The AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset delivers a safe and quality listening experience for young learners, ages 4-9. These units are available in vibrant orange or green for both USB-C and 3.5mm TRRS connections. With ample adjustability and comfort these allow for a safe and comfortable classroom audio experience.

AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset: Getting Started

For this review, I received both the 3.5 mm TRRS (Tip, Ring, Ring, Sleeve) and USB-C AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset models. Getting started was as simple as plug and play as my devices recognized both immediately.

My first impressions from a build standpoint were very positive. The design is well-thought out with a braided 5-foot cord, sturdy moulded end connections, and an integrated velcro strap that stays on the cable while in use. The soft-on-ear design and headband padding was very comfortable and easy to clean.

I found these to have ample adjustability almost fitting my adult-sized head. Furthermore, the short KidCom microphone stands off the unit less than an inch, and will definitely make for easy cleaning as well as cut down on breakage and distraction.

AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset: Best Features

• Excellent audio quality, compatible with PC/MAC, Chromebooks, tablets, and more.
• Volume limitation designed into the product to limit volume setting to 85 dB.
• The KidCom microphone is designed for durability and ease of cleaning.
• Comfort and adjustability designed for young learners.
• Long braided cables with reinforced connections.
• 3.5 mm and USB-C connection options.

AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset: Pricing

The MSRP for the 3.5mm TRRS is $24.95, while the USB-C model is $29.95. Both are available in green or orange.

AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset: Key Takeaways

I tested the AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headsets in various scenarios and found both the 3.5 mm and USB-C models connected immediately to both Chromebook and PC devices. I listened to music, spoken work, and video, and had a pleasurable listening experience that delivered clear sound that captured the entire sound experience.

The recording properties of each were a little different in my experience, with the 3.5 mm connection delivering a little better overall voice recording quality than USB-C. Not to say the USB-C input was poor, just the 3.5 mm connection had a little better clarity. Of course, there are many factors that contribute to this difference, such as device hardware, drivers, etc. Educators and students would be happy with either of the units for recording student audio.

Overall, the AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headsets are well-designed and -built units that deliver great audio in a small form factor at a great price. These headsets come in two fun colors and have durable, easy-to-clean surfaces and components. I would recommend the AVID WonderEars AP-400 Headset to any elementary school educator.

• Educator Edtech Reviews

The best headphones for students make for ideal audio interactions, in privacy, during class, and beyond.

Headphones can allow individual students to each interact with their devices, in class, without distracting others or losing concentration. These are also ideal for language learning, watching coding guidance, following quiz questions, taking instructions, listening to music, and more.

Lots of listening options are out there, and based on needs, you can spend as little or as much as you want. Features such as active noise cancelling, built-in microphones, and wireless connectivity are all worth considering. 

Comfort can also be important if these are to be worn for long periods of time. For that reason, and cleanliness, it's usually best to go with over-the-ear or on-the-ear options for use in class by multiple students.

So, all that considered, here are the best headphones for students.

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1. Sony WH-1000XM4: Best headphones for students overall

Students need look no further than the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones as these do it all. These are one of the best pairs of headphones for active noise cancellation, making these ideal for noisy environments in which focus is important. But these also offer an impressive 30-hour battery life so only one or two charges are necessary to get through the school week.

Crucially, these are very comfortable with a soft memory foam cushioning that is gentle on the ears while also remaining breathable to avoid overheating. The five microphones in these headphones will isolate your voice from any background noise, delivering it with the utmost clarity – ideal for recording audio.

These are expensive but can be used beyond the classroom with features such as DSEE Extreme upscaling for top quality sound. It even has a sensor that automatically pauses music when you remove these and plays again when you put these back on. The 360 Reality Audio feature that lets you listen to music as if you are in a concert hall also adds to the value.

Want to save a buck? Go for the previous generation Sony WH-1000XM3, which are available for a little less with little noticeable difference. 

2. Plantronics BackBeat Go 810: Best affordable wireless headphones for students

The Plantronics BackBeat Go 810 headphones are a superb option for students who don't want to blow their budget but still want some top features and decent quality. The result is comfortable over-ear headphones that also look great and offer active noise cancellation.

The sound quality is excellent with a balance and warmth that you'd expect from a far more expensive headset. Tech from the company's more high-end kit is crammed in to get that warm sound and consistent wireless connection that make these headphones a pleasure to use. Or, more to the point, make you forget you're using headphones – leaving more focus on learning.

The microphone is built-in and clearly picks up a voice for interactive experiences. Combined with the noise cancelation quality, it makes for an insulated, clear, and focused learning experience that can go on all day thanks to the comfort of those ear pads.

3. 1More Triple Driver In-Ear Headphone: Best value in-ear for students

The 1More Triple Driver In-Ear Headphone takes value for money to another level with a super affordable yet highly capable setup that's ideal for students. The in-ear nature of these make them unobtrusive and allows you to appear as if you're not wearing headphones while in class.

But it's the audio quality that makes this jump out at the price point. Grammy award-winning sound engineer Luca Bernard has tuned these to take full advantage of those triple drivers. The ergonomic tips make these comfortable while also passively keeping out background noise.

The remote feels a little plastic, but at this price something has to give and since students likely won't use the remote much anyway during classes, this is a super setup.

4. Lypertek Tevi: Best truly wireless earbuds for students

The Lypertek Tevi earbuds let students go totally wireless for ultimate comfort and freedom of movement during lessons and beyond. These do this while also remaining relatively affordable when you consider how much tech is crammed into these little buds.

Sound quality is decent and even surpasses that of some big-name rival brands that charge far more. Battery life is useful at 10 hours, with a case that extends that to a total of 70 hours – more than enough for a week of classes and beyond. Then it's a high-speed USB-C charge to get back quickly to full power.

The built-in microphone makes these a do-it-all solution for class and day-to-day life. But the IPX7 waterproofing also make these great sports earbuds, adding even greater value. 

5. Apple AirPods Pro: Best for Apple fan students

The Apple AirPods Pro are very expensive, and there's no getting away from that with an Apple product. Yet these manage to justify that price. These are designed to work seamlessly with Apple devices and also offer some truly impressive noise cancelling.

Not only is outside noise removed for the listener but also any excess audio is removed for the microphones, so students can hear and be heard clearly. The silicone earbuds allow the user to find the ideal fit, making these viable workout buddies too.

Get five hours on a charge but pop these back in their carry for a total longevity of 24 hours, making this ideal for learning without worry about charging.

6. Sony WH-CH510: Best value on-ear headphones for students

The Sony WH-CH510 on-ear headphones are a great student option as these straddle the line of affordability and quality. These are wireless and offer Sony-level superior sound quality, and feature a light plastic build to keep the price, and weight, low.

Despite the comfy lightweight build, these manage a whopping 35 hours on a single charge before a quick recharge via USB-C. Of course, these won't offer active noise cancelling for that price but the cushioning does a good job of drowning out most background noise anyway. These are on ear, not over ear, so these headphones may not be as comfy as others.

It has a built-in microphone for interactivity. The only downside is a lack of 3.5mm jack, so you can only use these wirelessly, and charging before any class will be essential.

7. EarFun Air Pro 2: Best budget friendly wireless ANC earbuds

The EarFun Air Pro 2 earbuds are totally wireless, surprisingly affordable, and offer great active noise cancelling, battery life, and audio performance. These water-resistant earbuds have built-in microphones to pick up your voice but also to pick-up and actively remove background noise. As such, you can hear and be heard clearly, no matter the background noise.

These are super comfortable with varying rubber tips to fit most ears. These have a decent seven-hour battery, however, the carrying case recharge is good for a massive 34 hours. Bluetooth connectivity makes these easy to connect to multiple devices, and tap controls allow you to vary volume easily. A stunning set of buds for the price.

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Soundtrap is a music production tool that is designed for use in education. That means a full-on mixing and sound production studio experience, but one that is accessible for students grade six and up.

Since this is relatively simple to use and is available in app as well as web formats, it is highly accessible for both in-class and personal devices.

This tool offers a way to spark creativity in students and a method to help experiment with music that can inspire those new to this world, or enable more experienced students to create complex and explorative music. 

This software works digitally as well as with input from physical instruments, making it highly adaptive in terms of its teaching potential. So could Soundtrap help your class?

What is Soundtrap?

Soundtrap is a digital music production program that comes in app format or can be accessed via a web browser. It allows students to build and create their own music from scratch, both digitally and with real-world instruments. 

Soundtrap is different than many other music production options out there as it is specifically designed to work in collaboration. Consequently, multiple students can work on a single project, at the same time, from different devices.

Crucially, this software also allows you to run an integrated chat and video call system, so students and teachers can work together even when not in the same room. The fact everything is cloud-based also makes saving and moving between devices and locations very easy.

The inclusion of teacher admin screens makes managing students, groups and assignments all a straight forward process within the app itself. 

How does Soundtrap work?

Soundtrap is cloud-based and works across iOS, Android, and Chrome as well as via a browser. Jumping across devices, or students collaborating from different personal devices at the same time, is possible.

Get the education-specific version and teachers and students can sign-up using Microsoft Student, Google, Facebook, or email accounts. This includes helpful LMS integration options with the likes of Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology, and MusicFirst.

Soundtrap comes with thousands of pre-built loops and instruments, allowing students to get building right away. They can also connect MIDI devices, including instruments and microphones, to record their own tracks to integrate into compositions. 

Teachers can use the chat or video tool to offer feedback and support while assignments can be shared using your LMS with a simple link copy-and-paste. Usefully, when students open a project, a version is created for them, saving their progress individually before choosing to add that to a final project, for example.

What are the best Soundtrap features?

Soundtrap is relatively intuitive and is super well-integrated with teaching and LMS tools. It is very easy to work with as a teacher as well as for students to get up and running with right away. Collaboration is also made straight-forward for simple marking, assisting, and assessing.

This isn't just for music classes as the production suite can be used for all kinds of recordings, including story telling, podcasting, interviews, poetry readings, and more. When it comes to this audio editing, the suite is very powerful, offering useful automatic transcripts that allow for interactive editing with ease.

Since this is a collaborative tool it can allow students to work together as a band to build songs, or even across groups as needed. They can work on their own devices at any time they need in order to get the best out of this music making platform.

Since this offers professional-level editing tools it will require some guidance initially, and then more as students go deeper into the offerings. This can be something more experienced students help newer students with as part of the teaching process.

The education specific admin panel is very helpful as this allows teachers to manage groups as well as individual students, plus share assignments, provide feedback, and access a long list of classroom resources to help with teaching.

How much does Soundtrap cost?

Soundtrap pricing offers a free and premium version of the software.

The Free version gets you unlimited projects, 5,150 loops, 1,240 one-shots, 450 instruments and sounds, essential effects, more than 150,000 sound effects, and limited access to new soundpacks released each week. However, it's worth noting that this version does not offer the teacher dashboard, nor does it give the privacy and safety that the education-specific version delivers.

The Education plan comes with a 30-day free trial and can be bought for a school or district plan too, on bespoke pricing staring at $349 for 50 seats. This offers more than 24,780 loops, 7,230 one-shots, more than 1,120 instruments and sounds, a full suite of effects, full access to new weekly soundpacks, save presets and loops, vocal tuning, remote interviews, a sample, and 8 hours of interactive transcripts.

Soundtrap best tips and tricks

Start a band
Section the class into groups of bands, each student picking an instrument, and have them each create a song to play to the class over a few weeks.

Teach slow
Dedicate a class to teaching the basics and then progress with more complex features as the weeks go on and students develop a deeper understanding through use.

Feedback digitally
Use the chat feature to offer digital feedback so students become accustomed to working remotely and feel confident in being supported even when working on their own time from home.

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The best headphones for teachers offer a way to hear clearly and communicate more effectively for in-class use, remote learning, and for hybrid teaching. Get the right pair of headphones and they can even be useful outside of school for listening to music, watching videos on your smartphone, and more.

A crucial consideration when picking the best headphones for teachers is microphone pick-up. Since you'll likely be using these to record your voice, perhaps for a class presentation or in chat over Zoom, clarity is key. Headphones with multiple microphones are able to pick up your voice with the most realistic clarity. These are also, in many cases, able to recognize and cancel out background noise, leading to the best possible audio no matter where you find yourself.

Other features you may wish to think about include connectivity -- do you want to save money with a wired connection or go for wider connectivity with Bluetooth headphones? How long does the battery need to last as larger, and often comfier over-ear headphones, can go more than 24 hours on a charge with ease.

All these are more factors are taken into consideration so here are only the very best headphones for teachers, with special skills clearly stated, to help you find the ideal pick.

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The Sony WH-1000XM4 active noise cancelling over-ear wireless headphones are simply the best headphones for teachers -- or anyone for that matter. These do it all, and to the very highest standard. As such, these are more expensive than most but if you want the best then they will more than satisfy.

Not only are these light and comfortable, with an impressive 30-hour battery life, but they're also super powered when it comes to active noise cancellation. From being on public transport to driving to sitting in a room full of talking students -- these headphones will leave you feeling like you're in a silent space. And thanks to five smart microphones, anyone on the other end of a call, or hearing your video recording, will also think you're in a silent space. 

Sony also uses DSEE Extreme upscaling so what you hear is super rich and clear, no matter the quality of the incoming feed. Other features -- such as auto pause when you take off these, pair to multiple devices, and support for Sony 360 Reality Audio -- all make these one of the best headphones options on the planet right now.

2. 1More Triple Driver In-Ear Headphone: Best value in-ear for teaching

The 1More Triple Driver In-Ear Headphones offer a great way to get powerful and clear audio without breaking your budget. Despite these being relatively low-priced this set actually packs in triple drivers so the resulting audio performance you get is superb. From listening to music to having phone conversations, these do a fantastic job of creating a realistic reproduction of audio.

Tuned by Grammy award-winning sound engineer Luca Bernard, these really do punch way above their price point when it comes to quality. And that applies to the microphone too, which allows you to use these to record audio on videos, hold video calls, and more.

Ergonomic tips, in various sizes, make these are comfortable for various ear types, while the use of a wired connection means no worries about recharging. The remote does feel a bit plastic, which could be somewhere money was saved to pass on that low price to you. Despite this, it all feels solid enough to last for the longer term even with daily use.

3. Plantronics BackBeat Go 810: Best affordable wireless headphones for teaching

This Plantronics BackBeat Go 810 headphones give you the best of a few worlds, including the comfort of over-ears as well as the quality of active noise cancelling. Crucially, these manage to do all that, and more, while keeping the price relatively low.

To be clear, these are great for in-class use, remote learning, presentation recording, calls, and more -- but also good enough for personal use to listen to music, game, watch movies, and more. And these can keep doing all that for a long time thanks to an impressive 24-hour battery life on a charge.

The comfy ear pads also make that longer life use a realistic option without the worry of discomfort. Plus, as a brand built on smartphone earpieces, you can rely on microphone quality pick-up to be at a level that will mean anyone listening to your recordings will hear you very clearly.

4. Lypertek Tevi: Best truly wireless earbuds for teaching

The Lypertek Tevi earbuds give you a totally wireless experience, with individual ear buds that pop into each ear for light, comfy, and portable headphones. That makes these very subtle, great for video calls, but also super portable so you can take them between classes all day.

These earbuds come with a charging case so each time you pop them back into the pocket-friendly sized housing, they recharge. So all-in you should get a massive 70 hours of use before needing to charge the case again. The battery on the buds themselves tops out at 10 hours, which is still plenty to last a day of use before charging quickly via USB-C.

Microphones make video chat clear as well as phone calls, although there isn't active noise cancellation here so expect to hear what's around you. That said, the buds fit well and do a good job of passive noise cancellation for listening, only the microphone may pick up more background noise for anyone listening at the other end of calls.

With onboard waterproofing, these are tough enough to handle a trip out in the rain as well as sweating, allowing you to use these for exercise too.

5. Sony WH-CH510: Best value on-ear headphones for teaching

The Sony WH-CH510 on-ear headphones offer a comfy experience with that Sony top-end brand quality but without the high-end price. As such, you can make a saving on premium quality audio, fit, and comfort with these teacher-friendly headphones.

That quality means these are great for listening to music, video, and other recordings with clarity. These also pack in wireless connectivity so you should be able to connect these to most devices using Bluetooth. Yes, you will need to charge these, but thanks to USB-C connectivity, that is a fast process. Plus, these last a massive 35 hours so a top-up should be rare.

