SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, education technology non-profit TalkingPoints announced that it has expanded reach more than 6x since March 2020, connecting more than 3 million teachers and families, and enabling 100 million conversations, in 100 languages. The organization also announced expanded and new partnerships with leading national funders including Google.org, Carnegie Corporation, Cisco, Overdeck Family Foundation and Schmidt Futures, among others, and several of the country's largest school districts including Oakland Unified, Boston Public Schools, Pittsburgh Public Schools and North Carolina’s Wake County Public School System, among others.
Founded to help teachers connect with families--particularly those of under-resourced and non-English speaking backgrounds--TalkingPoints multilingual platform uses human and AI-powered, two-way translated communication to deliver information and personalized content, via web and mobile apps and through text messages. The platform also delivers scaffolded, guided content and eliminates language barriers, fostering strong collaboration to improve students’ academic success.
“By enabling teachers and families to build relationships across language, technological and cultural barriers through the TalkingPoints platform, we have made a measurable impact, empowering parents to be more involved in their children’s education, which in turn makes a positive impact on student outcomes,” said Heejae Lim, Founder of TalkingPoints.
“In a time when effective family-school partnerships are paramount to enable hybrid learning and to further mitigate learning loss, TalkingPoints is the missing layer between teacher and family communication for families who have traditionally faced barriers to being involved in their child’s education,” said Kumar Garg, Managing Director and Head of Partnerships, Schmidt Futures. “We are proud to support an organization that is taking a data-driven approach in responding to the impact of COVID-19 on students and building a strong foundation for future learning,” Garg added.
Research shows that when families have access to information and the tools to engage, it positively impacts their child's education--from attendance to homework accountability, and many of the other services upon which they may rely. A recent survey found that in COVID-19 remote learning environments, 96% of teachers found TalkingPoints helpful in improving student behaviors, engagement, homework and attendance. TalkingPoints also increased family engagement for 100% of non-English speaking parents and 87% of all parents, resulting in an increase in school-related dialogues with kids.
About TalkingPoints
TalkingPoints is an education technology non-profit with a mission to drive student success by using accessible technology to unlock the potential of family engagement in children’s education. Our multilingual technology platform connects and empowers families and teachers by using human and AI-powered, two-way translated communication and personalized content. This unique approach eliminates barriers including language, time, mindsets, and capacity to foster strong family engagement in development of students’ academic success. To date, TalkingPoints has connected more than 3 million teachers and families and enabled 100 million conversations in 100 languages. For more information visit Talkingpts.org.
Media Contact:
Liz Scanlon: liz@talkingpts.org
510.295.7542
Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
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