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Goodwill and Intangible Assets, Goodwill (Details) $ in Thousands | 6 Months Ended
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Oct. 31, 2019 USD ($)
Goodwill [Roll Forward] |  |
Beginning balance | $ 1,095,666 |
Acquisitions | 46,757 | [1]
Foreign translation adjustment | 774 |
Ending balance | 1,143,197 |
Research Publishing & Platforms [Member] |  |
Goodwill [Roll Forward] |  |
Beginning balance | 438,511 |
Acquisitions | 844 | [1]
Foreign translation adjustment | 640 |
Ending balance | 439,995 |
Academic and Professional Learning [Member] |  |
Goodwill [Roll Forward] |  |
Beginning balance | 458,145 |
Acquisitions | 45,752 | [1]
Foreign translation adjustment | 134 |
Ending balance | 504,031 |
Education Services [Member] |  |
Goodwill [Roll Forward] |  |
Beginning balance | 199,010 |
Acquisitions | 161 | [1]
Foreign translation adjustment | 0 |
Ending balance | $ 199,171 |
[1] | Refer to Note 3, “Acquisitions,” for more information related to the acquisitions that occurred in the six months ended October 31, 2019.

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- Definition Amount of increase in asset representing future economic benefits arising from other assets acquired in a business combination that are not individually identified and separately recognized resulting from a business combination. + References Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (b) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=108376223&loc=d3e13816-109267 + Details
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- Definition Amount of foreign currency translation gain (loss) which increases (decreases) an asset representing future economic benefits from other assets acquired in a business combination that are not individually identified and separately recognized. + References Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (f) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=108376223&loc=d3e13816-109267 + Details
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