Date: July 1, 2009
Working with Academia to identify technology that benefits education
1st July 2009: Steljes, the innovative technology distributor, presented at the prestigious Research into Teaching with Whole class Interactive Technologies (RITWIT) international conference held recently at the University of Cambridge on 29th – 30th June.
The two day conference focussed on research into the pedagogy underlying use of innovative tools such as interactive whiteboards, visualisers and voting systems. The goals of the conference were threefold: to compare practice in different settings and countries: to disseminate research findings and to take stock of how use of whole class technologies have facilitated / inhibited teaching and learning.
As part of its ongoing commitment to providing technology that improves learning outcomes, Steljes has formed a strategic partner ship with Cambridgeshire Education ICT service. The partnership’s aims are to raise the benefits of pupil assessment and increase classroom engagement through the use of SMART Response, the interactive voting system from SMART Technologies. The first phase of the project involved 8 schools, including 6 primary schools, a special needs school and a secondary school. All participating schools shared their experiences and curriculum resources via a blog area set up on the Cambridgeshire ICT website.
Fiona Moorehead-Lane, education consultant at Steljes, presented the findings of this initiative at the conference. The benefits of using SMART Response have been impressive – teachers have reported that they have seen an increase in pupil participation in lessons, there is more teaching time as the system automatically gives the results negating the need for manual marking and leveling and it has given them the capability to provide a more personalised learning experience.
Moorehead-Lane comments “The project has helped to develop a community between teachers. It has enabled opportunities for whole class interaction and idea sharing and this has had a positive impact on the pace and direction of learning during lessons. The use of SMART Response has facilitated a more reflective style of teaching and learning and given the schools a deeper insight into pupil understanding of a topic. The success of the initial project will help inform how the project will be extended into a number Cambridgeshire’s secondary schools in the near future.”
For more information on the project please visit the website http://www.cambsed.net/afl/public/default.aspx.