The build is more plastic than higher-end Sony products yet these still feel solid. Note these are on-ear, not over-ear, so they have smaller cups that can be a little less comfortable and noise cancelling than others. Maybe worth trying these on in a store before you decide to buy.

6. Apple AirPods Pro: Best for Apple fans teaching

The Apple AirPods Pro 2 are the latest generation of the company's premium earbud offering. As such, you get active noise cancelling and long battery life with all the smart connectivity extras you can expect from Apple. 

For the high price you get some beautifully designed earbuds with a charging case that gets you a massive 30 hours on a charge of the case, and six hours for the buds themselves. 

These are perfect if you use an iPhone, iPad, or Mac – but also work with other brands using Bluetooth connectivity. The size and design is subtle, making them great for video calls, voice calls, video recording, and more, including listening to music and even exercising thanks to IPX4 water resistance.

7. EarFun Air Pro 3: Best affordable wireless ANC earbuds

The EarFun Air Pro 3 somehow manage to keep the price low while cramming in loads of premium features. First up, these offer active noise cancelling using a 6-microphone array that makes for super-clear call quality as well as video recording, no matter your recording environment.

These are also totally wireless with small buds that fit comfortably in your ears, and last a massive nine hours before going back into the case to charge for a total battery life of 45 hours. A 10-minute charge in the case gets you two hours of use, so these really do just keep going as long as you need.

Pair with most devices using Bluetooth 5.3 with LE and aptX support, making these a rare offering that delivers very high-quality audio -- ideal for music, video, calls, and more. They're also IPX5 sweat- and water-resistant, great for sports use as you need. 

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Descript is a do-it-all video and audio editor that wants to make the whole process as easy as possible. As such, it's a useful place for students and educators to begin, or to use ongoing as a helpful tool to create.

Crucially, this platform also offers quick tutorials that allow even novice users to get the hang of how it works. That does make it suitable for students, and also helps to make it accessible for educators as part of their teaching toolkit.

Descript, as the name alludes, also offers automatic transcription of audio. This can be very helpful if creating audio recordings or podcasts that are going out to those who may not be able to hear and could benefit from reading the transcript.

The features of this tool go far deeper, with a special skill when it comes to group podcasting and screen recording, so read on to see if Descript could be for you.

What is Descript?

Descript is an audio and video production and editing platform that specializes in podcast creation, specifically for groups.

Descript crams in a host of helpful features, including screen recording, audio recording, multitrack editing and mixing, publishing, and even some AI tools for text-to-speech creation.

Coming in both web-based and desktop versions, this is easy to access across a host of devices. It also offers several tiers of pricing so it can be used for free but also with more complexity for a premium.

The screen recording feature, which records from the screen as well as webcams, is a particularly useful tool for teachers looking to create guidance resources for students. The ability to partially add automated speech from text, in your own voice, is a really powerful way to stay personal and engaging while saving time on recording audio perfectly.

How does Descript work?

Descript requires you to sign-up before downloading the software to get started. You are then also required to complete a short survey on how you will be using the tool, before moving forward. It's a pretty swift process and is, initially at least, free.

Once up and running you are able to record audio, for podcasts specifically, as an individual or as part of a group. The ability to collaborate, remotely, is a really powerful feature that students working on a project across locations outside of school hours could find very useful.

Students can easily record audio or screen record right away. It is then possible to layer the audio and video to edit in a timeline style that is very professional yet straightforward to use. As mentioned, there are some helpful guidance tutorials to make sure even less confident users can get going with relative ease. 

It is then possible to output to various formats for sharing as needed. You can also use the tool to publish, making it helpful for those looking to share to social media directly, for example, or for anyone publishing a regular podcast.

What are the best Descript features?

Descript is easy to use, offering deep and intuitive levels of control without getting too complicated in the process. 

One of the best features has to be the transcription, which is done via AI. You can record an audio recording and the written transcription is automatically available -- ideal if students are watching in public and want to follow along without audio playing, or if they are unable to hear.

Another smart feature is the premium overdub voice cloning. This allows you to offer quality voice over corrections to podcasts or audio recordings simply by typing the correction. A very clever way to edit without spending lots of time re-recording. Although for this to work you must read a 10-minute script out, just once, so the system can learn and clone your voice.

You can also easily remove noises and enhance audio with a single click. This makes for near professional level audio quality with just a laptop mic. A great way to cut out any "ums" or "ers" from a recording to give it a more polished finish.

Live collaboration is helpful for students working on a project together, however, it's worth noting this data is stored in the cloud so any recordings are exposed as far as the protection of the platform offers with its own server security. 

A helpful option to add in-line notes to audio recordings and videos is available -- ideal when offering feedback on a collaborative project or for educators giving students direct responses. 

How much does Descript cost?

Descript offers several tiers of pricing, which can be paid for either monthly or annually which are: free, creator, pro and enterprise.

The free plan gets you one transcription per month in 23 languages, detection of 8+ speakers, one watermark-free export, 720p resolution, dynamic captions, unlimited projects, animation and transitions, filler word removal of "um and "uh," overdub voice to 1,000 word limit, studio sound to a 10-minute fill limit, background sound removal to 10-minute limit, stock media library of first five search results, stock template library, collaboration and commenting, plus 5GB of cloud storage.

Go for the Creator plan, at $12/month, and you get all the above plus 10 hours of transcription per month, unlimited exports, 4K resolution, one hour of studio sound, one hour of AI background removal, first 12 search results of the stock media library, creation and sharing of templates, plus 100GB of cloud storage.

Up that to the Pro level, at $24/month, and you get the above plus 30 hours of transcription per month, unlimited studio sound and AI background removal, removal of 18 filler and repeated words, unlimited overdub and stock media library access, custom drive and page branding, plus 300GB of cloud storage.

A custom plan with bespoke pricing is available, which gets you all the Pro features plus a dedicated account representative, single sign on, overdub enterprise, Descript service agreement, security review, invoicing, onboarding, and training.

Descript best tips and tricks

Group cast
Set a podcast creation project in groups so that students can learn to work collaboratively, outside of class hours.

Publish
Show the class how publishing works so they have the ability to create and share their own podcasts in their own time.

Overdub your own
Educators can use overdub to help create audio to go with guidance videos without actually spending lots of time audio recording everything perfectly.

• Podcasting for Educators
• Best Digital Tools for Teachers

Mote is a digital note taking tool that lets you add audio recordings of your voice to various other programs. Mainly supporting Google, it allows educators to give audio feedback across these apps directly to students.

The idea is to offer more personalized and emotion-encapsulating and -evoking responses to work. Since Mote works as a Chrome extension, it is very easy to use and sets out to make responding verbally as natural as typing written feedback.

In a digital world, where more and more interactions between students and educators is digital, this ability to add a more human touch is a valuable resource that could help across a range of subjects.

What is Mote?

Mote is a Chrome browser extension that allows you to communicate within digital tools, such as Google Docs, using voice recordings. It also works via a website link, directly.

The system does go beyond simply leaving your voice feedback to a student on a Google Doc, Gmail, Slide, and so on. It also lets students reply in the same way, making for personal back and forth across the digital space.

Motes can also be recorded directly on the site, which can then be shared using the URL address. This technically makes it possible to share a voice recording with anyone, anywhere, and across nearly any device with a web browser and audio player capabilities. 

There is a limit on the recording length for the free version, topping out at 30 seconds. But the premium version extends that to give you a full 180 seconds of recording time if needed.

How does Mote work?

Mote can be installed as a Chrome browser extension, which is free to add and easy to access using the top menu. That said, once installed, you will most likely access it from within Google's apps.

In Gmail, for example, you can simply right click to get Mote running, then you're able to record. The same is possible in Docs, allowing you to offer direct feedback to students. This can be a shared class-wide Doc, or specific messages to individuals.

Within Slides this can be a useful way to add audio recordings to better annotate what is being shown. Thanks to emoji use, you can also have feedback to and from students in quick form, allowing for basic responses without initiating or continuing and dialogue, if needed.

Every recording gives you the option to include a transcript, which is helpful if students want to read rather than listen to your feedback, perhaps when out and about without headphones. It's also helpful for those who may not be able to hear clearly or want to have a written translation in another language.

What are the best Mote features?

Mote works across a host of platforms including Google Docs, Drive, Slides, Sheets, Forms, Classroom, and Gmail. It also works with Canvas SpeedGrader and can be used to embed a recording on websites using the link.

Mote supports more than 20 languages worldwide, including English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Arabic. This means translation into a written text accompaniment to your recording -- so when teaching a student who may be more comfortable in their native language, they will all be able to understand you.

To do this, the system automatically transcribes what you have said, with remarkable clarity, so you don't need to type anything while you're recording.

The app versions of Mote work across iOS and Android devices, allowing you to integrate the voice recording functionality into Google apps on your device wherever you are.

How much does Mote cost?

Mote offers a Free version, which has a 30-second audio recording limit. This is limited to 20 notes per month. 

Go for the Unlimited individual license, for $4.95 per month billed annually, and you can use unlimited notes at 180 seconds in length. This also transcribes your voice, offers 33 language translations, save and reuse features with Motebook, plus viewing activity breakdown.

Custom options are available for groups, which are charged at quote rates and offer the above plus more user management features. 

Mote best tips and tricks

Go back and forth
Give vocal feedback and encourage students to respond with voice recordings also -- helping them to share their thoughts clearly and concisely in the time limit.

Teach languages
When working with ELL students or teaching a foreign language, use the Motebook to embed your voice in language teaching apps that allow students to hear proper pronunciation from your spoken word.

Speak to parents
Use this in Gmail to offer feedback to parents and guardians using your voice for a more personal touch to which they can respond to in kind.

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• Best Digital Tools for Teachers

Sound is a key component of education. If students can’t hear their instructor well, they’re clearly not going to focus or learn as much. That’s why more and more schools are investing in instructional audio systems, which are high-tech public address systems designed with classrooms, teachers, and all students in mind. 

Terri Meier is director of education technology for Rio Rancho Public Schools in New Mexico where all new classrooms are being built with voice amplification systems in place and many existing classrooms are being retrofitted with similar systems. These systems are key for schools in their accessibility efforts and in providing quality instruction overall, she says.

1. Instructional Audio is Vital for Accessibility  

First and foremost, having a mic’d teacher connected to properly mounted speakers is vital for ensuring each and every student can hear. About 1 in 5 American teenagers experience some degree of hearing loss, according to the Hearing Loss Association of America, and Meier says she has noticed a rising number of students with hearing impairments in recent years. 

“We are big believers in making sure we have equity in our schools and we have what we need for all students,” she says. Rio Rancho uses Lightspeed systems to enhance its classroom audio capabilities. 

2. Teachers Don’t Have to Raise Their Voices  

While teachers know it's important not to yell at kids, it can be necessary in some classrooms to raise one's voice to regain students’ attention. 

"If you’ve ever been in a classroom, [the students are] all talking at once, they're all doing this, that, and the other, and you raise your voice, not yell, but you raise your voice to get them to calm down,” Meier says. However, this can be stressful to teachers and even misinterpreted as yelling by students. Amplification systems do away with these misunderstandings and therefore foster a less stressful classroom environment. 

3. Preventing Vocal Strain 

As anyone who has ever had to lead students in a classroom knows, teaching is not always easy on one's vocal cords. Having proper audio can ease the strain on teachers’ voices, Meier says.  “I remember giving one [sound system] to a teacher once and I said, 'Just try it out,' and she came to me about a week later and she goes, ‘Oh, my gosh, this really helps me. I was going home with strained vocal cords and I didn't know why.'” 

Meier does caution that some veteran teachers who are used to projecting as they speak may need to tone it down a bit when they’re mic’d. Some teachers may be tempted to crank the volume nob to 11 to drown out loud students, but Meier says the volume knob should not be used as a substitute for good classroom management. 

4. Good Quality Instructional Audio Helps All Students Learn  

Even though simply cranking the sound system can be a bad practice, good quality audio can help with classroom management because student behavior incidents tend to go down the better students hear.   

“Everyone, adults and kids, if you're talking and they're not engaged and they can't hear you, they're gonna do something else,” Meier says. By providing teachers with quality sound, you take away a barrier that maybe students use as an excuse not to do something. 

• Nancy Knowlton Turns Focus to Classroom Audio
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The Attention! solution helps to reinforce campus communication by allowing all networked classroom audio and Interactive displays to work in sync to deliver announcements and alerts.

The new Attention! communication solution combines the FrontRow Conductor campus-wide bells, paging, and intercom platform with the MimioPro 4 interactive display for a fully integrated audio-visual messaging and alerting system. Synchronize audio and visual communications with just a few taps. Users can send announcements and alerts campus-wide, including classrooms, hallways, outdoors and to any MimioPro 4 interactive display. The Attention! solution helps to reinforce campus communication by allowing all networked classroom audio and interactive displays to work together to deliver announcements and alerts. Once the alert is over, classroom audio systems and interactive displays return to pre-announcement settings. Add complementary information such as maps and photos to expedite instruction to staff and students when it’s needed most. Bring Attention! - a powerful audio-visual alert system - to your campus for efficient and immediate, audio and visual communication.

FrontRow and Mimio are divisions of Boxlight.

A new meta-analysis looking at reading vs. listening to text either via an audiobook or other method has found no significant difference in comprehension outcomes. The study was recently published in Review of Educational Research and provides some of the best evidence yet that those who listen to a text learn a comparable amount to those who read the same text. 

“It is not at all cheating to listen as opposed to read,” says Virginia Clinton-Lisell, the study’s author and associate professor at the University of North Dakota. 

How This Research Came About 

Clinton-Lisell, an educational psychologist and former ESL teacher who specializes in language and reading comprehension, began researching audiobooks and listening to text in general after hearing colleagues talk about it as if they were doing something wrong. 

“I was in a book club and there was one woman who was like, ‘I have the audiobook,’ and seemed embarrassed about it, like she wasn’t a real scholar because she was listening to the audiobook because she had to do a lot of driving,” Clinton-Lisell says.

Clinton-Lisell began thinking about universal design and audiobooks. Not only could audiobooks provide access to course materials for students with vision or other learning disabilities, but for students in general who might have everyday life obstacles to sitting down and reading. “I thought about my colleague, who was driving a lot who had the audiobook. ‘Well, how many students have long commutes, and would be able to listen to their course materials, during those drives, and be able to comprehend it, and otherwise may not have the time to sit down and read it,’” she said. “Or students who just have to do chores around the house, or watch the kids, if they could be playing their course materials, they could still get the content and the ideas and be able to stay on top of the materials.”

What the Research Shows  

Some previous research suggested comparable comprehension between audiobooks and reading but these were smaller, isolated studies and there were also other studies that demonstrated an advantage for reading. To learn more about the difference in comprehension between reading and listening, Clinton-Lisell embarked on a comprehensive search of studies comparing reading to audiobooks or listening to text of some type. 

For her analysis, she looked at 46 studies conducted between 1955 and 2020 with a combined total of 4,687 participants. These studies include a mix of elementary school, secondary school, and adult participants. While a majority of the studies looked at in the analysis were conducted in English, 12 studies were conducted in other languages.  

Overall, Clinton-Lisell found reading was comparable to listening in terms of comprehension. “There wasn’t a difference where anybody should be concerned about having somebody listen as opposed to read to understand content, or to understand a fictional work,” she says. 

In addition, she found: 

• There was no discernible difference between age groups in terms of listening vs. reading comprehension – though Clinton-Lisell only looked at studies that examined competent readers because those who struggle with reading will obviously learn more from an audiobook. 
• In studies in which readers were able to choose their own pace and go back, there was a small advantage to readers. However, none of the experiments allowed audiobook or other listeners to control their pace, so it’s unclear if that advantage would hold up with modern audiobook technology that allows people to skip back to relisten to a passage and/or speed up narration (anecdotally this helps some people concentrate on audiobooks). 
• There was some indication that reading and listening were more similar in languages with transparent orthographies (languages such as Italian or Korean in which words are spelled like they sound) than in languages with opaque orthographies (languages such as English in which words are not always spelled as they sound and letters don’t always follow the same rules). However, the difference was not big enough to be significant and may not hold up in larger studies, Clinton-Lisell says. 

