The potential of the National Broadband Network (NBN) is twofold with regional business and education harnessing the new technology with the launch of ZooWhiz.com, a new online learning resource developed by Armidale business EdAlive at PLC Armidale Junior School last Friday.
Independent Member for New England Tony Windsor and the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, launched ZooWhiz with a bang, and both politicians were excited to see regional Australians embracing the NBN.
“It’s inspiring to see ZooWhiz.com building a global business which will take full advantage of the opportunities available in a first-release NBN site,” Minister Conroy said.
Mr Windsor said the NBN will serve as a platform for innovation in country areas.
“ZooWhiz.com demonstrates that innovative local businesses will be able to use the NBN to reach new customers, no matter where they live around the globe.
“I’d like to congratulate ZooWhiz.com for embracing the technology of tomorrow, today.”
ZooWhiz.com is a high-quality, structured, online education program that uses games and zoo animals to motivate children to reach learning goals in mathematics, reading, grammar, punctuation, spelling and more.
Developed by Armidale business EdAlive, ZooWhiz.com has already signed up 25,000 children in 25 countries during its preliminary testing phase.
“Our company is 25 years old and we established our business when computers first came into schools, we have always been an education IT company,” said Barbara East, who owns the company EdAlive along with her husband Graham.
“Certainly, now with the power of the NBN, ZooWhiz.com, our online product, is going global.
“ZooWhiz.com has been in development over the last 18 months however the intellectual property in ZooWhiz.com has been in development for the last seven years.”
Barbara East describes ZooWhiz.com as a highly motivational learning environment where kids are rewarded for learning.
“All of the questions whether it be mathematics, spelling, grammar or literacy are all crafted in sequence so that it actually teaches them progressively through the curriculum stages.
“We have curriculums for each of the major first world countries.
“It has been a lot of hard work but we have a great team behind us who have made it all possible.”
Story: Jo Harrison
