The new student reading app Sora, audiobooks and growing digital libraries lead to students reading more

 

CLEVELAND – January 28, 2019 – Digital books are a powerful educational tool, providing students with the opportunity to improve their literacy and learn anytime, anywhere. The popularity of digital books is soaring: usage of ebooks and audiobooks in K-12 classrooms and libraries grew 46% in 2018. Now, eight millions students from 17,000 districts and schools have the opportunity to access digital books through Sora, the new student reading app from OverDrive Education.

Sessions at this week’s Future of Education Technology Conference (FETC) at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando (Booth #638) will demonstrate how Sora and digital books contributed to the growth by serving the changing needs of students and educators (complete schedule here). OverDrive Education, the leading global digital reading platform for K-12, will also share best practices and highlights, such as the lists below.

The top five ebooks for K-12 students in 2018:
1. Wonder, R. J. Palacio
2. The Maze Runner, James Dashner
3. Big Nate Makes a Splash, Lincoln Peirce
4. Big Nate Makes the Grade, Lincoln Peirce
5. The Hate U Give, Angie Thomas

The top five audiobooks for K-12 students in 2018:
1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J. K. Rowling
2. A Wrinkle In Time, Madeleine L’engle
3. The Lightning Thief, Lincoln Peirce
4. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J. K. Rowling
5. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J. K. Rowling

Sora, launched at the beginning of this school year, contributed to record-breaking digital book adoption by giving more students access to ebooks and audiobooks. The OverDrive Education catalog now consists of two million ebooks and audiobooks in virtually all subjects. Through the app, students have easy access to both the school’s and local public library’s vast digital collections anytime, anywhere. Students also benefit from personalized learning tools like dyslexic font, exportable notes and highlights, built-in dictionary and Google Translate. Each student can also see the total number of books they’ve opened, total time they’ve read, reading streak and average time per session, while teachers can view this data on an aggregate level.

Visit FETC Booth #638 from January 28-30 to hear educators share how they are using their digital reading platform and Sora to improve reading engagement and education:

  • I Had No Idea: Promotion Ideas to Grow Your Digital Library – Monday at 4:30pm
  • Listen Up: Audiobooks for All of Your Learners – Tuesday at 11am
  • Start With Reading: Use Sora to Engage Your Youngest Readers – Tuesday at 12:30pm
  • Sora is Your School’s Secret to Reading Engagement
    • Tuesday at 11:00 am & 3:30pm
    • Wednesday at 10:00am
  • All Ages Show! One Digital Reading Platform for Every Member of Your School Community – Wednesday at 12:30pm
  • Cutting The Red Tape: Use OverDrive to Your Advantage – Wednesday at 3:30pm

For more information about OverDrive’s service for schools, visit overdrive.com/schools and FETC Booth #638.

 

About OverDrive Education – a division of OverDrive

OverDrive Education is the leading global digital reading platform for K-12, offering the industry’s largest catalog of eBooks, audiobooks and streaming video. As a 100% digital company serving 43,000 libraries and schools worldwide, OverDrive combines technology with content to support learning and reading in the classroom, library and home on all major devices, including iOS®, Android™, Chromebook™, and Kindle® (U.S. only). Founded in 1986, OverDrive and OverDrive Education are based in Cleveland, Ohio USA, and owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten. www.overdrive.com/schools

Contact:
David Burleigh
Director of Brand Marketing & Communications
dburleigh@overdrive.com

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