Implications of The Research  

Audiobooks can help students with a wide range of accessibility needs including unexpected ones such as haptic concerns holding a book or inability to pay attention to text for long periods of time. 

“Audiobooks are also a great way to help students who have reading disabilities so they can build their language base and build their content knowledge from listening, so they don’t fall behind,” Clinton-Lisell says. 

In addition, Clinton-Lisell advocates for greater access to all students whether they have accessibility needs or not. “It's a way to make reading fun,” she says, noting that a book can be listened to while walking, relaxing, traveling, etc. 

Audiobooks are increasingly common in school libraries and text-to-speech is now a built-in feature of many apps and programs. Even so, some educators still see listening as a shortcut. Clinton-Lisell recounted an anecdote about a dyslexic student whose teachers were reluctant to provide listening alternatives because they wanted the student’s reading to improve, but she says such concerns are misguided. 

“Language builds language,” Clinton-Lisell says. “There are a wealth of studies showing that listening and reading comprehension benefit each other. The better you are at reading, the better you'll be at listening. The better you are at listening, the better you will be at reading.”

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As the Chief Technology Officer for a small, rural school district nestled in the hills of Appalachia, it is critically important that any recommendation I make to replace an aging system or network component be deliberate and strategic to ensure the optimal utilization of finite financial resources. Some of the schools in the district I serve were constructed 60+ years ago. When systems such as school intercoms begin to far outreach end-of-life status, it is extremely important to cast a vision for how a school intercom system can be upgraded with forward-facing purpose. 

We always like to begin such a process by examining all the solution market leaders and by reaching out to colleagues across the nation to inquire about solutions they have researched and adopted. An important step in the process is to “dream the big dream” as it pertains to exploring the functionality the new solution might offer that could eliminate other costs and integrate systems for high-impact, cross-functional support of the school and the people who teach and learn within. 

Much has changed in the school intercom market since the introduction of the traditional solutions. School safety must now be woven into each decision we make and every solution we deploy. School intercom systems can now serve as an important, integrated security tool that puts the power where it belongs, in the hands of the teachers in the building. 

In addition, scientific research has proven the correlation to students’ ability to hear their teachers clearly, especially during the early years when they are first learning letter sounds, and becoming phonetically astute. Consequently, intercom/communication solutions should include a classroom audio component that allows teachers to speak in normal voice level while providing instruction. In doing so, a teacher can better clarify letter sounds, focus on enunciation and pronunciation, and preserve the integrity of their own voice function throughout their busy day of teaching. 

New School Intercom System: Staying Connected with Teachers

In Greeneville City School District, we just recently replaced the second of eight old intercom systems with a state-of-the-art solution called Audio Enhancement EPIC. This deployment includes a complete “rip and replace” for our district. The new speakers are clear and crisp, which allows us to meet the traditional needs of office-to-classroom communication needs, and the system provides many integrated tools and resources that are proving to be transformational. 

For example, by incorporating the Classroom Audio component of the system into our latest install, teachers are reporting extremely positive feedback. At Tusculum View Elementary School, teachers enter classrooms each morning and immediately place a small, comfortable device around their necks. Once powered on, the device affords the teacher a seamless way to signal the front office of a classroom emergency simply by pushing a button. A discreet visual indicator in each classroom keeps the teacher apprised of actions being taken without the need to contact or be contacted by the front office. 

The device also serves as a microphone, and by projecting the teacher’s voice via strategically placed speakers, the focus is on voice clarification more than on voice amplification. Teachers report increases in student attention and listening, and they say that they leave school each day with less fatigue and less tired vocal cords. And when teachers speak in a normal voice, students lower their own voices in kind, making for lower classroom noise levels. 

School administrators and front office personnel are now able to easily create and manage zones such as “Kindergarten Classrooms” or “Third Grade Hall” to eliminate disrupting the instructional day with unnecessary or irrelevant announcements and notifications, which have shown to lead to the loss of significant learning time. Teachers and office personnel can also seamlessly converse with no need to push buttons or utilize classroom telephones during the day. High-quality sound and music can be streamed to zones and/or the entire school as students arrive and depart each day. 

With two EPIC systems fully installed and deployed, our district will now focus on replacing at least one system per year as part of capital budget planning. Because we invested in the upfront work and research, we now have a replicable school communication system that we believe will serve our schools for many years to come. 

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People are listening to more audiobooks than ever before. 

In 2021 an estimated 131 million people listened to an audiobook, and audiobook revenue is up more than 17 percent in the last two years. But despite their growing popularity audiobooks still often carry a stigma, particularly in education. 

“There's this sense that it's cheating,” says Beth Rogowsky, Ed.D, associate professor at Bloomsburg University and author of Uncommon Sense Teaching: Practical Insights in Brain Science to Help Students Learn. 

Rogowsky, a former K-12 English teacher, used to believe this as well. In fact, a few years ago when she got hooked on listening to audiobooks she was worried.

“I thought, ‘Wow, I'm really enjoying this. This is not good. I need to read this for it to count,’” she says. 

Then Rogowsky decided to explore the science behind that assumption. For a 2016 study, she split 91 college-educated adults into three groups. One group listened to sections of the nonfiction history book Unbroken, another group read the same section on ebook readers, while the final group both read and listened at the same time. Afterward, participants were quizzed on how much material they had retained. 

“What we found is it didn't matter whether these adults read the book from an e-tablet, listened to an audio version of the book, or did both simultaneously, comprehension was equal,” she says. 

Previous research also found adults got nearly identical scores on a test if they listen to passages instead of reading them. 

While research into audiobooks' impact on children is more limited, Melissa Jacobs, director of The New York City Department of Education School Library System, has seen students respond well to them. 

“I think that they comprehend at a much higher level listening than they do when they're reading text,” she says. “I find that a lot of kids have a very difficult time decoding text. And they lose out on the comprehension of a story, of a book, of a title because they're spending so much time focusing on decoding it.” 

When the pandemic started, Jacobs began purchasing more ebooks and audiobooks and her library system now has more than 19,000 audiobooks available for students on OverDrive’s Sora K12 app. Over the summer, data from the app shows that students were spending about 45 minutes on average engaged with audiobooks, about twice the time they spent on average with an ebook. 

But despite their potential, audiobooks are not perfect and research into their efficacy is ongoing. 

Lingering Questions About Audiobook Efficacy  

Rogowsky’s study compared listening to audiobooks to reading ebooks and there is some evidence that people retain more when reading a traditional print book instead of an ebook. It may also be harder to learn by listening the more complex a topic is. One study compared how well students learned about a scientific topic from a printed article versus a short podcast. Those in the reading group scored significantly higher than those in the listening group. 

Age may also play a role. Participants in Rogowsky’s study were adults between 25 and 40 who had a bachelor’s degree and were proficient readers. Rogowsky says that with younger students, who are still developing their reading skills, there is the potential to overuse audiobooks. “That becomes an issue when instead of teaching our students how to read, we're letting them just listen to audiobooks for longer periods of time, especially in our English classes,” she says. But she adds audiobooks can still be useful with younger grades as it can help them learn to enjoy reading. 

Jacobs says that “read along books,” which provide both text to read and audio, can be a useful tool with students still learning how to read. “For our younger kids, it provides a richer experience having that read along, “ she says. “Also for parents that don't speak or read in English, an audiobook or a read along helps them read with their child.” 

Overcoming The Audiobook Stigma  

Jacobs would like to see more educators embrace audiobooks and more school library systems invest in them. 

“I feel like it needs to be a much more acceptable format and for educators to understand that it's not a cop-out,” she says. “ Not everybody is reading the text. And if you don't want kids to fall behind, and they need to read it, and you're on a timeline, and you have a curriculum map that you're following, and you have deadlines, give them the opportunity to get an accessible format that works for them. There's not a one-size-fits-all. Audio provides a different size that kids need.” 

Jacobs had tried in the past to listen to audiobooks but had trouble concentrating on them. However, when she started adding more audiobooks to her library system after the pandemic started, she gave the format another try, but this time she tweaked the playback settings.

“I increase the speed of the narration of the reader, and it's changed my level of focus, and my ability to listen and actually enjoy an audiobook,” she says. 

Rogowsky says that to overcome the stigma associated with audiobooks more people need to go public with their listening habits, just like Jacobs. 

“The way we're gonna get past that is by more people sharing that, 'Yes, it's not a dirty little secret, I listened to the book rather than read it,'” she says. “Be proud of that, because you're making great use of this downtime. And the way you're going to remember more of what you read or listen to is by talking about it with other people.” 

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Tech & Learning and its parent company, Future plc, are partnering with  leading Pro Audio and AV titles to announce two new contests: The Best in Market ‘21 and Best of Show at ISE 2021. These awards programs are supported by Future’s five industry leading Pro Audio and AV titles: Installation, AV Technology, Mix, Residential Systems, and Sound & Video Contractor. 

The Best in Market ‘21 Award 

Future’s Best in Market ‘21 awards is a new market-wide program showcasing the most innovative technology from around the AV marketplace in the last 12 months. The program is open to all manufacturers of professional AV products and solutions regardless of their exhibitor/non-exhibitor status at this summer’s major trade shows. Award categories include, but are not limited to: education technology, AV products for the classroom, and technology enabling distance and hybrid learning. Find more information here. 

Nomination Deadline: 28th May 2021

Best of Show at ISE 2021 

For companies who are exhibiting at ISE 2021, Future’s annual Best of Show at ISE awards program, running in parallel with the The Best in Market ‘21 Award program, is open to any company exhibiting at any of ISE’s in-person regional events throughout June, or as part of ISE’s virtual exhibition offering.

These awards provide the perfect platform to draw attention to the innovative new products and services that have launched in the last 12 months, publishing nominated products to 130,000+ industry professionals. 

How to enter: 

Entries are submitted through this nomination form and are subject to specific criteria, levelling the playing field and ensuring that the judges receive all the pertinent information for each entry in the same format. The Frequently Asked Questions cover more about the entry process, categories, and criteria. 

The Santa Clara Unified School District, in the heart of Silicon Valley, CA, has always embraced innovation, so this culture seemed ideal to make the shift to a whole new style of teaching when the district moved to remote learning. 

But it was much more difficult than they anticipated. 

“This has been the hardest year of my career by far,” says Joe Ayala, Director of Technology for this direct that serves more than 15,300 K-12 students and an additional 6,000 in preschool/adult school. “You don’t know how much it means to go onto a campus and see teachers teaching and students learning until you take that element away.” 

Using this time to upgrade tech made sense, both to solve problems and anticipate solutions to issues that could arise in this new normal. In synchronous classrooms and meeting rooms, quality audio is key to a successful experience. To address this issue, the district piloted the Nureva HDL300 audio system, designed for classrooms, and came away with some best practices.

1. Improve audio in the classroom

“Our teachers hate the traditional approach,” says Ayala. “Teachers want to be able to move around the classroom, so we do iPad and Apple TV to give the freedom of movement and connection with students. Our goal is to find tech with multiple functions.” 

The district tried sound bars and amps hidden behind monitors, but Ayala says switching to the simple Nureva system that included the microphone was “amazing.” 

“For teachers not to have to raise their voice all the time, it’s huge,” says Ayala. “Before Nureva, I tested out our audio while wearing a mask and the volume I had to produce into the mic—there was no way a teacher could sustain that for four to six hours.”

2. Look for products that are easy to install

“I wish we had this tech sooner,” Ayala reports. “In the switch to remote, we had to install amps, mics, speaker systems, and wiring for ceiling speakers. They had previously put audio tech in a false ceiling, which involved ladders and a mess to access it for problems. I do love that the Nureva has both the mic and speaker system, because when you are retro-fitting old classrooms, it’s even harder to get up into the ceiling. Trying to deal with a science lab’s slanted ceiling and the drop tile—it’s nearly impossible.”

3. Future proof your PD

Being able to provide virtual professional development is another benefit of using the Nureva HDL300 technology. 

“We look at the finance numbers for training,” says Ayala “We can send someone out for $5,000 or you can do the same seminar as a web program for $1,000. But we know with our previous tech, if we opted for the $1,000 webinar it wouldn’t have been a good experience. To be able to bridge that gap will be very powerful.”

4. Keep hosting hybrid board meetings

“I don’t think virtual meetings are going away,” Ayala says. “I’m now having to stream all board meetings. It’s the expectation. I think this is an amazing tool for that use.” 

Ayala worked with other IT directors on retooling their web conference room. Previously, when attendees would go to meet in a room they had something such as a web speaker system that kind of picks up the sound, but this was attached to an internet cable that’s stretched across the floor where someone might trip on it. 

“Sometimes the cord doesn’t work, sometimes the phone doesn’t work, it’s just a mess,” Ayala says. “So I think this will be a great solution as we move forward. There will be some meetings in person and some still online, and this is a great blend for that situation.”

5. Make it easy to get parents involved

One of the biggest challenges for districts is parent involvement, especially as students move into higher grades. 

“In elementary, most parents are on board,” says Ayala. “They are doing the talent show and harvest festival, they are room parents—it’s easy to get them involved. As you hit middle school and high school, it’s harder to pull them in. The only time they come around is when something is wrong.” 

California has a LCAP (Local Control and Accountability Plan) that involves getting feedback from different target groups: parents, English learner population, socio-economic disadvantaged families, etc. Having the Nureva sound system allows the district to make it easy for these parents to attend meetings and conferences online to accommodate busy schedules. 

“Having the ability to say, ‘We’re going to have a parent meeting—if you can’t show up in person, you can attend virtually,’ is nice,” says Ayala. “Utilizing this will increase engagement and involvement.” 

Ayala points out that once California bounces back from the pandemic and road traffic increases, offering virtual parent conferences will make a huge difference. 

“Right now my commute is 25 minutes,” he says. “Pre-Covid, it was an hour and 15 minutes. Asking parents to drive ten miles to a meeting in this valley can mean hours of lost time at home or in their workplace.”

6. Keep the tech simple and sanitary

“There are a lot of microphone solutions out there to make English learners or students with various IEPs more comfortable contributing in class,” says Ayala, noting Covid distancing and sanitation rules make using these microphones difficult, if not impossible. 

“There’s a cube mic you pass around—that’s not going to happen anytime soon,” Ayala says. “There’s a combo teacher-lapel mic and karaoke-style pass-around mic for students. Someone uses it and passes it—wait! Wipe it off, pass a mic, wipe it off. It gets ridiculous. I’ve done technology in school for a long time, not having batteries go out, not losing batteries. Not losing mics. Remotes go missing, ‘pigtail’ adaptors just gone, HDMI cords, it just happens. A great benefit of the Nureva tech is putting it on the wall and forgetting about it.” 

Audio is key in learning language and building student confidence. “The hardest thing to get—in web meetings, in boardrooms, in classrooms, in small spaces is good audio,” says Ayala. “If the audio is bad, you’re going to have a bad learning experience.” 

With audio systems such as the Nureva HDL300, districts can now deliver a better experience, from the classroom to the boardroom.

Any teacher who has taught in a synchronous classroom with students in front of them while simultaneously teaching students remotely via a video conferencing platform (such as Google Meet) knows the challenges of engaging all students.  

One of the biggest challenges is when students turn off their cameras. Being virtual, students also have the ability to hide in the background behind the students who are participating. In addition, some students just don’t feel comfortable with their cameras on. 

To address this issue, teachers in the Wheeling Community Consolidated School District 21 in Wheeling, Illinois, a district with 6,200 students in Pre-K through 8, have implemented multiple modes of communication to ensure all students participate. 

“We make use of our chat feature for students to share comments without having to turn on their camera or microphone,” says Megan Hintz, a student teacher at Wheeling Community Consolidated School District 21. “We have also started rewarding students by having a student/teacher lunch bunch at the end of week for students who have repeatedly kept their camera on throughout the week.” 

The school also piloted the Nureva HDL300 audio system to help students hear clearly thanks to the multi-microphone array. The Nureva HDL300, designed for classrooms, captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom without any feedback or delay so students at home can clearly hear what the teacher and in-person students are saying during class. The system installs on the wall in minutes, and its plug-and-play connectivity and auto-calibration makes setup simple.

“This Nureva multi-microphone device helps pick up the in-person students’ voices so at home students can hear equally, as if they were in the classroom as well,” says Hintz. “This has allowed for a true hybrid experience without me needing to constantly repeat what students have said in class to the students participating online.”

