News

IBM and MediaSpark Deliver Advanced Technology to Ontario Schools

Simulation software used to help students grow finance and business skills

MARKHAM, ON and SYDNEY, NS, March 23 /CNW/ - IBM (NYSE: IBM) and MediaSpark Inc. have won a national tender to provide 900 Ontario schools with educational games and simulation software designed to sharpen their business and financial skills as they prepare to meet the growing demands of the 21st Century.

Four of MediaSpark''s GoVenture educational games and simulation software solutions will provide students from grades seven to 12 with highly realistic simulations emphasizing Entrepreneurship, Accounting, Financial Literacy, and Personal Finance skills.

"Games and simulations are revolutionizing education," says Mathew Georghiou, CEO of MediaSpark Inc. "We are encouraged to see Ontario take a leadership role in adopting new methods of learning. Not only will these simulations help Ontario students, but we believe they have the potential to play an important role in enhancing the grassroots entrepreneurial culture in Ontario, resulting in future prosperity."

Learners gain experience by being immersed in simulated worlds created with advanced experiential learning and gaming techniques. For example, in the Entrepreneurship module, students learn how to run a clothing or sporting goods store by testing their abilities with scenarios that map to real challenges faced by new entrepreneurs. They conduct business, get advice, attend training seminars or sell their companies. In the Personal Finance module, students live up to 50 years of their financial futures, virtually, making decisions about money and credit.

"Today''s students are demanding more digital applications and support for alternative learning methods," said Ralph Chapman, Vice-President, Public Sector, IBM Canada. "Our ability to deliver this type of advanced learning to Ontario schools provides students with the modern tools they need to better prepare themselves for the new demands of the work world."

Historically, simulation gaming has been used extensively in the military, by athletes and by scientists to discover effective new strategies and techniques and develop the skills needed to implement them. Businesses have realized the value of this technique and are deploying their own games to create life-like simulations of real markets, customers and business situations that they deal with every day.

Gaming technology is also increasingly being used in higher education institutions to complement and extend traditional teaching methods. Currently, more than 1,000 colleges and universities use IBM games in their curricula.

MediaSpark worked with IBM Canada to win the tender issued by the Ministry of Education through the Ontario Software Acquisition Program Advisory Committee (OSAPAC).

Additional Video Resources:

How simulation software has changed conversations for students and how it has helped augment traditional learning

IBM and Media Spark deliver advanced technology to Ontario schools

Simulation software interests students

Demonstration of entrepreneurship model

About MediaSpark, Inc.:
MediaSpark Inc. is an award-winning software development, publishing, and consulting company that applies the power of educational games, simulations, and social networks to the subjects of business and money. MediaSpark''s customers and affiliates include IBM, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Cengage Learning, US Federal Reserve, and thousands of educational institutions throughout the US and Canada, and several countries around the world. Hundreds of thousands of youth and adults have gained business and money skills using MediaSpark products. For more information, visit: www.mediaspark.com
About IBM:
For more information about IBM''s academic initiative, please visit:
https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/university/academicinitiative/.

For further information:

Carrie Bendzsa
IBM Media Relations
613-796-3880
carrie.bendzsa@ca.ibm.com

Mathew Georghiou
CEO & Chief Simulation Designer
MediaSpark Inc.
902.562.0042 x208
mathew@mediaspark.com