Discovery Education streaming is a suite of programs available to schools throughout the nation, allowing educators access to vast libraries of educational video clips as well as full-length features. Other services such as interactive tutorials and assessment services are available as well. Several studies have shown that Discovery Education can help schools achieve significant increases in student test scores.

For starters, at least two studies have shown that using video to enhance teaching results in greater information retention by students. One study focused on third- and eighth-grade students in rural Virginia. Students were given a pretest on science and social studies. All of the students achieved comparable scores. The students were then broken into two groups. The first group was taught the material while watching at least 30 Discovery Education streaming videos related to its lessons. The control group learned the same material, but did not have access to the videos. One month later, all of the students in the trial were given a test. All of the students' scores improved, but those who had been able to watch the videos performed 12.6 percent better on average than the control group children. A second study, using the same test approach on students in Los Angeles, had similar results: Student who had watched the Discovery Education streaming videos scored on average 3 to 5 percent higher.

In another sampling of students, Discovery Education materials excelled yet again on improving student scores. In Charlotte, N.C., the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district was seeking a 3 to 5 percent bump in its science test scores within a short period of time. The district turned to a pilot program that used Discovery Education Science materials and students in the district achieved double-digit gains in science test scores compared to the prior year. Furthermore, the district's grades 5 and 8 saw a 26 percent increase in science year-end testing [source: Discovery Education].