Clear communication is crucial for all students, but those with IEPs or English as a second language can truly benefit from natural sound to follow along. 

“A common characteristic of ELL students is that they are very soft spoken using their second language,” says Hintz. “This product really made it easier for me to pick up some of my soft-spoken students, even in a noisy environment. Now students report being able to hear better in my class than in other teachers’ classrooms.” 

Pro Tips 

 Hintz suggests the following tips to make the most of synchronous classrooms: 

• Missing Assignments: Because most assignments are sent through Google Classroom, it can get overwhelming and sometimes students forget to turn in work. Hintz uses a Google Sheet, organized by date, with all of the assignments that should be turned in that day. Then on Fridays, she builds in time to give kids the chance to turn in some of those assignments. Once everything is turned in, the kids earn a game day!
• Organization: Organization is key for keeping students on track. Hintz makes sure students know where they can access every resource and keeps the process consistent so that when she asks them to open a document, they know exactly what to do and where to find it. Google Classroom has been very helpful with organization.
• Parent Communication: Hintz emphasizes the importance of keeping families involved with what is going on at their child’s school. Hintz makes sure to send parents weekly emails with the class schedule for the following week so that they know what to expect.
• Material Struggle: It can be a challenge to ensure the students at home have the same resources as the students in the building. The teachers at Wheeling have learned to get creative, using several different online programs to engage students such as Google platforms, Word Clouds, FlipGrid, and Seesaw.
• Build in Breaks: Hintz incorporates a few breaks in the day for kids to get up and move, instead of being sedentary all day. For example, she gives the kids a “brain break” with GoNoodle.com. This online dance and movement program, which offers activities that can be done standing in a socially distant designated spot or at home, aims to “infuse fun into the classroom, boost student confidence and offers the opportunity for peer-to-peer connections.” “Adding the clear audio from Nureva helps kids feel they are having a fun time together,” she says.

“Using the Nureva HDL300 was seamless and really didn’t require me to change what I was already doing, other than just plugging it into the base station,” says Hintz. “Adding an audio tool that made all students feel part of the class helped encourage participation.”

Although the past year has been challenging, Hintz stays positive: “Never give up! Where there is a will, there is always a way,” she says. “Whether teaching remotely, in-person, or both simultaneously, always plan for the unexpected and always have a second and third way to teach the same lesson.”

In a lot of ways, Gilbert Public Schools came into this current remote learning era ahead of the game, tech-wise. This district of 32,000 students, located in a suburb of Phoenix, was already set with 1:1 devices for their seventh- through twelfth-grade learners, and their elementary program had enough tech to sign out to any younger learner who needed one. 

However, in terms of hybrid or mixed learning modes, they had been looking for an all-in-one unit that could be mounted in the front of the classroom and still had the mic technology to pick up students in the entire room. 

“We wanted to stay away from mics hanging from the ceiling or having to press a mic button to speak,” says Jon Castelhano, Gilbert’s executive director of technology. “We had some unique classroom configurations.” One of the more challenging classroom environments was where the teachers were remote and the students are present in the classroom. 

“These teachers had typical sound issues with being able to hear the students,” Castelhano reports. 

To address this, the district piloted a Nureva HDL300 system. This audio system, designed for classrooms, captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom so the teachers at home can clearly hear what the students are saying during class. The system installs in minutes, and its plug-and-play connectivity and auto-calibration makes setup simple. 

“One of the participating teachers told us, ‘Oh my goodness, it’s like night and day! I can hear ALL of the students with no muffle at all and there are zero echoes. We can actually have a conversation, whereas before it was me just talking at them.’ And that is no way to teach or learn,” reports Castelhano.

Strategy for Best Learning Outcomes

“We made the decision to provide synchronous learning for our students when in virtual, and now hybrid, mode as we transition back to in-person,” Castelhano says. “We did not feel the learning experience of just placing students in an online learning program and checking in every few days was best for their learning. Synchronous online teaching was the best model for student engagement, continued relationship building, and engagement for our students and families.” 

Combining a good LMS and online curricular content with the teachers delivering synchronous instruction, whether in person or remote, and being able to seamlessly communicate with students regardless of their physical presence, created an engaging environment.

Challenges and Solutions

Even though most students had the devices they needed for remote and hybrid learning, the classrooms were in a different situation with the AV equipment, and not set up for true distance learning. 

“If we had a device like the Nureva system in every classroom, we could entertain different options for students present or remote, truly opening up the distance learning scenarios,” says Castelhano. “We knew if there was a great product that combined mics and speakers and could truly work in a large classroom, that the teachers participating in the pilot would have the missing pieces for communicating remotely with their students.” 

“The teacher is still the magic that creates the learning opportunities in the classroom and they need the tools to help make that easier for them,” says Castelhano. “A device like the Nureva system makes it easier for them to not be concerned if they are being heard or if they are hearing all of their students. It lets them focus on what matters.” 

"Has the Nureva system affected my teaching? Absolutely! It has been a game-changer,” says International Baccalaureate Biology teacher Katherine Powell, who is teaching her students from home while they are in the classroom. “Besides being able to walk around now, I feel like I am back in my classroom! Discussion is how I teach and this has allowed me to do that again."

At the Byram Hills School District in North Castle, N.Y., a K-12 district of 2,300 students, educators decided to take a different approach to teaching during the pandemic. 

“We realized that we could not recreate the face-to-face experience online, but we could reimagine teaching and learning with technology,” says Andrew Taylor, Director of Technology and Professional Learning. “Instead of putting cameras in the classroom that simply streamed the teacher at the whiteboard, we created a teacher ‘command center’ in each classroom.” 

The command center allows the teacher to simultaneously teach students in the classroom and at home. 

“Our goal was to have teachers model in the classroom how learning will happen if we are remote,” says Taylor. “Unfortunately, we have students and teachers quarantined daily. The command centers have made the transition from in the classroom to fully remote learning more seamless.” 

The command center includes a document camera (IPEVO 4K), a laptop (Dell), and an interactive monitor (Viewsonic TD 2455). The district piloted the Nureva HDL300, an audio system designed for classrooms that captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom, to support this initiative. All of this technology can be brought home, or accessed from home, if the teacher needs to work remotely. 

“In a hybrid learning environment, it is important that everyone can hear each other and be heard,” says Taylor. “Although we are new in the pilot, it was immediately apparent Nureva is helping to make sure everyone in the classroom can be part of the conversation and hear the content clearly. Our teachers spent the spring struggling to present content while working remotely. Today, teachers tell me all the time how this setup has been a game changer.” 

“The Nureva system has been a fantastic addition to my classroom,” says Dawn Selnes, Technology Teacher and Building Technology Coordinator at HCC. “The sound system has dramatically improved my students ability to hear each other and be heard--especially while masked!”

Challenges and Solutions

“The fluid nature of learning during the pandemic is a challenge,” says Taylor. “Teachers and students move in and out of the classroom.” The hybrid learning environment allows teaching and learning to continue, no matter the location of the teacher or students. 

“It is not unusual to have a class that has students face-to-face in the classroom, down the hall due to social distancing, and at home,” Taylor continues. “Students may be at home due to personal choice, quarantine, or due to the redesign of the learning environment. We must be ready to address the teacher and student needs no matter what the location or needs may be.” 

“Tools you choose should have a lifespan beyond the pandemic,” says Taylor. “If we are going to invest time/resources now in learning/implementing, then it should last beyond the current crisis. Do not let short term needs outweigh long-term goals.” 

Taylor says that he is continuously amazed by the capacity of the students and teacher to rise to the challenge and overcome obstacles. 

“Success can only be achieved if we are all working together,” he says. “Many of the tools we have adapted are quickly becoming part of the teachers toolbox and I believe will last far beyond the pandemic.”

Teachers are creative by nature, and never has this been more evident than since Covid-19 closed down schools last March. 

At Linwood Public Schools in Atlantic County in Southern New Jersey, a K-8 district with approximately 810 students, teachers tapped their ingenuity to ensure they were reaching even the youngest students remotely. 

“When we had to adjust for Covid, our educators jumped in and made interactive experiences using graphics programs to look like their classrooms,” says Frank Pileiro, Supervisor of Technology. “In this ‘classroom,’ they included avatars of themselves, as well as items relating to topics of the lessons or each subject. This was particularly effective in our elementary school to keep the students connected and engaged. 

“They did the same for parents for our virtual back-to-school nights,” continues Pileiro. “We also created a virtual wellness day for our staff. We invited speakers, yoga teachers, and meditation leaders to engage our teachers and support staff in virtual meeting rooms.”

Expanding to Hybrid Classrooms

Finding quality edtech solutions was key to supporting these creative ideas as the district moved from remote to hybrid learning environments. 

“One of the most important tech additions to make this new normal a success has been our new communication tech and audio conferencing solutions,” Pileiro reports. “The Nureva HDL300 system has been a great addition to our efforts to bring the classroom to our students, whether they are at home or in the school building.” 

The Nureva system, designed for classrooms, captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom so students at home can clearly hear what the teacher and in-person students are saying during class. Teachers can stand and walk around, and in-class students can communicate with students learning from home, who can hear everything without any feedback or delay. The system installs on the wall in minutes, and its plug-and-play connectivity and auto-calibration makes setup simple. 

“From my perspective, it was a breeze to install and set up,” says Pileiro. “The system helped with lesson delivery tremendously. The audio quality coming out of the speaker made it sound like the students at home were in the classroom. Also, the microphone array did an excellent job picking up all areas of the learning environment. The included remote control made it very easy to control the connection and audio volume. The teacher could walk around the classroom and still control volume and mute. The light on the front of the device let the teacher know if they were connected or muted. Nureva made what could be a stressful situation less stressful since it just works.” 

The teacher who piloted the system agrees.

“I have a pretty large room, and I am not one to stand in one place,” says seventh-grade math teacher, Chris Meade. “For me, the ability to wander around and circulate in my classroom, use my whiteboard and not be tied down to a laptop, let me teach in a natural way and helped me engage my students. The audio of class contributions from remote students with those in the room through the Nureva system was so natural—I could hear them clearly, and they could hear me clearly. It was like everyday learning only with surround sound. I was there when Frank installed the system himself. It took less than twenty minutes and we were up and running—very intuitive and simple. It’s definitely a change for the better.”

Pro Tips

“When it comes to hybrid and blended learning, the best tip I can give is to not let it end when this pandemic is over,” says Pileiro. “Students adapted so much better than we expected overall. We should continue to develop and practice these skills so we can use them to enhance instruction and be ready if we have to go through this again.” 

Not surprisingly, professional development is key. 

“Getting the teachers up to speed with blended and virtual teaching was just the start,” says Pileiro. “To really be meaningful, follow-up training had to take place at the appropriate intervals.” 

In addition to employing follow-up professional development, the district curated web-based resources for teachers to access as needed. These included downloadable documents, screencasts, and video playlists on a private website that can access from anywhere. 

“Incorporating communication tech is one way to enhance lessons in this new normal, and something that could be used in the future to keep students connected in alternate modes of learning,” says Pileiro. “Tools such as the HDL300 make this easy because it is so simple to set up and use. It frees the teacher from having to be in front of a microphone or speakers.” 

Pileiro recommends setting up the classroom video feed to allow teachers to move around the room more freely and not be tethered to a webcam on a computer. This can make blended and virtual instruction feel even more as if everyone's together as one.  

Pileiro also offers this word of advice: “Never underestimate your abilities as an instructor, or your students’ ability to adapt, no matter their age. Don't isolate yourselves. Collaborate— ask and give help as much as possible. We are all in this together!”

We know student voice is crucial to effective pedagogy -- both literally and figuratively. If teachers and students can’t hear one another, their contributions to the learning are negated. 

“Hearing the tone, speech, and passion in students’ words is what drives our educators,” says Matthew X. Joseph, Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment at Leicester Public Schools in Worcester County, MA, a PK-12 district with 1,400 students. “Having the option to have clear sound to include both at-home learners and in-school learners gives a true ‘one class’ feeling.” 

To help improve the audio quality in the classroom and for students learning simultaneously at home, the district piloted the Nureva HDL300 system. This audio system, designed for classrooms, captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom so students at home can clearly hear what the teacher and in-person students are saying during class. Teachers can stand and walk around, and in-class students can communicate with students learning from home, who can hear everything without any feedback or delay. The system installs on the wall in minutes, and its plug-and-play connectivity and auto-calibration makes setup simple. 

“In-class learners can talk in a normal tone, and students at home can hear like they are in the room,” says Joseph. “The teacher can also teach at a tone and pace that everyone can hear. When they call on an at-home student, they feel they are included, and the lesson flows as if all students were in front of them. This kind of seamless connection is invaluable.”

SEL is Key

Creating time to have in-depth discussions can support the district’s learner's academic and social-emotional needs. 

“Having the Nureva system in the room allows for an in-depth conversation without lulls or volume issues to interrupt the flow,” says Joseph. “When we talk SEL with our students, we want the emotion to be felt in our words. Students are more engaged when they can be heard and feel they are a part of the discussion.”

Timing is Everything

Even with ideal audio solutions, there are many challenges with hybrid learning. One challenge is over-planning. Joseph advises teachers to limit topics for each learning session to just one skill per lesson, so students leave feeling empowered, not overwhelmed. Include specific examples of taught skills to encourage students to practice their work skills when there is asynchronous learning time. 

“We try to ensure the material we teach can be taught in half the class time,” says Joseph. “This will then allow for an opening and closing of every lesson. With possible connection issues and adjusting to online learning, we want to ensure there is time for warm-up, instruction, and closure.”

Pro Tips

To make the most of the hybrid classroom, Joseph recommends:

• Be present. Having the Nureva system  allows educators to feel all students are in front of them—the divide between at-home and in-person students is diminished.
  
• Celebrate small wins. It's important to celebrate the small achievements. Small wins are opportunities to reflect on how far we've come, which gives us the strength to stay inspired.
  
• It’s okay if you don’t know all of the answers. This shift is new to all of us, demanding different skills and techniques. It's okay not to have all the answers. Take a breath, and work on solutions rather than feeling overwhelmed.
  
• Listen without intending to respond. When you're engaged in learning conversation, do you listen, or are you more focused on what to say next? Usually, we're only half-listening because we're already thinking about what questions we can ask students to add to the dialogue. Instead of thinking about what to say, be more present in your conversations with students and think about what you hear. By merely listening with curiosity, rather than anticipation, you will be inherently more present.

Teacher Feedback

“The Nureva system is great,” says eighth-grade science teacher Dave Socha. “It far exceeds the simple auxiliary speakers that I had hooked up to my desktop computer, which would go in and out as the input/output cords were bumped and shifted. The sound from the system is smooth and deep. It definitely adds to the experience when students speak on Google Meets, when we share recorded work products on FlipGrid or ScreenCastify, or when we're simply watching a video clip in class.” 

These are challenging times on so many levels; anything that helps kids feel “normal” is a plus. More than just a perfunctory fix to enable students to hear lessons or each other, having audio tech that feels natural can be a game changer when it comes to the intangibles of teaching, and reaching, students.

Quickly pivoting between learning models is a challenge for any district, but for rural districts, this challenge is amplified by distance and spotty connection issues. 

Take, for example, Bunker Hill CUSD #8, a remote and rural PK-12 system of 600 students 30 miles north of the Metro-East area in Macoupin County, Illinois. In a continued effort to ensure the district was meeting the needs of all students, the district has had to pivot between hybrid, full remote, and face-to-face learning throughout the year. 

“At the beginning of the school year, our county had a surge in Covid-19 cases,” says Superintendent Todd Dugan. “In efforts to keep students six feet apart, we began the school year with ‘blue and yellow’ teams, with 50% of students physically in attendance while 50% logged in from home via Go Guardian Video Conferencing with Google Classroom. 

“One hurdle right away was struggling to make the students at home feel like they were in the class participating, instead of just observing. The same was true with the students in the room,” Dugan says. 

One new tool that Bunker Hill used to address this issue was the Nureva HDL300 system. This audio system, designed for classrooms, captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom so the students at home can clearly hear what the teacher and in-person students are saying during class. Teachers can stand and walk around, and in-class students can share their feedback with students learning from home, who can hear everything without any feedback or delay. The system installs on the wall in minutes and its plug-and-play connectivity and auto-calibration makes setup simple. 

