classroom lectures, making them available to students on demand. Students can review lectures or view ones they are forced to miss, and professors can record supplementary material from anywhere. More than 400 universities worldwide use the service to encourage greater student engagement and higher academic achievement.