The California State Library and Riverside County Office of Education have partnered with Gale, part of Cengage Group, to provide California's more than six-million K-12 students and over 300,000 educators with access to science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) digital resources from Gale. These new resources are part of California's K-12 Online Content Project and are available at all schools (10k+) and public libraries (1.1k+) throughout California to support and strengthen STEAM learning.
Gale STEAM Digital Resources now available at all schools and public libraries across California.
More than six-million K-12 students and over 300,000 educators in California now have access to Gale's STEAM resources.
The California K-12 Online Content Project is a joint program between the California State Library and Riverside County Office of Education to enhance learning environments through digital resources. The project provides teachers, school librarians and students with a variety of digital information and tools that include: magazines, books, scientific research, newspaper articles, photos, videos, educational tools and more — all aligned with California educational standards and student data privacy laws. Gale is the fourth provider to join the project.
"This investment in California's future is part of Governor Newsom's ongoing work to close the opportunity gap, ensuring that all Californians regardless of circumstance are connected with the tools they need to succeed," said California State Librarian, Greg Lucas.
Gale's STEAM resources include:
- Gale In Context: Environmental Studies – understand environmental issues that affect people globally through topic overviews, journals, news and multimedia content.
- Gale Interactive: Science – manipulate 3D interactive models to visualize and understand biology, chemistry, earth, and space science concepts.
- Gale Presents: National Geographic Kids – explore amazing adventures in science, nature, culture, archaeology and space.
With geo-authentication, Californians can access Gale's STEAM resources 24/7 from any computer or mobile device without the use of a library card or password. This enables users to seamlessly access Gale's authoritative content, eliminating barriers to access resources. Additionally, the resources feature integrated workflow tools from Google Workspace for Education and Microsoft Office 365 tools, as well as language translation, downloadable audio and easy ways to share and save content. The resources can also be integrated into districts' and schools' aligned learning management systems, abiding by current California law regarding student data privacy.
"Libraries play a crucial role in making knowledge accessible to empower learning and to enrich lives," said Paul Gazzolo, senior vice president and general manager at Gale. "The California State Library's K-12 Content Project is a game-changer for students and educators in the state, and we couldn't be prouder to participate in bringing the library to learners."
For more information and to access Gale's STEAM resources, visit California's K-12 Online Content Project webpage.
About Cengage Group and Gale
Cengage Group, an education technology company serving millions of learners in 165 countries, advances the way students learn through quality, digital experiences. The company currently serves the K-12, higher education, professional, library, English language teaching and workforce training markets worldwide. Gale, part of Cengage Group, provides libraries with original and curated content, as well as the modern research tools and technology that are crucial in connecting libraries to learning, and learners to libraries. For more than 60 years, Gale has partnered with libraries around the world to empower the discovery of knowledge and insights – where, when and how people need it. Gale has 500 employees globally with its main operations in Farmington Hills, Michigan. For more information, please visit www.gale.com.
About the California State Library
Founded in 1850, the California State Library has an extensive collection of documents from and about the state's rich history, ranging from books, maps, miners' diaries, newspapers, and periodicals to photographs, paintings, and posters. The State Library also holds federal and state publications, is home to the Bernard E. Witkin State Law Library and the Braille and Talking Book Library and serves as the lead state agency for library-related services throughout California, including the K-12 Online Content Project. For more information, please visit https://www.library.ca.gov/.