“All of the students in the classroom could clearly hear the students from home, avoiding the need to use online chat and have the teacher repeat out loud what the students at home said,” says Dugan. “This led to increased student engagement and interaction with one another, which was the major piece of the classroom environment that was lacking during the hybrid periods.”

Challenges and Solutions

In remote rural schools, bandwidth is a huge barrier. Many times, it is not an issue of being able to afford the internet, but rather if broadband is even offered to outlying rural areas. Parents using satellite internet providers find that monthly data allowances are exhausted in a couple of days. Others report not being able to participate in Zoom or Google Meet due to upload speed issues. 

Because of these issues, many students were forced to turn cameras off to conserve bandwidth, leading a few teachers to feel remote students were not engaged. Having the Nureva system in the classroom resolved this. Even though remote and in-person students could not see one another, they could clearly communicate through the HDL300’s live audio connection without any audio delays or issues related to the in-person students’ distance from the system. Offering a compromise of live audio connection through the Nureva system was a way for students to have their voices heard and remain part of the conversation. 

The teacher who piloted the HDL300 confirms that the device worked amazingly well at bridging the divide between remote and in-person learners. 

"My students absolutely enjoy being able to hear and communicate with their classmates at home as if they were in the room with them,” says teacher Katherine Sutton. "As a teacher I like the freedom of walking around my room. The Nureva system allows me to move around and engage with all students instead of feeling tethered to my computer."

Unexpected Results

Focusing on improving communication between face-to-face and online learning environments has paid dividends. 

“Using our own assessments, we found that K-2 were the only grades showing a significant ‘learning loss’ with grades 3-12 showing very minimal loss,” says Dugan. “However, grades were highest in K-3, and lower in 4-12. This suggests that there is an inherent flaw in how we are assessing students’ content knowledge and skill mastery. 

“We had been focusing on ‘work being completed’ and not necessarily on ‘standards/skills mastery being demonstrated.’ In other words, our current grading practices favor compliance and completion over competency. This should be one valuable lesson learned from the pandemic. The integration of communication technology could be one bridge to better allow students to demonstrate their mastery of these necessary standards and skills.”

PD Tips & Other Creative Solutions

Dugan says professional development and community partnerships were key to their success. 

He reports that Bunker Hill CUSD #8 professionally trained all their teachers in remote teaching best practices, such as using breakout rooms in Zoom. Recognizing that a typical 48-minute class period is too long to be effectively engaged for students on screen time, teachers set “timers” for shorter direct instruction sessions. Communication technology that allowed for ease of conversation helped make the most of these shorter instructional periods. 

The district also partnered with area businesses and redefined traditional learning spaces to ensure more students had the access they needed for remote learning. 

“We offered cellular hotspots to all students, but the weak cell signal would prevent them from using video conferencing,” says Dugan. To help solve this issue, the district offered their school libraries as ‘WiFi laboratories’ for small numbers of students, created a drive-up public WiFi hotspot at two buildings, and even had the public library and local restaurants let a small number of students use their spaces to connect to their classrooms via video conferencing.

What Not to Do

Do not teach passively to any students, advises Dugan, even at times when 50% of students are remote. In other words, using a hybrid model of primarily note-sharing or lecturing to all students in person, while allowing the remote learners to only view/hear the same experience, is not helpful. “It’s a step backward by decades in terms of what we know about effective pedagogy,” says Dugan. 

“Learning equality has been a challenge and a hallmark of this new era we find ourselves in as modes of educating can turn on a dime,” says Dugan. “Key to making that transition seamlessly, and achieving fully engaged students regardless of where their learning might be taking place, is to make all students feel equally heard. Using communication tech such as the Nureva HDL300 system helps all students use their voice to feel a true part of the class and equal participants in the learning experience.”

In today's challenging times, districts need to come up with creative ways to keep kids engaged and on track. Wichita Falls Texas I.S.D. in North Texas is a district of 13,600 students (66% are economically disadvantaged) and covers 82 square miles. The district has pivoted between a variety of learning environments this year in an attempt to keep all students engaged and connected in this sprawling community, and most recently started building synchronous, hybrid classrooms as a flexible approach to meet the needs of their students, staff, and families, both in-person and learning remotely. 

“We are experimenting in a lot of ways to keep students engaged and on track,” says Frank Murray, Director of Instructional Technology at Wichita Falls. “We are moving some teachers to only teach fully remote students (some teachers teach all elementary grade levels). Some teachers are teaching face-to-face half of a day and remote the other half. We are working on building full online courses for English and Social Studies to continue even after COVID.” 

Other initiatives include building hybrid classrooms using products such as the Nureva HDL300 system to deliver quality audio to their students who are learning from home. This audio system, designed for classrooms, captures the audio of everything happening in the classroom so the students at home can clearly hear what the teacher and in-person students are saying during the class. Teachers do not need to be tied to a desk to make sure they are heard by the students at home. They can stand and walk around, and in-class students can share their feedback with students learning from home, who can hear everything without any feedback or delay. The system installs on the wall in minutes and its plug-and-play connectivity and auto-calibration makes setup simple. 

Using tools such as the Nureva HDL300 has helped the district have crucial conversations with parents of students who failed one or more classes to try and get them back to face-to-face instruction. 

“We trained all teachers before the school year started (virtual and face-to-face challenge-based PD), so we were ready to go and projected confidence and competency in the tech,” says Murray. “We created ‘Weekly Tech Tips’ and created an environment to let teachers take chances. We also offer a parent/student helpdesk 7:30-5:00, Monday through Thursday, and 7:30-4:00 on Fridays, to support our families.”

Murray offers these 6 tips for districts looking to create hybrid classrooms:

1. Let remote students engage in conversation in the classroom when possible.
2. Teaching is an experiment in which some things will work and some will not, but you have to take chances. Both teachers and students should have freedom to try, and districts should develop learning environments to support that.
3. Find ways to give teachers more planning time.
4. Encourage sharing among staff, but make sure they have buy-in first to get the best engagement and results.
5. Do not try to build a one-size-fits-all model for all your schools.
6. Do not demand too much district PD.

Teacher feedback using the Nureva HDL300 to teach in these hybrid classrooms has been very positive. 

"I absolutely love it,” says teacher Amy Yeary. “This is probably the happiest I have felt about teaching all year. I feel like I have my movement back. Because I can move around the room throughout the class, behavior has definitely improved. That proximity is there again, and students are more on task, and minor behavior issues have been eliminated.” 

“If I am at a table working with a student and a remote student needs help, I can now easily hear them and respond immediately,” says Yeary. “Before, I would have to either yell toward my computer or have a student who was close to the computer tell the remote student that I would be with them soon. I have noticed that my remote students are responding more and actually communicating with face-to-face students now and not just me. I think this is because they can hear their peers (and see them on camera). When they unmute and speak, the whole class can easily hear. I save time too, because I am no longer having to constantly restate or repeat what was said or asked by a face-to-face student. 

“I can be anywhere in the room and explain or teach without having to raise my voice. I am easier to understand with the mask on, too. The sound from the speaker is excellent regardless of where I sit in the room. I really like that students at the back can hear just as well as those close to the speaker.” 

Although a regular part of a successful education experience, never is communication more important than during this challenging era. The ability to listen and speak clearly to all students, regardless of mode of teaching, is one way tech such as Nureva can really help us hear our learners and get them what they need to succeed.

Hybrid and blended learning environments can be a challenge, especially when some students are in the class and some are learning at the same time at home. How can you ensure the students at home are as engaged as those in the classroom? Can they hear the instructor if she walks around the classroom? 

During a recent Tech & Learning Lunch ‘n Learn webinar, Dr. Kecia Ray talked with district leaders about how they use sound technology to make sure all of their students are not just connected, but engaged in lessons. They discussed the importance of sound technology in current learning environments and what new tools can improve the delivery of instruction.  

For the on-demand version, click here

Key takeaways

The sound barrier. Most classrooms in LaGrange Highlands School District 106 in Illinois are hybrid, which means a mix of in-person and remote students. And when classes are synchronous, getting clear sound for the students at home is the biggest challenge, says Ali Beiermeister, Director of Teacher Learning. “Being able to hear one another and have a dialogue is key,” Beiermeister said.

“By having better sound, it’s easier to have students jump in and be able to share their thoughts,” said Mary Kinzel, a middle school science teacher in the district who teaches in a hybrid classroom. When the sound system is high quality and everyone can clearly hear what everyone else is saying, and in real time, remote students can be part of the normal classroom process, and don’t have to wait for mics to be muted or opened in order to share their thoughts. “Anything we can do right now in a hybrid classroom that lets us feel like it's a single classroom setting, we’re trying to encourage,” said Kinzel.

Right tool for the job. Having a wide range of classroom sizes and student populations, it was a challenge to find one tool to service everyone and everything, said Eric Callis, LaGrange Highlands’ director of technology. They first tried giving teachers tablets to walk around the classroom with to record voices, but that didn’t work for everyone. They eventually installed Nureva sound bars, which use a virtual array of microphones for a high-quality sound experience. “After the first-day novelty, the kids don’t even know the system is there,” Callis said. “The system creates the normal classroom environment that we’re interested in supporting.”

Working smarter, not harder. “One of the biggest challenges we have as an IT dept is that we’re being asked to support a wider range of products, so taking on an extra project is not something we’re looking for right now,” said Callis. He talked about installing a product such as the Nureva system (“It only took two screws to hang up”), and how teachers didn’t have to do anything other than select it as a mic source in their software. They were able to use it within an hour of installation. A product such as Nureva is also a very low maintenance solution, said Callis.

Finding a sound solution. “If remote students can’t hear, they can’t participate, so what’s the point of teaching that way?” said Nancy Knowlton, President and CEO of Nureva. She pointed out that video is an optional tool but audio is essential for a classroom teacher. She also discussed how her company focuses on minimizing hassles for educators and IT managers by developing a sound bar that is easy to install (it connects via a USB port), can be managed remotely, and autocalibrates itself. “We know that teachers don’t have the time to focus on tech, so we’re all about doing it for them,” Knowlton said.

Lunch 'n Learn with Tech & Learning

We hope you can join us for this weekly District Leadership Lunch ‘n Learn Roundtable series, hosted by Dr. Kecia Ray, every Wednesday. In this weekly series, districts from across the U.S. share their strategic plans, the challenges they are facing, and the creative solutions they are using to support students and teachers. Register for our upcoming event here. 

More from T&L: Lunch 'n Learn roundtable recaps

• Transitioning from Remote Learning to Blended Learning
• Addressing Learning Loss: Using Connected Assessments & LMS
• T&L Webinars

Tech & Learning is pleased to announce its annual Best of Show winners at InfoComm 2020 Connected. This select group of products represents the innovation on display at the virtual show, which features thousands of new solutions from hundreds of exhibiting manufacturers. Winners were chosen based on the expert analysis of a panel of industry veterans who reviewed each product in depth over the week leading up to the convention.   

Congratulations to the following winners!

Axis Communications, Inc., AXIS C1410 Network Mini Speaker

The AXIS C1410 Network Mini Speaker is an all-in-one speaker system designed to broadcast prerecorded messages, live or scheduled announcements, and music. This smart and easy-to-integrate speaker offers wide-area audio coverage for high-quality voice and audio announcements in any indoor environment including retail locations, healthcare and education facilities, and corporate offices.  

A small speaker with broad reach, AXIS C1410 offers wide-area audio coverage, including background music and public address paging capabilities. Equipped to deliver live or scheduled announcements, the network speaker allows users to offer guidance and make informative announcements throughout an entire premise when needed. For end-users who rely on the speaker for remote audio coverage, the system’s built-in, preconfigured digital signal processing (DSP) ensures clear, crisp audio and voice messages directly following installation. The built-in Audio Player software also delivers zoning and scheduling capabilities, allowing end users to schedule background music and/or messages, and broadcast audio in different zones. 

The judges noted: "The AXIS C1410 Network Mini Speaker is perfect for education spaces in which cost effective and rapid deployment of mass notification is desirable. The addition of a motion sensor adds even more value to this low cost but versatile product."

See more here: https://youtu.be/tEGF0AJ4l4g

Clevertouch, IMPACT Plus

In January 2020, Clevertouch launched its fifth-generation Plus Series touchscreen for education, IMPACT Plus. This fifth-generation touchscreen is highly adaptable and market ready to meet the needs of the everyday learning environment and for the ‘new norm’ following the pandemic. 

As education establishments return, IMPACT Plus is designed to give confidence to the user and maintain high standards of student engagement. Its motion sensors require no touch and will instantly switch on the body heat camera to help to detect those students with abnormal temperatures. The High Precision touch technology and frame will work with personal protective equipment ensuring the teacher or lecturer are able to stay safe at all times. 

All screens are digital signage ready as well as teaching and learning touchscreens. Send digital poster alerts and updates instantly or schedule posters to keep all in the teaching environment updated. 

The Clevershare app works with any device and can be opened for the students to share content or locked by the soul user of the board. Work from anywhere in the room and keeping the lesson moving forward and students engaged. 

The infinite whiteboarding is an endless canvas to improve fluidity within the learning environment. No more stopping and opening a new page. Just keep going and at the end of your session, open the QR code on screen and let the students scan the code to enable them to walk away with today’s lesson. 

Judges noted: "Clevertouch engineers imagine and designs outside the box with end users foremost in their approach. The new UX Pro product line provides a wider variety of features than the competition, adding value and enhanced performance within your environments. The remote management platform is a valuable feature for IT administrators looking to securely deploy, monitor and service across your campus."

Crestron Electronics, Inc., Crestron Flex R-Series

The need to share knowledge and work collaboratively is more critical than ever. The new Crestron Flex R-Series is a mobile UC System that brings collaboration to wherever it’s needed most and closes the distance between teams wherever they may be.  

The Crestron Flex R-Series arrives assembled and ready to go, making rapid deployment easy. Simply roll the cart into your desired space, connect to power and network, and start your meeting with one touch.

The Crestron Flex R-Series is compatible with the award-winning Crestron XiO Cloud™ service, which is an IoT (Internet of Things) based platform for remotely provisioning, monitoring, and managing Crestron devices across an enterprise or an entire client base. The service enables installers and IT managers to easily provision and manage Flex R-Series devices for rapid deployment wherever UC is needed. 

Judges said, "In a matter of weeks the audio/visual/collaboration world has changed rapidly, and Crestron delivered. As we prepare for the new normal and a return to the workplace and school environments, the Crestron Flex R-Series provides AV/IT managers and end users with an all-in-one mobile UC cart option to rapidly deploy new collaboration systems in virtually any room or space with power and a network connection."

Crestron Electronics, Inc., X Series Amplifier

The Crestron AMP-X300 is a high-performance, space-saving, energy-efficient, professional-grade amplifier solution that’s totally configurable, yet simple to use. 

Whether you’re in the market for a stereo amp that mounts on a wall or under a table, or a multichannel rack mount amp with multiple output types and power levels, the AMP-X300 is simple to specify and install in any configuration. This four, dual-channel amplifier is rated at 75 W per channel with a choice of “LoZ” outputs to drive 4 or 8 Ohm speakers, or “Hi-Z” outputs to drive a distributed speaker system (70 V or 100 V). With both balanced and unbalanced inputs connecting to a two stereo or four mono source(s) via a detachable terminal black or RCA connectors, deploying a state-of-the-art amplifier is easier than ever. This amplifier was also designed to provide users with a dependable quality solution. 

The AMP-X300 is engineered to deliver exceptional performance and reliability with low distortion, low noise, and high power headroom. Advanced Class D technology maximizes efficiency to reduce power consumption and heat dissipation. An internal universal power supply ensures consistent performance at varying line voltages.

An energy-efficient design enables the AMP-X300 to meet demanding ENERGY STAR requirements. The AMP-X300 draws no added inrush current during power-up, thereby reducing AC circuit requirements and allowing multiple units to be connected to a single switched circuit. The efficient design ensures cool running operation and long-term reliability. The AMP-X300 is high-density stackable with other Crestron modular amps, allowing multiple units to be installed vertically in an equipment rack without needing extra ventilation space. The AMP-X300 features protection against overheating, shorted or overloaded speaker lines, excessive input signals, and other faults.   

Judges noted: "As Crestron made the commitment to provide clients turnkey solutions they did not skimp when it came to supporting their audio product lines. Multiple channels of amplifiers in small form factors will continue to reduce SKU's necessary to complete jobs as well as the rack space required to achieve the project goals." 

