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Resource Trial Surveys

Launched in June 2001, The Online Reference Centre (ORC) has provided authoritative digital resources to all K-12 Alberta students, their parents, school staff, pre-service teachers and public library staff across Alberta. To date, this kind of program is unmatched by any other province in Canada.

In order to ensure the collection remains relevant and meaningful to users, the ORC conducts resource trials of new and innovative resources every fall. Below are the 2016 ORC Trial Resources that are ready and waiting to be tested. These resources are only on trial until December 22nd 2016, so check them out quickly! And after you take a look, please fill out the short surveys found below for each trial resource. ORC user feedback is very important to collection development and decisions.


BrainPOP (Grades 4-8)

Accessible from virtually any device, BrainPop provides animated curricular-related content specifically designed to engage and support learners. Embedded movies, quizzes, games, informational text, and concept-mapping tools are available for all topics. Topics included are Math, Science, Social Studies, English, Technology, Arts and Music, and Health.

​Take the BrainPOP survey HERE!

BrainPOP Jr. (Grades K-3)

Access high-quality animated, curriculum-based content specially designed for younger students in K-3. Movies, quizzes, games, and activities are embedded throughout the resource to help develop critical-thinking skills and encourage curiosity in a variety of topics including Science, Health, Reading and Writing, Social Studies, Math, Arts, and Technology. Embedded tools like the word wall, discussion, writing, and drawing prompts are also included to support a wide range of learning styles.

Take the BrainPOP Jr. survey HERE!

Core Concepts: Biology Database (Grades 7-10)

Featuring straightforward navigation, Core Concepts: Biology is a content-driven, visually stimulating, media-rich online resource. Interactive activities and timelines, related science experiments, biology flashcards, as well as text-to-speech and text translation make this resource an easily accessed support for all learners. Topics include Animal Systems, Biology Basics, Cell Biology, Ecology, Evolution, Genetics, Human Body, Microbes, Plant Structures, and Reproduction.

Take the Core Concepts: Biology Database survey HERE!

Core Concepts: Chemistry Database (Grades 7-10)

Access learning simulations, interactive timelines, experiments, chemistry flashcards, text-to-speech, and text translation tools to build your knowledge and understanding of the core concepts of chemistry. Easily navigated, this straightforward interface provides quick access to media-rich online content related to chemistry. Topics include Atoms and Molecules, Biochemistry, Chemical Reactions, Energy Reactions, Matter, Metals and Metalloids, Nonmetals, and Organic Chemistry.

Take the Core Concepts: Chemistry Database survey HERE!​​

Core Concepts: Periodic Table Database (Grades 7-10)

Making complex scientific concepts easy to understand, this highly engaging, interactive resource allows for hands-on exploring of the periodic table. Digital flashcards, learning simulations, interactive timelines, text-to-speech, and text translation allow any learner to quickly and easily access information to develop their understanding of the periodic table.

Take the Core Concepts: Periodic Table Database survey HERE!

Interactive Science Database (Grades 9-12)

Supporting Biology, Chemistry and Earth Science, this interactive digital resource provides high-quality, media-rich digital content for high school learners. Powerful visual tools allow students to dive deeper into a concept with 3-D cross section imagery. Instead of viewing each individual component and mentally placing them together this resource provides all of the components in one image. The rotate and zoom features allow for further in-depth exploration.

Take the Interactive Science Database survey HERE!


Modern World History Online Database (Grades 8-10)

Offering a comprehensive look at world history from the mid-15th century to present, Modern World History Online provides access to thousands of subject entries, biographies, images, videos, graphs, maps, primary sources, and timelines organized into easily accessed topic centres. Embedded read-aloud, text translation, and permalink tools make this resource accessible to all learners.

Take the Modern World History Database survey HERE!


ProQuest Research Companion (Grades 10-12)

Helping students accomplish more scholarly research while honing information literacy skills, ProQuest Research Companion provides more than 80 short, easy-to-understand videos organized into nine learning modules focused around the different aspects of the research process. Pre- and post- assessment questions help to make the experience more interactive, meaningful, and memorable for users while providing immediate feedback to learners about their knowledge and understanding of various information literacy skills.

​Take the ProQuest Research Companion survey HERE!

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