Istation Spanish language program honored in "Upper Elementary" category
DALLAS, October 23, 2018 — Istation, a Dallas-based education technology company, has taken top honors for its Spanish language learning program in the 22nd annual Education Software Review Awards, also known as the EDDIE Awards.
Istation Español won the award in the "Upper Elementary" category. ComputED Gazette presents the EDDIE Awards annually in an effort to "target innovative and content-rich programs and websites (including apps for iOS and Android) that augment classroom curriculum and improve teacher productivity, providing parents and teachers with the technology to foster educational excellence."
"Fostering educational excellence is in our DNA," said Richard H. Collins, Istation Chairman and CEO. "Our work in reading, math, and Spanish language programs are designed to give teachers and students the tools they need to ensure every child can reach their potential. We are honored by this award and are very pleased our work to improve education is recognized."
Spanish language educators designed Istation Español and ISIP™ Español, Istation’s Indicators of Progress assessment that measures student growth with engaging, computer-adaptive diagnostic and screening programs.
Istation Español is an intervention reading program that teaches bilingual students the foundational literacy skills in their native language. Bilingual students learn the skills that help them be successful readers. These skills can then be transferred to English.
"Istation Español is a comprehensive Spanish literacy solution for any dual-language program regardless of the model being implemented," said Liliana Suero, the manager of the Spanish Curriculum Team at Istation who has led the team for the last six years.
"Our program is both culturally relevant and authentic, meaning we do not translate from English. Our goal is to empower bilingual educators with lessons that are simple, practical, and easy to implement in any classroom setting. Plus, we make it fun and engaging for the students."
"As former bilingual educators, we know that students usually have a hard time identifying the different types of genres. Teaching genres bridges the gap between home and school because analyzing the text students see at school, validates the text they see at home. Istation Español Lectura Avanzada was intentionally designed after receiving feedback from many focus groups consisting of administrators and experienced educators."
Ultimately, Lectura Avanzada brings Istation Español full circle. While in Lectura Temprana students learn how to read, in Lectura Avanzada students read to learn, Suero said.
This is not the first EDDIE Award Istation has won. In 2016, the company’s reading and math programs were honored in the "Early Elementary" category, while their early reading program was honored in the "Early Learning" category. Istation products have now won EDDIE Awards at every educational level at which they are used.
Istation’s innovative reading, math and Spanish programs are aligned with state educational standards and use award-winning animations and content to immerse students in an engaging and interactive environment that inspire them to learn.
Istation is available across a number of platforms, meaning that households with just about any type of computing capacity can access lessons at home. In addition, Collins said dual-language learning is not just for students who come to school speaking Spanish; it helps native English language students too.
About Istation
Founded in 1998 and based in Dallas, Texas, Istation (Imagination Station) has become one of the nation's leading providers of richly animated, game-like educational technology. Winner of several national educational technology awards, the Istation program puts more instructional time in the classroom through small-group and collaborative instruction. Istation's innovative reading, math and Spanish programs immerse students in an engaging and interactive environment and inspire them to learn. Additionally, administrators and educators can use Istation to easily track the progress of their students, schools and classrooms. Istation now serves over 4 million students throughout the United States and in several other countries.