Crestron Electronics, Inc., HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE

The Crestron HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE is a multiformat AV switch and receiver that provides HDMI® video switching and audio presentation capabilities in areas such as conference rooms and classrooms. 

Compatible with all DM Lite transmitters, the HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE provides one DM Lite input for connection to one transmitter. A CATx (CAT5e or higher) twisted pair cable connects a transmitter to the HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE for the transmission of HDMI signals. For resolutions up to 2K, the maximum transmission distance is 230 ft (70 m). For higher resolutions up to 4K, the maximum transmission distance is 130 ft (40 m). 

The HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE includes a Gigabit Ethernet PoE+ PD port that can be connected to a PoE+ port on a Gigabit Ethernet switch. PoE+ eliminates the need for the HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE or the connected DM Lite transmitter to be connected to the PW-2412WU power pack.

An Ethernet port connection to a LAN also provides control by enabling use of the built-in web interface as well as connection to a control system.

Judges said, "Small products continue to change the way we do business in the professional AV market. The Crestron HD-RX-4K-210-C-E-POE has a feature set that matches its long model name. This series of switching receivers will rapidly find their way into classrooms and huddle rooms as we prepare to return to in person collaboration and learning experiences."

Epson America, Inc., BrightLink 735Fi UST Interactive Display

The BrightLink 735Fi ultra-wide ultra short-throw laser display changes the way technology, users, and their ideas converge. With the ability to turn almost any flat surface into a widescreen digital whiteboard, the new BrightLink 735Fi offers a seamless interactive experience. Featuring dual-pen interactivity with auto calibration, the BrightLink 735Fi also has an optional touch capability with a space-saving, easy-to-install touch module.  

The BrightLink 735Fi is a true collaboration device, integrating the utility of a whiteboard, projector, and interactive display so users can simply turn on the device and start writing and collaborating, with no additional computers required. 

The BrightLink 735Fi offers either a 100-inch, 16:9 or ultra-wide 110” -inch, 16:6 display, offering up to 65 percent more interactive space vs. a 75-inch flat panel. The ultra-wide 16:6 aspect ratio supports split-screen, side-by-side viewing from multiple sources resulting in large, easy-to-read displays, which will be key for tomorrow’s reduced class sizes. Boasting 3,600 lumens of color and white brightness, the BrightLink 735Fi delivers a bright display with Full HD 1080p resolution optimized for superior readability.  

Judges commented: "Epson has always been a market leader and innovator in the education projector market. Now with their new BrightLink 735Fi UST Interactive Display, they continue to allow architects and designers to rethink the traditional classroom model with interactivity untouched by competitors product lines."

Hall Research Technologies, USB 3.0/3.1/2.0 Gen 1 Javelin™ AOC

Hall Research has a new addition to their Javelin series active optical cables: the CUSB3V1-AP*.  Available in lengths of 15, 30, and 50 meters, CUSBV1-AP* cables support transparent extension of USB 3.1 Gen1 Super-Speed at data rates of up to 5 Gbps. It is also downward compatible with USB 2.0 or 1.1 devices. An additional 5 volt regulator on the receiver end will boost the power to compensate for power hungry USB cameras.  

CUSBV1-AP cables are compatible with virtually all USB 3.0 and 3.1 Gen1 devices, and are a perfect solution for extending 4K videoconferencing cameras, video capture, docking stations, and other high-speed data communication. They also work with USB 2.0 or 1.1 devices, although this feature is only available for PCs running Windows and needs a driver installation. Driver installation is not required for extending purely USB 3.0 devices on any platform (PC, Mac, Linux).

The cable is a light-weight hybrid of fiber and copper, and is plenum rated to ensure compliance with modern building codes. The small cable ends can be easily pulled through most conduit, and no additional power is required, making the CUSBV1-AP* a true plug-and-play solution. 

Judges noted, "Reliably extending USB has always been a complex challenge for designers. Hall Research Technologies expansion of the Javelin series to support UBS3.0 is the next step in improving the user experience with peripherals."

Maxell Corp. of America, MP-JW4001 3LCD Laser Projector

The Maxell J Series projectors fulfill a need for affordable yet feature rich 3LCD laser light source projectors for the education and corporate markets. The MP-JW4001 has 4,000 ANSI lumens brightness and WXGA resolution. 

The MP-JW4001 provides significant value with a 20,000-hour (normal mode) and up to 40,000 (long life 2 mode) light source life for a dramatic reduction in the total cost of ownership, and is backed by an industry-leading 5-year or 10,000-hour limited warranty.

Judges said of the series, "Slim, lightweight, and easy on the wallet, the new Maxell MP-JW4001 projector projects itself as an emerging product line to consider for smaller spaces. While the resolution lags behind other offerings the price is right for certain applications."

Sennheiser, MobileConnect (Gen2) Assistive Listening

In today's world it is more important than ever to offer inclusive bring-your-own device solutions for those in need of an assistive listening product.  The next generation of MobileConnect features the new MobileConnect Station, MobileConnect Manager software, and the innovative MobileConnect app (iOS and Andriod) for a customized, discreet experience on a smartphone that is compatible with headphones, hearing aids, and cochlear implants. 

Judges noted: "Gone are the days venues need to purchase large quantities of proprietary assistive-listening receivers. Sennheiser's MobileConnect platform delivers a higher quality campus-wide solution necessary for today's schools, performance venues, and houses of worship."

Sony Electronics, Sony's Eye Sensing Light Field Display

Sony's Eye-sensing Light Field Display is a personal device with a built-in camera that identifies and tracks the user’s eye position and viewing angle. Based on this information, it adapts and skews the 3D image for the best viewing angle. Showcased in a 15-inch, glasses-free desktop volumetric monitor, this 4K display features super high precision and contrast for the best spatial reality experience not found in conventional naked-eye 3D displays. 

The display technology is designed for connection to a gaming computer via HDMI cable and runs Sony's SDKs using a game engine, such as Unity and UE4. Because the SDKs run on Windows OS, users can easily adapt existing VR/AR content and various 3DCG data and enjoy a spatial reality experience on various open platforms.

The Eye-sensing Light Field Display fully utilizes Sony's expertise in picture quality to deliver exceptional contrast, creating a reliable and accurate display of creative content. In particular, Sony's engineers used three of Sony's original unique display technologies: an innovative display, high-speed vision sensor with face recognition, and a real-time rendering algorithm. 

Judges said: "As virtual and augmented reality continue to become the standard for event and gaming experiences, Sony continues to innovate building on their rich history in visual quality. Sony's Eye Sensing Light Field display gets users even closer to removing the perception of virtual in a glassless 3D experience."

ViewSonic ViewSonic®,  TD2455 Touch Display

The ViewSonic TD2455 podium solution empowers presenters to upgrade their existing projection solution to add interactivity. With responsive, in-cell touch technology and a modern ergonomic design, the TD2455 delivers hands-on control for collaborative classrooms, conference rooms, or large lecture halls. 

The intuitive 24-inch, 10-point touch screen offers a smooth and responsive experience, and the 10-point multi-touch capability allows teachers and students to simultaneously write or draw on the surface using styluses or fingers. The display comes with a lightweight, optimized stylus pen that can be used to write notes, draw, or perform other detailed tasks that require more accuracy than fingertips. The pen can be easily attached to the magnetic base of the display for quick access and secure storage. 

The TD2455 features an ergonomic, dual hinge stand that lets the screen be tilted and adjusted to deliver a more comfortable user experience. This sturdy design ensures that the display works in various environments and scenarios to boost interactivity. 

Judges said, "ViewSonic understood the market needed updated touch displays with sleek and functional designs. With it's price point the new TD2455 will find its way into a variety of applications including wayfinding, self-check-in systems, and classrooms, and more." 

In this age of Covid-19, the fear of spreading infectious diseases and the fact that many school districts have shut down, doesn’t have to mean education has to suffer. With Reverb Record, a teacher can create a 10-minute audio lesson and then share it with her class online. It can be recorded in a browser window or as a Chrome extension and the playback window shows a rolling bar graph of the audio level. It’s all free.

1. All you do is go to the Reverb site.
2. Click on the record in the upper right.
3. Then, click on Create New, followed by the microphone icon.
4. Say your lesson or assignment.
5. When done, click on the microphone to stop the recording.
6. When you want to share it with the class, click on Link above and then paste the link in an email or use Embed to put it into a Web page.

Reverb Chat

Schools should be a safe zone where no damage can be done to students but, most classrooms daily use headphones that can harm the hearing of the youngest students. That’s because they fail to limit the level of sound the headphone pumps into students’ ears

These three school-friendly headphones are not only inexpensive but include an electronic circuit that limits the amount of sound that kids are exposed to. While the World Health Organization suggests restricting sound levels to 85 decibels to prevent hearing damage, some headphones pick 93 decibels as the cut-off point under the assumption that they will only be used for brief periods.

Happily, the headphones come in a variety of colors and shapes, and any of the three can help make the classroom a safer place for hearing. By limiting the hearing damage, not the learning, these headphones can make schools a safer place to learn. What they can’t do is stop students from cranking their phones and earbuds to 10 during lunch.

Lil Gadgets Connect+

While the Connect+ headphones limit volume exposure, they do so at 93 decibels, not the WHO’s recommended 85 decibels. Don’t worry, the company explains that the higher limit won’t cause harm if use is limited and the kids take breaks every hour, exactly how headphones are used in schools.

The headphones come in seven colors, fold up and include a 40-inch nylon braided cable with an inline microphone and 3.5-millimeter jack; the entire cord can be unplugged when not in use. There are two bonuses for schools: the headphone’s passive noise reduction can turn a boisterous classroom into a quiet zone while Connect+’s Shareport allows audio to be listened to with a second headphone.

With 40-millimeter speaker drivers, Conenct+ conveys the full range of audio from 20- to 20,000-hertz with outstanding clarity considering that at $15, the Connect+ is about as inexpensive as quality headphones get.

More info: lilgadgets.com/products/connect

BuddyPhones Discover

The Onanoff BuddyPhones Discover may be available in only blue and pink versions, but that’s just the start of customizing the headphones. Each set includes six vinyl stickers with a variety of animals, mermaids and even blank spaces for a class name or a personal painting.

The headphones don’t fold up but have soft ear cups and have been designed and manufactured to take a beating at school every day. They also have a built-in stackable splitter that allows up to four listeners to share a source. Inside, the headphones have 30-millimeter speaker drivers that reproduce the full spectrum of human hearing from 20- to 20,000-hertz, while limiting the audio exposure to 85 decibels, potentially preserving a student’s hearing.

With a 30-inch cord, the Discover headphones have a gold plated 3.5-millimeter jack. Price, like the Connect+, is the best part, at $15 each.

More info: onanoff.com/collections/headline/products/buddyphones-discover-2019

PuroBasic Wired Volume Limited Headphones

The PuroBasic headphones not only make a colorful statement but can limit the sound level and preserve a student’s hearing all while being among the comfiest headphones available. Available in four colors, the headphones don’t allow the volume to rise above 85dB yet continue to deliver smooth and balanced audio from 20- to 20,000-hertz.

The headphones have soft ear cups that feel good, regardless of whether it’s worn by a tiny 6- or burly 16-year old. PuroBasic headphones not only fold up when not being used but come with a protective bag. When they need to be used, the PuroBasic headphones connect via an extra-long 4.5-foot cord that contains a built-in microphone and a 3.5-millimeter audio jack.

At $30, they may not be the cheapest headphones around, but they sound good and can comfortably help safeguard a student’s hearing.

More info: purosound.com/products/purobasic

Pinna

Subscribe for access to quality kids' podcasts, audiobooks, and shows

Pros: Offers tons of high-quality audio productions that teachers can use to introduce topics, supplement classroom lessons, or simply entertain.

Cons: Teachers may find that the site lacks some basic features to support classroom use.

Bottom Line: For engaging, thought-provoking, ad-free content, it's tough to beat Pinna's classroom-friendly offerings for the price.

Read more 

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly. 

By Common Sense Education

FrontRow expands its networkable classroom AV system with ezRoom Trio, an all-in-one solution that offers a built-in speaker array that aims to provide superior voice and media amplification. When combined with Conductor™, ezRoom Trio allows campus-wide communications, emergency alerts, bells, and paging. The ezRoom Trio has two versions, the Trio and the Trio Alert, which includes a high power, multi-color LED beacon that provides visual notification for audio events and emergency alerts to students and teachers.  

Trio’s new speaker array was designed for learning environments. For most classrooms this single unit provides audio to amplify instructors’ voices, support audio from multimedia sources, and allow educators to initiate an intercom call with the school administration, hands free.  The new enclosure simplifies cable management and reduces installation time by serving as a single attachment point for sensors, high-definition video sources, ceiling mics, or other components.  

TeachLogic®, provider of Sound Field solutions for the K-12 education market, today announces its products will be used in the second phase of installation in one of the largest classroom amplification technology contracts in California history. 

TeachLogic, Pathway Communications LTD and Johnson Consulting Engineers will partner on the project. 

The installation is a continuation of phase I, which was originally designed by Johnson Consulting. The Phase 1 contract was awarded to Pathway in November of 2017. For phase II, Pathway will be installing TeachLogic’s Maxim III™ amplifier/receiver, Sapphire™ teacher microphones, IRH-35 handheld microphones, and SP-628 in-ceiling speakers in more than 400 classrooms.

This brings the total number of classrooms in Palmdale with TeachLogic Sound Field systems to over 800.

Hall Research has introduced the UHB-SW2 extender that is comprised of a 2-gang wall plate transmitter together with a low profile Receiver. The wall plate provides auto-switching VGA and HDMI inputs as well as a USB port for connection to a Host computer. The system uses HDBaseT 2.0 technology for superior data integrity and reliable operation. HDMI input supports 4K/60 4:4:4 HDR with upto 18 Gig bandwidth. VGA and its associates Audio inputs are converted to HDMI and scaled to be displayed on any TV or projector.

The UHB-SW2 can extend the signals over a single CAT6 cable to a distance of 120 ft for 4K@60Hz or 220ft for 1080p video. USB and RS-232 control signals are also extended. For convenience the Receiver provides power to the wall plate via the CAT6 cable, and it provides two USB ports for connection of any USB 1.1 or 2.0 device at the Receiver. Interactive touchscreen displays, memory devices, keyboard/mouse, even webcams can be connected to the Receiver.

Auto switching video selects the last connected input (HDMI or VGA), however the wall plate includes a push-button  to directly select either input. The UHB-SW2 is intended for commercial AV and educational (K-12) installations.

Recently I presented a webinar for Simple K12, 10+ QR Code Activities to Inspire Curiosity and Active Learning. Below are the slides with example activities and resources. You can scan the QR codes in the presentation to take part in a poll, listen to my toddler’s audio greeting, contribute to an online sticky board, and to contribute to an online collaborative story. There are so many more activities and ideas I share in the slides to help you ignite curiosity and get your students moving and learning!

 Create QR Audio Messages 

Scan this QR code to listen to my toddler’s greeting recorded with Vocaroo. Simply record then click QR code. Learners scan the QR code then click to listen to the recording. 

Tips and Resources

You can quickly and easily scan QR codes with an iPhone camera. Just hold up the camera to the QR code like you are taking a picture and a notification will pop up with the information attached to that QR code. 

• Scan QR codes with the free apps, Quickmark and i-Nigma. These apps are available for Android and iOS devices.
• Create your own QR codes with these free websites and apps:
• Quickmark (Android/iOS/Website)- Scan QR codes with this free app. Create a basic QR code easily even on your mobile device that leads to a link, a message or any text, your contact details, or your location.
• i-Nigma (Android/iOS/Website)- Scan QR codes with this free app. Create a basic QR code easily that leads to a link, encoded message, your contact details, or an SMS.
• Qrcode-monkey is a website to easily create colorful and interesting QR codes with your own logo or image. You can even create a cool design. Attach the QR code to Twitter, Facebook, a location, websites, wifi passwords, email, bitcoin and more!
• Qrstuff is a website to easily create colorful QR codes for over 20 data types, such as email, location, a link, Instagram, Dropbox, and more! Subscribers get analytics for their QR codes. You can make it dynamic in case you want to update the QR code later.
• Visualead is a website to create colorful and interesting QR codes. Attach the QR code to Twitter, Facebook, a Tweet, Skype, a phone number, and more!
• Goqr.me is a website to easily create QR codes and attach to any Google App, such as Slides, Spreadsheets, Forms, and more! Tony Vincent has a wonderful visual to help you! 

