Issues & Controversies Relaunch with New Research Features
Infobase, a leading provider of award-winning educational content to schools and libraries, announces the relaunch of Issues & Controversies, a database long known for its exclusive coverage and balanced treatment of complex, hot-button issues and a recent recipient of The ComputED Gazette’s 19th Annual Education Software Review Award.
Issues & Controversies’ dynamic new design organizes today’s most controversial issues, from immigration, gun control, racial profiling, and Cuba policy to climate change, police brutality, terrorism, Middle East policy, and more, into a single, intuitive structure. The home page highlights recent controversies in the news and offers a hyperlinked list of all topics, organized by subject or A-to-Z, giving users quick access into the core of the database. Expanded and improved issue pages now reveal, at a glance, all the controversies related to each issue, with clear pro/con statements for each, plus new features such as videos, interactive polls, and news articles that engage and enlighten users as they explore each issue.
New Debate Videos from Intelligence Squared U.S.
The database also adds a collection of more than 90 debate videos from the renowned Intelligence Squared U.S. Debate Series, featuring some of the most prominent political figures, journalists, academics, and experts in the United States and throughout the world on a wide range of crucial subjects. These provocative Oxford-style debates link directly to Issues & Controversies articles and topics, offering fresh perspectives from leading authorities on both sides of each issue, and teachers can use them to spark discussion, encourage critical thinking, and enhance debate prep. Users can view each debate in its entirety, jump to predefined segments, or follow along with the complete, searchable transcript.
To extend the lesson beyond the articles, Infobase has enhanced a core set of essential hot-button issues with new educational features such as overview videos and exclusive Educator Resources, including learning objectives, resources, printable handouts, and discussion questions. Users can access these Enhanced Lessons and Educator Resources directly from the bottom of any page in the database, turning them into powerful tools for bringing the content into the classroom.
Enhanced Search, Citation, and Support Tools
Improved functionality and reference tools significantly enrich the user experience for students and researchers. Better search options and filters, new page tools such as Read Aloud and Google Translate, dynamic citations in multiple styles, and correlations to all major educational standards now let users search by desired standards to find specific content. A new Support Center rounds out the experience, offering valuable help tools such as live help chat.
