McGraw-Hill Joins Forces with Magna Publications to Launch the McGraw-Hill Learning Institute

NEW YORK, Feb. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As the higher education landscape continues to shift due to the increasing use of technology and the emergence of new learning environments, learning institutions and their faculty are challenged to both adapt to the new landscape and deliver ever-stronger learning results. To help educators respond effectively to these challenges, McGraw-Hill today announced the launch of McGraw-Hill Learning Institute, a professional development program created to keep institutions and instructors up-to-date on the latest education technologies and provide guidance in determining which emerging technologies and best practices are right for their needs. As part of the McGraw-Hill Learning Institute launch, McGraw-Hill and Magna Publications today announced a new agreement to jointly develop and offer professional development products and services to educators and institutions.

While education technology promises to help instructors better achieve their teaching and learning goals, technologies are emerging and evolving at a tremendous pace, and it is challenging to know which technologies are right for a specific instructor's or institution's needs. The McGraw-Hill Learning Institute brings together faculty and thought leaders in education technology, course development, and instructional effectiveness to share strategies, ideas, and techniques for implementing instructional technology and research-based approaches to teaching in the college classroom. The Learning Institute designs and hosts faculty development experiences such as teaching and learning symposia, workshops and webinars.

"We meet with thousands of faculty and institutions every year, and while the people we speak with are excited about the changes taking place in education and education technology, many are looking for guidance about what these changes can mean in their specific setting," said Tom Malek, vice president, McGraw-Hill Higher Education Learning Solutions. "Our goal in launching the Learning Institute is to provide the guidance and exploratory environment institutions and instructors need to develop personal familiarity and engagement with new technologies and practices that promise to rejuvenate instruction and deliver stronger learning results and outcomes. We're especially excited to be able to deliver Magna Publications' industry-leading materials and resources on our path to delivering a one-stop-shop for professional development."

The Learning Institute offers best practice-based training in areas such as teaching and learning in blended and online learning environments, flipped classrooms, teaching with technology, administration of learning environments, student engagement, course design and redesign, and assessments. The Learning Institute can also work with institutions to develop customized curriculum design and professional development resources and online or classroom-based training to specifically meet the needs of their faculty.

For more than 40 years, Magna Publications has been supporting the professional development of higher education faculty and staff through a broad portfolio of high-quality products, including newsletters, online seminars, online courses, and in-person conferences and workshops. During that time, the company has worked with educators at more than 4,000 campuses both nationally and internationally, giving it unique insight into the strategies and processes that can affect how teachers teach and learners learn.

"Magna Publications is excited about the opportunities our partnership with McGraw-Hill represents in terms of expanding the reach of our products and services and what we will learn and develop together," said Bill Haight, president, Magna Publications, Inc. "As a company, we are always looking for ways better serve the higher education community and our inclusion in the launch of the Learning Institute is the next step in our continued evolution."

Through its Teaching Professor and Online Classroom newsletters to its 20 Minute Mentor programs to the Magna Commons, an on-demand cloud-based faculty development site, Magna Publications offers institutions a range of products dedicated to proven strategies for creating a better learning environment. As a result of the new partnership with McGraw-Hill, Magna Publications' library of resources will be made available through the McGraw-Hill Learning Institute.