 Challenge: Engage learners with one of these QR code ideas. 

cross posted at teacherrebootcamp.com

Shelly Terrell is a Technology and Computer teacher, education consultant, and author of books including Hacking Digital Learning Strategies: 10 Ways to Launch EdTech Missions in Your Classroom. Read more at teacherrebootcamp.com.

Boxlight Corporation (Nasdaq: BOXL), will debut MimioClarity at ISTE 2019 Conference & Expo, being held June 23-26 in Philadelphia.

With MimioClarity, the teacher’s voice is captured by a light-weight wireless microphone worn on a lanyard. Students will have a pass-around handheld microphone, both microphones come with a long, 10-hour battery life. The multichannel 60-watt amplifier is the microphones’ receiver and can connect to up to four microphones simultaneously.  Additional inputs allow for multiple, multi-media integrations, and networked connectivity permits utilizing a school’s existing networked audio resources. Optional WIFI and Bluetooth dongles are available for wireless network, USB for software control, and Bluetooth for audio pairing 

The system, which will begin shipping in July, includes either a two-speaker or four-speaker configuration. It is designed to deliver sound proportionally for students not only in the front of the classroom but seated in the back, while amplified front-of-classroom audio will also no longer be carried into adjacent classrooms. This means teachers will now be able to use a quieter, more conversational tone instead of trying to amplify the audio unevenly throughout the room. Additional audio sources such as Boxlight’s ProColor Interactive Panels, external teacher computers, video sources, and mobile devices will also be distributed with the MimioClarity classroom audio system.

Boxlight’s Connected Classroom technology allows each microphone the ability to work only within the same room as the amplifier. 

The teacher microphone has two programmable buttons that allow direct interaction with the classroom’s computer to control the MimioStudio™ classroom software, Microsoft Office, Google Classroom, and other front-of-class software. 

Ashly Audio’s new mXa-1502 Mixer Amp is an integrated product bringing four zones of mixing and DSP, plus 2 x 150W of power and programmable mic preamps and a complete DSP suite – in a single, compact, rack-mountable unit. 

Features include:

• Built-in web server, which offers a web-based control platform.
• AquaControl control system does not require extensive tutorials or workshops to master

The world of AV tech is booming, with new trends like AR and VR reinvigorating the field with innovative ways to incorporate learning. Interactivity and collaboration are king. Front-of-room lectures are enhanced by displays and multimedia, or even given in hologram form. Now that 1:1/BYOD plans have firmly taken hold (giving budgets a break), schools are ready to make the most of those devices by investing in displays and interactive projectors that allow students to present their work and connect directly to cloud-based resources.

IT’S 10 A.M.—DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR STUDENTS ARE?

Joseph Kuzo, Director of Technology at Quakertown (PA) Community School District (QCSD), spent much of last year integrating every building in the district with Hitachi interactive projectors. Now students are using them to enjoy the offerings from an innovative in-school television studio. While daily announcements are spiced up with QCSD-TV student-anchors in the studio, on-air talent and production teams venture into the community in pursuit of local flavor.

“Students (and their parents) sign off on the ability to leave the building during the school day to go on location, set up interviews, do the interviews, capture all the b-roll and bring it back,” says M. Lincoln Kaar, Video Production/QCSD-TV Instructor. “They then edit and produce it, broadcast it within the school, put it up on public television channels and YouTube, so it can be enjoyed and presented not only to peers in the schools, but to others in the community.”

Not all assignments are as tasty as covering the 50th anniversary of local fave, Dominick’s Pizza; but store openings, historical walking tours, new police officer intros, charity events, and festivals also beckon the kids-with-a-cam.

“Kids are covering area businesses to get their foot in the game, producing segments that run on the local news, and creating captivating ads with audio and video instead of flat, pamphlet-style commercials,” says Kaar. “We offer three levels of classes working with Final Cut Pro X. News studios have stopped in and said the tech is comparable to, or better than, what they use. When students leave here, even if they’re editing for another company on different software, the concepts stay the same and they can work pretty much anywhere. One graduate went on to work at the local news station and won an Emmy.”

(So, if it’s 10 a.m. and you don’t know where your students are, odds are they’re up to something good.)

DARINGLY ORIGINAL AND CREATIVE

“We’re very fortunate in our district to be well supported by our school board, so we have been 1:1 with devices for 16 years and are excited to be replacing our whiteboards with 1,200 Promethean ActivPanels with ActivConnect in every classroom, computer lab, and conference room,” says Jeff Terry, Chief Information Officer at Roanoke (VA) County Public Schools. “Our teachers struggled with aging projectors needing bulb replacements and dimmed classroom lights. These are crystal clear in any light and height adjustable. We also opted for mobile stands for flexibility.”

“We have students as early as kindergarten fulfilling Virginia computer science standards through ActivPanel coding skills, directing Dash Robots,” says Sherri Rickman, Instructional Technology Resource Teacher. “We focus on coding to learn, instead of learning to code. At various ages, we’ll have the kids measure area, perimeter, convert measurements, determine how far the Dash can travel in centimeters and inches—it’s really comprehensive.

“We do an ancient civilizations lesson, built in Minecraft. Students collaborate with a partner, write the story of their world, design and build the world, and then present it to the class. It’s a great critical thinking lesson. Or they build a model of the ocean floor, using the Promethean board to display and tour their class through their world.”

The tech also keeps the classroom inclusive. Special needs students who have had issues with writing on paper use the panel to visualize and learn to form letters, then they transfer that muscle memory back to the pencil and paper.

GOING WITH THE FLOW(CHART)

“We decided to take a leap on changing the way all classrooms use interactive tools as opposed to a few per campus,” says Victor Valdez, Chief Technology Officer at Pflugerville (TX) Independent School District. “Previous projector solutions were mounted as short throws without a good option for audio or wall controls. Our installers put up a new interactive projector, wired the wall for electrical, took down an old whiteboard/chalkboard, installed new speakers in the ceiling, and programmed the wall controls.”

“Now we can collaborate across different departments and between elementary and secondary,” says Kathryn Ives, Instructional Technology Coordinator. “When teachers are comfortable, kids will get more engagement in the classroom. It’s not one more thing on a teacher’s plate, it’s the seasoning to make what’s already there taste even better. For us, standardizing on the Epson BrightLink makes sense because it’s a technology that actually adds to the learning environment.”

“We created Presentation Stations to focus on ‘student voice and student choice’. Students use pen, touch, or both to present their learning. They take constructive criticism and rework their project. Struggles produce success, and these skills follow them into industry, college, or serving their community.

LET’S GO TO THE FILM

Peoria Student Broadcasting Network, a unique internship in top quality broadcasting (that just happens to take place at a high school), started with 14 participants. Seven years later, with a ladder-work of seven courses leading to the PSBN crown, 350 students will benefit from this inspiring broadcast opportunity.

“Connecting to our community is a core value of our school district,” says Michael Sivertson, Director of Athletics for the Peoria (AZ) Unified SD. “This was a unique opportunity to showcase things going on in our schools internally. More than just sports coverage, it offers an innovative tech learning internship and trains students in all the different facets of broadcasting—students produce, direct, and cover games and other school events.”

Learning skills like media tech, sound design, video production, color commentary, and play-by-play calling is the path to making the cut. Sony cameras, NewTek TriCasters, boom poles, Adobe Suite platform effects and Premiere, motion graphics, lighting—they jump right in and use it all. PSBN interns cover the Hall of Fame Induction for AIA, produce sports health shows for Core Institute Medical Group, run the syndicated radio program Teen Talk, and even created a national commercial for Universal Athletic.

BIG DISTRICT, SMART SOLUTION

“We have the most Google-certified teachers on the planet—around 1,400. We’re the 10th largest district in the country, with 179 schools and 176,000 students,” says Jordan Barenburg, Manager of the Communications Department at the School District of Palm Beach County, Florida. “We have deployed 90,000 Chromebooks and have projected adding 11,000 SMART Boards in the classrooms. But it’s not always about ‘having the tool,’ it’s how it’s being used, what is the support system. Besides having unbelievable interaction speed, SMART does a fantastic job of creating auxiliary videos and training materials so we’re making the most of the tech to engage our students.”

Training over 12,500 teachers in the new tech was no small task.

“With such a huge district, our main push was to create a Trailblazer Program,” says Dr. Adam Miller, Director of Educational Technology for the School District of Palm Beach County. “Each of the schools identified 10 percent as teacher leaders, an integral part of a ‘train the trainer’ system to create tech ambassadors.

“Our solution also includes e-Box stands, which are electric and height adjustable. One of the nice things is that students in wheelchairs are able to get right up to the screen and not run into the legs of the base. The panels are on wheels, and only need a power outlet so we can really move things around within the classroom. For whole group lessons or a static lecture teachers might use a projector, but when they break into small groups the panel can easily be rolled up to the students.”

Once the tools are in place, Trailblazers help other teachers bring their instruction to the next level.

“Google Slides presentations are great for group projects, since students don’t have to all work at the same time. The SMART labs are incredible engaging activities they do on the boards. Video conferencing is huge, with students having direct access to connect with experts in the fields they’re studying, such as Jane Goodall or an oceanographer.”

One PBC Global Classroom has traveled 52,818 miles (over two times around the world) to connect with 22 people—including scientists, engineers, astronauts, explorers, artists, and photographers—in five countries via live video conferencing. Big district, big goals!

A YEN FOR GREEN TECH

Information and Communication Tech is being promoted in schools throughout Japan in accordance with the government’s Basic Plan for the Promotion of Education, but costs have slowed the process. Fukuroi Asaba Higashi Elementary School installed Casio Ultra Short Throw lampfree projectors and interactive whiteboards in all 210 regular classrooms in its 12 public elementary schools, after measuring long-term savings due to extended light source life and reduced installation costs. The lamp-free tech not only saves the budget, but also the environment without lamp disposal and concerns about mercury and other chemicals.

First-grade teacher Takuya Sato says he has seen the children’s understanding and motivation improve since he began using projectors in his lessons. “In our history classes, we search the Internet for materials and show them in video format, because visual images have higher impact than words written in a textbook. In physical education classes, too, we can communicate proper body movements visually.”

Toshie Suzuki, a third-grade teacher, projects content such as digital textbooks, the children’s notebooks and textbooks, and original teaching materials. “The ability to project the stroke order for writing Chinese characters on the screen with an animated display makes it easier to teach the kids the proper way of writing new characters when we introduce them in Japanese language classes. This also helps me as a teacher by freeing me to circulate among the desks and monitor the children’s efforts to imitate the stroke order they are viewing on the screen.”

TOUGH TRANSITIONS: THE BOXLIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

Change is challenging—and far more so when it involves updating an aging hodgepodge of tech and equipment across 376 instructional spaces.

“We wanted to be able to guarantee that if a student attended one school and then transferred to another within our district, that he or she would have the same access to the same type of technology, and that it was not based on where the student lived, or any type of demographic,” says Rachelle Butz, Executive Director of Digital Learning and Infrastructure for Monroe (WA) School District.

A holistic approach was needed to ensure all needs were being met. This included inviting community members to hash out a list of goals and commitments for the district. Boxlight’s 75-inch Multi Touch Flat Panel Displays, MimioStudio classroom software and document cameras, webcams, PC modules, and mounts were chosen as part of a community-approved technology levy designed to transform instructional delivery across the district’s ten campuses. Advanced Classroom Technologies added classroom audio systems to round out the tech makeover. Once a plan was set, instructor buy-in became key.

Teachers were not the only tech learners to consider. When choosing the right partner for the overhaul, it became important that even the students could share and present with ease. Today, strolling the halls past a kindergarten class reveals even the district’s littlest ones at the display, sharing excitement at their creations and explaining their work to their friends.

Smart speakers were "The Gift" of the 2018 holiday season. By the end of 2019 they are expected to be in about half of all American households. Alexa has a 66% share of the market. Google has 29%. HomePod has just 5%. 

Currently the top use for the device is playing music. This is followed by answering a general question, providing the weather forecast and telling a joke.  

So, where does getting smart come in?

Smart speakers provide a great way to listen to a diverse selection of news outlets, podcasts, and books. Here is how to access each on the most commonly used speakers from Amazon and Google. 

NEWS

The news is a simple feature to find and set up in your app's settings. 

Alexa

On Alexa news is found in "Flash Briefing." With Alexa you can have this as a part of your, "Start my day" routine.  

Google Home

On Google Home it's called "News." With Google the news can be a part of your "Good Morning" routine. This is where you can set up all your favorite news shows. 

PODCASTS

Did you know that podcasts weren't even a thing before the internet? Since then their popularity has exploded, but how do you know what to ask your smart speaker to play? 

Here is how to get started.

Alexa

The best way to listen to podcasts on Alexa is by enabling the "Skill" called "Anypod." Once you've enabled it, you can ask Alexa to subscribe to your favorite podcasts. You can also visit Anypod to search for and add podcasts. Not sure where to start? Check out the "Podcast Playlist for Innovative Educators" or head over to NPR and see their selection of podcasts. Anypod will allow you to fast forward, rewind, play first, latest, or a specified podcast number.

Here is what it looks like.

Google Home

Visit Google Podcasts and you'll see numerous options from which to create your podcast playlist. From there, you simply ask Google to play your podcasts. 

Here is what it looks like:

BOOKS

Smart speakers provide a great way to listen to books. Here's how to get started.

Alexa

Alexa is connected to your Audible account. Once you have audio books there Alexa can play them.  

Here is what that looks like:

Google Home 

Google is connected to your Google Play Audio Books account. Once you have books there, you can ask your smart speaker to play them.

Here is what that looks like:

Your Turn

What do you think? Can smart speakers provide a useful way for you and your family to get smarter about topics, news, and events that are important to you? If you have tried it, what's the experience been like? If you haven't it may be time to give it a go.

Lisa Nielsen (@InnovativeEdu) has worked as a public-school educator and administrator since 1997. She is a prolific writer best known for her award-winning blog, The Innovative Educator. Nielsen is the author of several booksand her writing has been featured in media outlets such as The New York Times,The Wall Street Journal, Tech&Learning, and T.H.E. Journal.   

When I was a kid, we used to find creative ways to keep ourselves entertained. One of our favorites was the Dubbing Game. Basically we would turn on the TV, find a good show, and then turn off the volume. Then we would make up new lines for the characters on TV (bonus points for using funny voices). I am sure we thought it was much funnier than it really was.

As an adult, I have seen the same idea done on the show “Whose Line is it Anyway?” where they play the improv game called “Film Dub”. (I am sure they are much funnier than we ever were.)

Although dubbing a video can be a great source of entertainment, it actually can be very educational as well. There are quite a few learning activities for students when they take a video, remove the original audio, and add their own narration.

Uses for Video Dubbing

There are many creative ways video dubbing can be used by your students. Below are just a few ideas:

• Practice translation - Students can take a video in a foreign language and speak the dialog in their own language, or vice versa they can take a video in their native language and speak it in a language they are learning.
  
• Interpret a story - Students could act out a scene from a movie or show verbatim. This would give them the opportunity to act out the text to express their understanding of the story.
  
• Reinterpret a story - Or students could rewrite the original dialog in more modern language, or in simpler terms, or just in a new style. Again this would allow them to show their understanding of the purpose and themes of the original story. For example, they could write contemporary dialog for Hamlet.
  
• Tell a whole new story - Or students could be totally creative and make up a completely new story, replacing the original dialog with a new narrative that fits the actions being shown on screen.
  
• Create commentary - Finally students could make their own commentary track for a video. This could be them describing what is happening, or offering their critique, telling a historical backstory, or explaining a scientific concept that can be seen in the video

Just as there are many educational uses for video dubbing, there are also many different technology tools that could be used to do the dubbing. Certainly you could do this with video editing tools such as WeVideo, Adobe Premiere, or iMovie.

Although all of those programs would work fine, there is another tool that is totally free, and super easy to use, which may be a perfect fit. That tool is Screencastify.

1. Install and configure the Screencastify extension.
2. Tweak the video settings.
3. Record your voiceover with Screencastify.
4. Share your final video.

