Arlington, VA, Dec. 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Located in northeast Ohio’s Mahoning Valley, Youngstown City School District (YCSD) is fulfilling its commitment to prepare students to be productive, responsible citizens of a global society by leveraging technology in its classrooms. Now, the school district’s world language program is expanding to offer Spanish language learning to students as young as five years old through a new partnership with Rosetta Stone (NYSE: RST), giving more than 3,100 students access to the trusted and recognized digital language learning program.
YCSD began implementation of Rosetta Stone Spanish to students in grades K-8 at the beginning of the 2017-18 school year in an effort to introduce world languages to students as early as possible in their academic career. The ten schools participating in the program include Harding Elementary, Kirkmere Elementary, Martin Luther King Elementary, Paul C. Bunn Elementary, Rayen Early College, Taft Elementary, Volney Elementary, McGuffey Elementary, Williamson Elementary and Wilson Elementary. Previously, world language was offered beginning in the third grade; the new program with Rosetta Stone allows for more additional young learners than ever before to gain exposure to a new language.
“Following the success of our world language program for students in grades 3-12, we felt it was extremely important that all students, no matter their age, have the option to explore a new language,” said Youngstown CEO, Krish Mohip. “It’s critical that our kids are armed with the tools they need to compete in today’s global workforce, and partnering with Rosetta Stone affords our youngest learners a head start and get them excited about future language learning courses.” Students have access to Rosetta Stone in the classroom on a weekly basis as part of their “specials” rotation, much like they do music or physical education. While in their language rotation, students receive guided instruction from a language teacher in a blended environment, or a teacher who has been trained using the Rosetta Stone program. Students in grades K-2 access the program via iPad, while students in grades 3-8 use Chromebooks.
“There are countless benefits to learning a new language early in life – from heightened academic achievement to improved cognitive abilities,” said Matt Hulett, President of Language at Rosetta Stone. “We applaud Youngstown for their commitment to ensuring their students are prepared for college and career in the 21st century by equipping them with foreign language skills starting in their very first days in a classroom.”
The school district is also offering Rosetta Stone English to elementary English language learners (ELLs) to assist in their language acquisition. Youngstown hopes to expand the digital language learning program to other languages such as French, Italian or German in the coming years. For more information regarding Youngstown City School District and other school districts’ learning implementations, please visit www.rosettastone.com/education.
About Youngstown City School District
The Youngstown City School District, in partnership with parents and the community, is a beacon of hope, committed to academic excellence and preparing all learners to become productive, responsible citizens of a global society.
The YCSD will be a source of pride for the entire Mahoning Valley, with its buildings functioning as hubs of academic and community activities throughout the year. Employing state-of-the-art technology, research-based educational practices, and partnerships with parents and the community, all learners will meet and surpass state standards, and the YCSD will be a model of success as an academic and community resource.
About Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE: RST) is dedicated to changing people’s lives through the power of language and literacy education. The company’s innovative digital solutions drive positive learning outcomes for the inspired learner at home or in schools and workplaces around the world.
Founded in 1992, Rosetta Stone’s language division uses cloud-based solutions to help all types of learners read, write, and speak more than 30 languages. Lexia Learning, Rosetta Stone's literacy education division, was founded more than 30 years ago and is a leader in the literacy education space. Today, Lexia helps students build fundamental reading skills through its rigorously researched, independently evaluated, and widely respected instruction and assessment programs.
For more information, visit www.rosettastone.com. “Rosetta Stone” is a registered trademark or trademark of Rosetta Stone Ltd. in the United States and other countries.