Press Release: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Launches HMH Player, Simplifies Digital Instruction for the Classroom

Atlanta - International Society for Technology in Education Conference - Global education leader Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today unveiled HMH Player, a new app that tackles the major pain points faced by educators as they integrate technology into the classroom. The app enables offline access to quality content, allows teachers and students to collaborate in real time, and offers the opportunity to enhance HMH content through extensive customization tools.

Designed expressly for iPad and Google Chrome, the most widely-used tablet and the fastest-growing operating system in schools in the U.S. and worldwide, the app is fully optimized for each environment, providing enhanced user experience and performance, as well as convenient implementation. This native app offers the smart design, features and functionalities that today's digital natives expect - such as touch, swipe and simple menu options.

HMH Player provides an intuitive, easy-to-use interface that gives teachers the ability to customize lessons and content with drag-and-drop functionality. Teachers can easily integrate open source resources such as YouTube videos, online news articles and other consumable media into daily lessons, then share with colleagues and students. The app also provides teachers with real-time data collection that enables analysis by student, by grade, by class, or by standard-in an elegantly designed gradebook. Teachers can send directions, notes, and immediate feedback to the whole class or individual students. They can also set up virtual study groups and activities that foster synergy amongst students and classes.

"We've considered the student experience both inside and outside the classroom to create what we see as a game-changer with respect to how content is delivered," said Mary Cullinane, Chief Content Officer and Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs at HMH.

To really benefit from digital tools, we must use technology to empower teachers in three key functional areas - planning, instruction, and assessment. This is not technology for the sake of technology. This is technology that can enable a learning transformation."
Offline access and automatic syncing provide students with the ability to extend learning beyond the traditional school day, while game mechanics - such as dynamic scoring, including badges and points for achievement - engage and motivate learners and reinforce key concepts.