World-leading education providers Hitachi and Encyclopædia Britannica partner to offer schools exclusive e-learning package

Guiding schools on an interactive learning adventure, Encyclopædia Britannica (www.britannica.co.uk) has partnered with Hitachi Software Engineering to supply a unique e-learning package. All Hitachi’s interactive whiteboard (IWB) users can receive a three-month free trial of Britannica Online School Edition – an award-winning, internationally recognised resource, downloadable through a pre-installed link. Schools already owning a Hitachi IWB can register by visiting http://www.hitachisoft-eu.com/en/customer_services/educators_resources/Encyclopaedia_Britannica1.php. Teachers will receive free online demonstrations as part of the trial.

Providing a safe and secure place for students and teachers to find credible materials, Encyclopædia Britannica Online School Edition offers thousands of expertly written, fact-checked and professionally edited articles, educationally-mapped videos and animations, eye-catching illustrations and interactive games. Students and teachers can log on to access Bill Clinton’s latest article about the Middle East, extracts about capital punishment, exile and banishment by Geoffrey Abbott, a former Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London, and an article about the history of Facebook.

Britannica Online School Edition is the ideal content companion to schools’ Hitachi IWBs as it can be accessed directly from within the latest StarBoard software version 9.2, providing easy access to a wide range of interactive lesson materials. At the click of a mouse, teachers can access thousands of graphics, videos, audio clips, interactive games and quizzes, searching by key stage or topic, to create inspirational lessons and deliver them with ease using the IWB. Alternatively, teachers can use Britannica’s ready-made lesson plans to save time.

Supporting inclusivity for students with learning difficulties or English as a second language, Britannica has introduced a text-to-speech facility for primary schools which allows pupils to choose to have articles read aloud to them. It also addresses the need for personalised learning by allowing children of all abilities to learn at their own pace. Furthermore, it encourages learning to continue at home through a remote access function.

Ian Grant, Managing Director of Encyclopædia Britannica UK & EMEA, comments: “We are excited about offering schools this special e-learning package which combines Hitachi’s reputable interactive whiteboards with exceptional digital content from Encyclopædia Britannica. We are delighted to be able to offer schools already using StarBoard the opportunity to trial Britannica Online and we urge new customers to take advantage of this exclusive offer”.

Tomohiro Uchida, Systems Engineer at Hitachi Software Engineering, adds: “We are experiencing a growing demand for whiteboards capable of encouraging creativity and flexibility in the classroom, rather than simply being used as a display tool. Partnering with such a highly regarded, trusted brand as Encyclopædia Britannica will immensely enhance Hitachi’s offering to education by helping to improve innovative teaching methods.”

For further information or to request a free trial please visit http://www.hitachisoft-eu.com/en/customer_services/educators_resources/Encyclopaedia_Britannica1.php or contact Tomohiro Uchida at Hitachi on t: 0207 246 6868, e: t-uchida@hitachisoft-eu.com.

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About Encyclopædia Britannica Online School Edition:

Written and edited to the age-appropriate reading and knowledge levels, Britannica Online School Edition includes the ‘Britannica Learning Zone’ which  incorporates fun and informative activities for early learners while addressing numeracy, literacy and ICT development; ‘Primary Britannica’ which establishes basic research skills and inspires continuous discovery; ‘Britannica Student’ which builds confidence and research skills and introduces the personal workspace; and ‘Encyclopaedia Britannica’ for fast, detailed, up-to-date information for teachers and students 16 years and above.

Background on Encyclopædia Britannica and Hitachi:

Encyclopaedia Britannica has been a leader in reference and education publishing since 1768. Britannica has been a pioneer in electronic publishing since the early 1980s. It publishes products which can be found in a variety of media, from the internet to mobile phones to books.

Britannica School Edition is a unique, up-to-date, online resource designed to satisfy the learning needs of school pupils and teachers. Text, illustrations, multimedia and interactive games are curriculum-specific and help make learning fun.  The secure search facility allows pupils to find what they are looking for quickly and safely with no risk of questionable online content – all in a language that they can understand.  Britannica Online - clear, current and correct – brings all the authority and scholarship of Encyclopædia Britannica to the classroom.  

Hitachi Software Engineering develops advanced interactive communications tools for education, including interactive whiteboards, plasma displays and tablets all powered by the company’s category-leading StarBoard software.

 Over the past three years, Hitachi has seen a massive demand for interactive whiteboards throughout EMEA as this type of technology becomes standard for classrooms throughout the world.