Re Contract

RM PLC 26 October 2000 RM awarded government contract to pilot IT-based mathematics digital learning service for 11-to-14 year olds RM plc, the leading supplier of ICT to UK education, today announced that it has been awarded a Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) contract to develop a digital learning service for Key Stage 3 mathematics. The contract is part of a £5m DfEE initiative to develop technology-based courses in three key curriculum areas. The RM digital learning service - which will be called mathsAlive! - builds on RM's existing strengths in producing interactive content for maths education and will further develop the Group's expertise in creating whole programmes of learning. 3T Productions, RM's interactive web design subsidiary, will produce new interactive content for the service. The DfEE announced its plans to pilot Key Stage 3 digital learning services in January 2000. The pilot is intended to trial year-long courses delivered predominantly through IT and addresses three specific curriculum areas - a core subject (mathematics), a teacher-shortage area (Latin) and a modern foreign language (Japanese). RM was awarded the mathematics contract following an open competition that attracted the attention of a wide range of established educational publishers. RM's digital learning service will be developed in conjunction with leading educationalists and teachers and will be based on the new National Numeracy Strategy's teaching framework for Year 7. The pilot programme will include 20 schools and will run from October 2000 through to the summer term of next year. Richard Girling, Chief Executive of RM plc, commented: 'RM already has a widely used range of interactive mathematics learning technologies that is transforming traditional teaching methods. mathsAlive! takes this one step further and pioneers the use of IT to deliver substantially all of a Key Stage 3 mathematics course. We're delighted to be working with the DfEE to push forward the frontiers of teaching and learning in the UK.' 'This project is also an excellent example of the new areas of activity that RM can address following the acquisition of 3T. RM's curriculum and classroom technology expertise, combined with 3T's design and web skills, positions us well to develop this kind of service.' Further Information * The course will include complete sets of materials for whole class teaching using interactive whiteboards, individual work on and off the computer in class and for homework, Internet based project work, and computer based assessments of progress. * mathsAlive! complements RM's existing range of mathematics learning products and services, which includes RM Maths Learning System, SuccessMaker, CCC Destinations, Riverdeep Destination and RM Easiteach * The DfEE pilot is intended to develop technology-rich methods for delivering programmes of learning as an alternative to traditional approaches. The DfEE's Key Stage 3 Educational Service Pilot Prospectus states: 'Traditionally, there have been few attempts to produce whole courses (as long as a term or a year) which could be accessible through ICT...The DfEE is keen to stimulate the further development of innovative educational content that utilises the full range of available technologies to support the raising of standards and widens access to the opportunities offered by ICT...The pilot projects will point towards imaginative ways in which ICT integrated into the classroom can be used in the future to drive up standards, contributing towards an enriched vision of how education will be delivered in the future...A range of Key Stage 3 courses delivered predominantly through ICT will be a major addition to the Government's educational ICT agenda..' For further information contact: Mike Greig/Phil Hemmings RM plc 01235 826000 Andrew Fenwick/Deborah Done Brunswick 0207 404 5959

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