It really is a happy new year! We just found out that Transparent Language Online is receiving the Modern Library Award’s Platinum Award again this year.

The MLAs were created to recognize the top products and services in the library industry in a truly unbiased format. Products and services were submitted in the fall using a simple application and then were posted on a private site with an enhanced description and attendant materials. These products were batched into small groups and sent to the LibraryWorks database of more than 80,000 librarians at public, K-12, academic, and special libraries. Only customers with experience with these products/services in their facilities were permitted to judge the products/services, resulting in a truly unbiased score.

Each judge scored the product on a numeric basis from 1-10 on a series of questions regarding functionality, value, customer service, etc. The librarians scoring Transparent Language Online rated the platform high enough to earn a Platinum Award, the highest possible honor!

Our CEO Michael Quinlan celebrated the honor, noting that:

“Libraries are at the center of today’s dynamic changes on how people get information and knowledge. We love supporting them in all that they do.”

Transparent Language Online is an ever-evolving product and we do our best to provide relevant updates and content for our subscribing libraries. New updates in 2016 included:

• iPad App: The iPad app allows learners to work offline—content can be downloaded and then learned (even without an internet connection). The next time the app is connected to the Internet, all of their progress will sync automatically.
• New Courses: 6 new Word of the Day courses, Elementary French and Spanish for grades 3 – 6, and intermediate-level English courses are but a few of the new materials added to Transparent Language Online.  
• Daily Refresher Emails: Users can now opt-in to daily refresher email reminders, which will prompt them to practice words and phrases deemed “stale” by the program’s algorithm.
• More Practice Activities: Now with even more activities to choose from, users can select the content they want to learn and the skills they want to practice to achieve their goals.
• New Support Widget: Learners can now quickly and easily direct any problems, questions, or feedback to the team at Transparent Language through the built-in support widget.

To our existing library friends, we owe you a heartfelt thank you. To future library friends, we look forward to meeting you and helping bring more than 100 languages to your community!

For learners, find a library near you to sign up for a free account.