New York, NY—(May, 2006)—Schools in Miami-Dade's School Improvement Zone are seeing significant improvements in their students' performance on the FCAT Writing+ after participating in an innovative writing program. The program is directly aligned with the FCAT Writing+, and lets students practice writing essays both online and in paper-and-pencil format, while relieving teachers of the time-consuming task of scoring essays.

In January 2005, The Miami-Dade County Public School system, the nation's 4th largest school district, initiated the School Improvement Zone, consisting of 39 schools serving approximately 44,000 students. These schools were targeted based on their chronic low math, reading, and writing scores on the FCAT—53% of their students scored at a level I or II on the 2004 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). According to Florida's performance rating system, each school had received a D or an F for three years or more.

In May, 2005, Miami-Dade County Public Schools partnered with LearningExpress, LLC to improve students' performance on the FCAT Writing+ assessment. As a result, over 15,000 students in 5 grades throughout the Zone's elementary, middle and high schools responded to writing assessments directly aligned with Florida's Sunshine State Standards and the FCAT Writing+. Each student essay was scored professionally, and returned to the district within 3 days of its administration. Over 35,000 essays have been scored, and student responses, essay results, and diagnostic feedback have been accessible online to administrators and teachers for assessment, targeted remediation, and tracking. LearningExpress has also made it possible for each student's work to be collected in an online portfolio to track students' writing achievements as they advance from one grade level to the next.

All 12 of the Zone's middle schools improved their average scores on the FCAT Writing+, as well as their pass rates. The middle schools' average score improved from 3.4 in 2005 to 3.7 in 2006, while the percentage of students achieving a 3.5 or better (pass rate) improved by 10%, surpassing the average improvement rate of both the district and the state.

One middle school was able to improve its student pass rate on the FCAT Writing+ from 62% in 2005 to 87% in 2006: "The LearningExpress program has provided our teachers with critical feedback that has guided their writing instruction. As a result, this year 87% of our eighth grade students scored a 3.5 and above on the FCAT Writing+, while 68% achieved a score of 4.0. This is compared to only 32% scoring 4.0 the previous year. These scores are phenomenal and unprecedented at any inner city or Zone school in our district, let alone our state." said Edith Green, A.P. Curriculum, Charles Drew Middle School, Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

"We are pleased to work in close partnership with Miami-Dade County Public Schools to implement an effective, customized solution that meets the needs of the district's administrators, teachers, and students, improves students' writing achievements, and contributes to Miami-Dade's overall improvement goals," said Barry Lippman, CEO and President of LearningExpress.

About LearningExpress (www.LearningExpressLLC.com)
Founded in 1995, LearningExpress, LLC is a leading provider of print and online educational and professional resources that are used in over 4,000 libraries and 5,000 schools, and benefit over one million students, teachers, administrators and career professionals around the country. The company offers hundreds of interactive online practice tests and skill-building courses that improve achievement in the classroom and prepare students for high-stakes assessment tests, as well as a wide range of vocational resources from job-search tools to preparation for career certification and licensing exams.

For more information, contact Chris Atkins, Director of Marketing at catkins@learningexpressllc.com or call 800-295-9556, ext. 6438.