University of Wollongong, Using EQUELLA, Wins Global Award

Boston, MA, May 27, 2008 --(PR.com)-- The University of Wollongong’s Graduate School of Medicine, supported by The Learning Edge International’s EQUELLA solution, has won the prestigious Platinum Award at the Learning Impact Awards.

Winners were announced at the IMS annual Learning Impact conference and Summit on Global Learning Industry Challenges, held from May 12-15, 2008 in Austin, Texas. The University of Wollongong’s entry was selected from twenty-three global finalists.

The Learning Impact Awards are designed to recognize the most impactful use of technology worldwide in support of learning. It is facilitated by the IMS Global Learning Consortium (IMS GLC) for the purpose of recognizing outstanding applications of technology that address the most significant challenges facing the global education and training industries.

The awards were assessed based on a range of criteria including access, affordability, quality, adoption, accountability, organizational learning, interoperability and innovation. Judges and attendees were requested to rank the finalists into platinum, gold and silver award levels. The judging panel included:

• Duncan Lennox,Principal, blurgl, Inc.
• Toru Iiyoshi, Senior Scholar and Director of the Knowledge Media Lab at the Carnegie Foundation
• Dr. John Harwood, Senior Director, Teaching and Learning with Technology, Penn State
• Murray Leach, Senior Manager, New Zealand Ministry of Education
• Dr. Rob Abel, CEO, IMS Global Learning Consortium
• Professor Yasutaka Shimizu, President, National Institute of Multimedia Education, Japan

Bob Cupitt, CEO of The Learning Edge group of companies said, “The University of Wollongong’s success at the Learning Impact Awards is a testament to their outstanding work in implementing systems such as EQUELLA to enhance their online learning capabilities.”

“The Graduate School of Medicine at the University of Wollongong is leading the way in how institutions worldwide incorporate technology into their courses.”

The University of Wollongong also won several ‘best of category’ awards including: Best Organizational Repository, Best New Learning Project, Best Academic Program Solution and Best Graduate School Solution.

IMS GLC’s published press release can be viewed at
http://www.imsglobal.org/pressreleases/IMSPR-LIAWinners2008.pdf.

About the University of Wollongong
The Graduate School of Medicine (GSM) at the University of Wollongong opened its doors to students on January 2007. Its mission is to produce excellent medical practitioners who have the capacity and desire to contribute to the enhancement of health care for patients in all geographic settings, but particularly in regional, rural and remote communities. It is also expected that GSM graduates will have a commitment to patient-centred, evidence-based, reflective and cost-effective medical practice. The course, four years long and delivered across two locations, delivers an integrated Problem-Based Learning curriculum. The Graduate School of Medicine’s course is organised around 93 clinical problems and a number of learning outcomes arranged in four themes: Medical Sciences, Clinical Competencies, Personal and Professional Development, and Research and Critical Analysis. The GSM’s Online Learning Environment (OLE) is designed to be an easily reproducible integration of best-of-breed solutions to enable delivery of an integrated, problem-based curriculum.

About The Learning Edge International
The Learning Edge International is a leading software solutions provider to the educational market. The Learning Edge International's principal offering is EQUELLA, a Digital Repository that incorporates Learning Objects, Learning Content Management and integrated content authoring. EQUELLA is supported worldwide by teams based in Australia, Canada, Asia, Europe and the United States.

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