Vantage Learning's `MY Access!'(TM) Selected as Finalist in Two 20th Annual Codie Awards Categories

Vantage Learning's `MY Access!'(TM) Selected as Finalist in Two 20th Annual Codie Awards Categories For Third Consecutive Year, Vantage Learning's Online Writing Assessment Program Vies For 'Best Secondary Education Instructional Tool Award'; This Year It's Also Competing for 'Best English Language Learning Instructional Solution' NEWTOWN, Pa., Jan. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- For the third year in a row, Vantage Learning (http://www.vantagelearning.com/), the world's leading provider of online assessment tools, announced that the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) has chosen Vantage Learning's "MY Access!" as a finalist for the annual Codie Awards; this time competing in two categories. The Codie Awards showcase the industry's finest products and services, celebrate outstanding achievement and vision, and provide the only peer recognition program of its kind. MY Access! 5.0 is an online, portfolio-based writing instruction program that allows students and teachers to track student writing progress over time. It was selected by Codie Awards judges as a finalist in the "Best Secondary Instructional Solution: Language Arts/English" and "Best English Language Learning Instruction Solution" categories. Using MY Access!, students can write, review, and revise their work, as well as receive diagnostic feedback on several important writing dimensions, from organization to mechanics. Teachers can then review students' work and provide additional feedback. The "Best Secondary Education Instructional Solution: Language Arts/English Award" recognizes the best school-based education technology solution for language arts and English curriculum or content for students in grades 7-12. The award for the "Best Instructional Solution for English Language Learners" highlights the best product specifically designed to benefit students with limited English proficiency or students studying English as a Second Language (ESL). "The 20th Annual Codie Awards continues a tradition of honoring the best software, content, and education technology industries," says Ken Wasch, SIIA President. "When one considers the number of outstanding companies that competed this year, being named a Codie Award finalist, in multiple categories, is a significant achievement." Version 5.0 of MY Access! adds more customization features that allow teachers to align assessments with individual state rubrics, and tailor the teaching and learning environments to students' specific needs. Administrators can review student writing in a new reporting engine that enables drilling down into weak and strong skills by domain. "Vantage Learning is thrilled to be the only writing assessment program nominated by SIIA for two prestigious Codie Awards," says Scott Elliot, COO of Vantage Learning. "We look forward to continuing to deliver the industry's best online assessment platform, and provide students with a virtual writing tutor that automatically adapts to their individual needs." MY Access! is based on Vantage Learning's IntelliMetric(TM) engine, which uses a rich blend of artificial intelligence and expert knowledge to accurately assess students' competency and progress, in subjects ranging from reading and writing, to science, to social studies. In version 5.0, the IntelliMetric engine has been enhanced with "adaptive response technology" that differentiates feedback provided to students based on their writing and native language. IntelliMetric is also now capable of scoring essays with accurate feedback in over 20 languages. The 20th Annual Codie Awards Gala will be held on May 25, 2005 at Universal Studio's Globe Theater in Universal City, CA during the SIIA 2004 Annual Conference. For more information on the Codie Awards, please visit http://www.siia.net/codies/2005. About MY Access! MY Access! is a web-based assessment and diagnostic writing environment that scores student essays instantly and provides individualized instruction that engages and motivates students to improve their writing proficiency. The robust online reporting feature provides up-to-the-minute student performance data, enabling teachers to make timely, data-driven decisions for successful differentiated instruction. MY Access! analyzes more than 300 semantic, syntactic and discourse characteristics and provides a holistic score as well as domain scores for five major areas: focus and meaning, organization, content and development, language use and style, and mechanics and conventions. About Vantage Learning Vantage Learning (http://www.vantagelearning.com/), an affiliate of Vantage Laboratories and the leading provider of online assessment and automated essay scoring, developed IntelliMetric to meet the needs of business, education, and government agencies needing a comprehensive Internet-based test authoring, delivery, scoring and reporting platform. IntelliMetric administers and scores responses to open-ended questions over the Internet using advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technology. An individual can enter a response to a question posed, submit the response, and receive an immediate score with feedback within seconds. Most recently, Vantage Learning's MY Access! won the 2004 Award of Excellence from Technology and Learning Magazine, and Eduventures selected Vantage Learning as one of the eight most innovative educational technology companies. In addition, MY Access! was included in Technology and Learning Magazine's Top 10 Smart Technologies for Schools in 2002, and is a Codie Awards finalist three years in a row. Vantage Learning provides services in all 50 states including Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Virginia, Oregon, and Texas and provides services to educational leaders such as The College Board, ACT, Harcourt Assessment, Inc., CTB/McGraw Hill and Thomson Learning, and industry giants such as Microsoft, Apple Computer, AOL, and Sun Microsystems. Source: Vantage Learning CONTACT: Tim Cifelli, +1-610-642-8253, Tim@GregoryFCA.com, for Vantage Learning; or Harry Barfoot, Vantage Learning, +1-215-579-8390, HBarfoot@Vantage.com Web site: http://www.siia.net/codies/2005 Web site: http://www.vantagelearning.com/ ------- Profile: International Entertainment