Begin by installing the Screencastify extension from the Chrome Web Store: Chrome Web Store link

Step 1: Install and configure the Screencastify extension

Note: Because this is a Chrome Extensions, you need to be using Chrome on a PC, Mac, or Chromebook to be able to use this tool.After installing the extension, click on its icon once to set up its one-time initial configuration. Screencastify will ask for three permissions to be set.

• First, Screencastify will ask for permission to use your webcam and microphone, which you will need to allow.
• Next, it will ask where to save your videos. I recommend having the videos saved to Google Drive since you have unlimited storage in Google Apps for Education and the videos are easy to share with others. When asked, you will need to give permission for Screencastify to save to your Drive.
• For the last permission, it will ask to be able to record your browser tabs.

Screencastify is now setup and ready for use!

Step 2: Tweak the video settings

Next you need to find a video online that you want to add your voice narration to. (For the directions below I will be using a video from YouTube.) Once you find the video you want, there are a few settings you will probably want to adjust to improve the recording:

1. Display the video full tab.
2. Set a start and stop time (optional).
3. Mute the audio in the video.

Tech Tip - To save you time and hassle, I have created a Google Sheets template that will take your YouTube video URL, and will create a new URL that will force the video to play full-tab, and will start and stop at the times your set.Although the directions are explained below on how to do this by hand, you may prefer to simply use the spreadsheet to do all the dirty work for you.

• Get your copy of the "YouTube URL Generator" template here: Google Sheet template

Display the video full tab

When you use Screencastify to record the video, you will want the video to fill up the full recording area. One option for Screencastify is to record an entire tab in your browser, so what we want to do is play the video so it fills up the entire tab. You can do this with a YouTube video by changing the URL slightly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHvEA2tczi4

What you want to do is change the part that reads "/watch?v=" to "/embed/"By doing so, your new URL will look like this:

https://www.youtube.com/embed/fHvEA2tczi4

Now when you use that link the YouTube video will fill the entire tab in your browser when played. You can click the two links above to see the difference.

[Learn Your New Students' Faces, Names, and More with Google Slides]

Set a start and stop time (optional)

Sometimes you will not want to dub over the entire video, but instead just want to use a certain portion. YouTube allows you to set a start time and stop time when playing a video. Again this can be done by altering the video URL.

In this case you will want to add onto the end of the URL the "start" command with how many seconds into the video to begin playing, and the "end" command with how many seconds into the video to stop playing.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/fHvEA2tczi4?start=53&end=59

Again, you can click the link above to see how this will only play the video from 53 seconds to 59 seconds

Mute the audio in the videoFinally you will want to mute the audio in the YouTube video so it does not make any noise when playing, so you can add your own voice. You can mute the audio in a YouTube video a couple different ways:

• You can click on the speaker icon in the bottom left corner to toggle the audio off and on.
• Or you can press the "m" key on your keyboard (for "mute") to toggle the audio off and on.

Now that you have the video ready to go, you can use Screencastify to record the video along with your voice. With the YouTube video ready to go, do the following:

• Click the Screencastify extension in your top right corner of Chrome.
• Select the "Tab" option.
• Select your microphone from the menu (if not already selected).
• Turn off the option to embed your webcam(if you just want to record your voice and not your face).
• Finally click "Start Recording".
• Now click the play button for the YouTube video so it will start playing.
• Now speak your narration, commentary, or voiceover dialog.
• Screencastify will record everything on the screen and everything you say.
• When done click the Screencastify extensionagain and click "End Recording".
• You will now see the recorded video to review if you wish.
• Give the video a relevant name by clicking on the title in the top left of the screen.

The great thing about Screencastify is that it saves your recorded video to your Google Drive. This makes it very easy to share your video with others. You can share the video a few ways:If you are still inside of the Screencastify window with your recorded video, you can get the sharable link for your video right there.

• Click the Google Drive "Copy Link" icon in the top right corner of the screen to share the video and copy the link.
• The link to the video can now be given to anyone so they can view your video. This could be done through email, or in Google Classroom, on social media, on your website, or such.

If you are no longer in the Screencastify window, you can share your video from your Google Drive.

• Open your Google Drive and go to the "Screencastify" folder.
• There you will find all of your recordings.
• Select the video you want to share and then share as normal by clicking the share button in the top menu bar of Drive, or by right-clicking on the video and choosing "Share".

Sample Dubbed Video

As an example, see the video below where I dubbed my voice talking about how Chinchillas take dust baths:

Note: The dub was made from an original video by user “mikaylab93” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7LWtNcuazA with a “Creative Commons Attribution license (reuse allowed)”.

Conclusion

Video dubbing can be a fun and educational way for students to be creative, share information, and express their understanding. If your students create any dubbed videos, please share what they did and how the process went.

cross posted at www.controlaltachieve.com

Eric Curts is an education trainer and consultant with over 20 years' experience throughout the U.S. He is an authorized Google Education Trainer and a Google Certified Innovator. Read his blog at www.controlaltachieve.com and follow him on Google+ and @ericcurts on Twitter.

Peerless-AV® announces the launch of its Motorized Collaboration Cart (SR598ML3).

The Motorized Collaboration Cart now integrates the use of actuators, making it easy for users to raise and lower touch-enabled displays. Designed for applications such as education and corporate settings, the cart interacts with touch-enabled technology.

The Motorized Collaboration Cart is ADA-compliant, offering display height adjustment up to 25.6". The Motorized Collaboration Cart is UL962 listed and features a safety limit function, which automatically reverses direction when a collision is detected in an upward, downward, or lateral force.

[What’s New: New Tools for Schools]

The Motorized Collaboration Cart offers a six outlet, 2160 joule-rated surge suppressor and a 15-foot pre-installed cord in the rear of the cart, as well as a large enclosure with space for small PCs, additional cables, and keyboards, and an opening for external WiFi antenna. The base is designed to fit easily through doorways, but does include rubber bumpers to prevent damage to walls and doors.

For more information about Peerless-AV’s Motorized Collaboration Cart, visit https://www.peerless-av.com/en-us/professional/products/sr598ml3.

The throwable microphone Catchbox takes the form of a plush cube that can be tossed around like a beachball or frisbee. Users catch the cube, say their piece, and then lob it to the next person with his or her hand in the air.

The newest product added to the line is the Catchbox Plus, which can be charged wirelessly.

[What’s New: New Tools for Schools]

Key features include:

• Built-in, rechargeable Li-ion battery: Battery never needs replacement. Three-hour charging time empowers 14 hours of use.

• Always-on functionality: Enters sleep mode when charging and automatically activates when picked up for instant functionality.

• Motion detection: Identifies and auto-mutes when product has been thrown, caught or dropped to prevent unwanted noise while in motion.

• Magnetic locking mechanism: Customizable cover keeps inner contents safe and secure.

• Up to 100 m/328 ft. range (line of sight): Clean, uninterrupted signal while allowing ample range of movement.

• Customizable to feature brand’s logo

(Minneapolis, MN) June 19, 2018 — Capstone’s K–2 online resource PebbleGo today announced its release of expanded Spanish materials. The new offering, contextually translated to maintain proper academic vocabulary and supported by natural voice audio, will begin to roll out later this fall.

PebbleGo’s database is used by students in nearly 20% of the country’s elementary schools. With more than 1,000 articles connected to K–2 curriculum topics, PebbleGo exposes students to the concept of research and credible sources to begin developing good digital citizenship skills at an early age. Each article is supported by natural voice audio, recorded by professional voiceover artists, which engages students and improves comprehension.

In the past, PebbleGo offered its Animals content in Spanish. With this expansion, PebbleGo’s Science, Social Studies, and Biographies modules also have Spanish counterparts. Students at schools that subscribe to both the English and Spanish language versions can toggle between the two at the article level.

“Capstone is thrilled to introduce more Spanish options to our popular PebbleGo resource,” said Darin Rasmussen, the vice president of digital product development. “‘More Spanish’ is one of our most common requests, and we’re happy to help educators make sure that every student has access to curriculum-connected content that can teach them foundational research skills such as finding facts from credible sources and expand their content area knowledge. Good digital citizenship is good digital citizenship, no matter the language.”

The expansion of Spanish content is enhanced with Spanish language audio that guides students with follow-along text in the student’s first language to foster understanding. The professional voiceover models correct pronunciation and fluency with no robotic text-to-speech, which helps learners develop necessary speaking skills in their second language.

At the ISTE conference on June 25 and 26, PebbleGo will showcase its new Spanish resources for the education press at the PR with Panache! Storytelling Suite. To make an appointment, please contact Chris Piehler.

About Capstone
Capstone is a leading publisher of children’s books, digital solutions and services, literacy programs, and K–12 professional development resources. Capstone creates content in a variety of print, digital, and media formats for school libraries, classrooms, and at-home reading. For more information, visit myCapstone.com.

About PebbleGo
PebbleGo is an online learning platform focusing on K–2 research, and includes interactive lessons about animals, biographies, and science. Each database features expertly leveled text and navigation specifically designed for beginning researchers. Enriched with spoken-word audio, text highlighting, and audio/video media, PebbleGo builds a foundation of research skills for every learner. For more information, visit PebbleGo.com.

Press Contact
Julia Brolin
PR with Panache!

(612) 669-2456
Julia@PRwithPanache.com

ClearOne (NASDAQ: CLRO), provider of audio and visual communications solutions, today unveiled COLLABORATE® Space, a video collaboration app that connects hundreds of users joining from any device, anytime, and anywhere, and includes messaging, calling, and meeting functions.

[Class Tech Tips: How To Skype with an Expert in Your Classroom]

COLLABORATE Space provides persistent space to store all sorts of media such as messages, documents, whiteboards, recordings, meeting minutes, or anything else exchanged on a specific topic or project during a call or meeting at anytime, and is accessible from any device.

COLLABORATE Space allows users to create public or private channels organized by topic, where the owner can invite team members to join, or anyone can view a channel and join without invitation.

For more information, visit ClearOne at InfoComm 2018, Booth #N1628 in the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Nureva Inc. announces the release of its Dual HDL300 audio conferencing system, with early units shipping in June and general availability in July. The system supports large dynamic spaces up to 30' x 50' (9.14 x 15.24 m) and is the second model in the HDL300 audio conferencing system product line, first introduced in June 2017.

[How To Listen To Music Without Destroying Your Hearing]

Powered by Microphone Mist™ technology, the Dual HDL300 system fills a room with up to 16,384 virtual microphones that pick up sound throughout the space, regardless of where in-room meeting participants are standing or the direction they are facing. The system consists of two wall-mounted integrated microphone and speaker bars that plug into a single connect box, which is connected to a laptop or meeting room computer. It also comes with Nureva Room Manager, which keeps the system up to date and allows users to adjust audio settings to suit their environment and preferences.

Availability and pricing
The Dual HDL300 audio conferencing system is available through a global network of value-added dealers and distributors. The MSRP in the United States is US$5,499. Prices in other countries will vary.

If you want to prepare for the future of educational technology, start by exploring the past. Look at the word “educate” and its Latin root educat; according to Merriam-Webster, the origin meant “led out.” If educate means to bring out rather than impose or give, how can audiovisual (AV) technologies help digitally savvy students make surprising connections or answer questions on their own? What are the AV trends that can help teachers draw insights from learners today and tomorrow?

There is no shortage of projectors, microphones, and lecture capture devices available to school districts, but there is a crop of new AV products designed with the mission to support more engaging and active learning environments. Here is a sample of case studies that illustrate how AV can turn K-12 spaces into student-driven hubs.

1 AV TECHNOLOGY FOR SOFT SKILLS AND DESIGN THINKING

“The Role of Education in Building Soft Skills,” a Wainhouse Research K-12 report from 2015, revealed that problem-solving and collaborative skills are the primary soft skills on which schools should be focusing in the next decade.

“Educators, parents, and students find that the benefits of a focus on collaboration are many, from encouraging active participation among learners to encouraging learners to take ownership of their education,” the Wainhouse Research analysts observed.

“Collaboration” and “creative problem-solving” are terms that are often overused and misunderstood, but deployed carefully they can complement rigorous K-12 pedagogies. According to the International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE), collaborative technologies are “applications that facilitate teamwork and collaboration between students and experts around the globe; for example, knowledge-sharing tools, videoconferencing, digital project spaces/sites, chats, and collaborative schedulers.”

As AI and automation seep into more of our daily tasks, it is creativity, emotional intelligence, and empathy that will give students and professionals the edge. Creating a framework for critical problem solving earlier rather than later is beneficial.

One example of a project that has sparked new ways of thinking in students is the 2018 collaboration between Riverview High School in New Brunswick, Canada, and Pheasey Park Farm Primary School in Birmingham, UK. Both schools, separated by a vast ocean and thousands of miles, worked closely together, as if they were in the very same room, thanks to the Nureva Span visual collaboration solution and the HDL300 audio conferencing system. In six sessions over three months, 12th grade students at Riverview High School and 4th grade students at Pheasey Park Farm Primary School jointly explored a profound question: “What does it mean to be human?” They exchanged ideas, hopes, and fears about how artificial intelligence and other technological innovations will impact their lives. According to Nureva, “the older students were brought together with the younger students to explore their divergent views when discussing these complex topics.”

Each learning space for the unique project is equipped with a 20-foot 2-inch wide Nureva Wall system, cloud-based Span visual collaboration software, and an HDL300 audio conferencing system. Combined, this enables students to share and develop their ideas together, as if they were in the same classroom. What’s more, Nureva stated that design thinking is what drives the collaboration, “providing a framework where participants identify problems and develop, test and refine solutions.”

The emphasis on soft skills doesn’t demote the importance of curriculum fundamentals like reading, writing, and arithmetic. New AV technologies, such as the ClickShare wireless presentation systems from Barco and wePresent, huddle systems from Mersive, Crestron, and Harman, and interactive displays from the likes of InFocus, Nureva, Google, Cisco, and Avocor, put more power in the hands of learners. Instructional designers and teachers are playing ever important roles as they design syllabi and curricula enriched with technology that puts school district learning objectives first.

2 IMMERSIVE, INTERACTIVE VIDEO INSPIRES CREATIVE SYNTHESIS

Reading about Paleolithic cave art is one thing, but touring it in 360-degree video, with the ability to pan, tilt, and zoom in on a brushstroke is another. The latest iterations of 360 video, interactive whiteboards with high-touch functions, and laser projectors are giving K-12 teachers and technology directors more and brighter ways to inspire and empower students.

At the Castleberry Independent School District (ISD) in Fort Worth, Texas, multi-touch interactive displays are supporting rigorous and engaging pedagogy. Containing seven campuses with three elementary schools, a middle school, a high school, an alternative school, and a learning center, Castleberry ISD is an educational leader that is committed to supporting “lifelong learning” in a diverse, changing world, according to the school. Advanced technology is integral to the school’s mission as it enables collaboration and interactivity. The school district’s IT department regularly evaluates its technology to ensure that it is meeting the highest standards set forth in the district’s technology vision. Most recently, this included replacing older whiteboards and failing projectors in the ISD’s three elementary schools with new BenQ RP653 Interactive Flat Panels (IFPs). The results have been compelling.

Jacob Bowser, IT operations manager for Castleberry ISD, explained that the new BenQ system is easy to use for both teachers and students. “When training our teachers around new technology, they do an incredible job of incorporating it into their classrooms,” he said in a release. “It becomes an integral part of their lessons, so it’s essential everything is always up and running.” With the RP653 IFPs, guesswork is eliminated. Additionally, the system’s 20-point multi-touch interface allows multiple students to work side by side at the 65-inch screen. Learners can simultaneously touch the screen with virtually no delay in response.

Tracie Bryant-Cravens, vice president of sales, state/local government and education, AVI-SPL, agrees that interactivity and multi-touch features are key AV trends in K-12 projects. “Interactive teaching and presentation systems are hot, as are 4K UHD interactive displays and active learning/makerspaces. We are seeing a, decline in projection in favor of high-resolution interactive displays placed throughout the classroom rather than at the front of the room. Makerspaces and active learning spaces are trending, with a focus on high-touch collaboration, meaning small groups huddled together leveraging technology with the teacher facilitating, aligning technology with their curriculum.”

Another inspiring example of interactive display technology in K-12 is in Beaverton, Oregon. Recipient of “Future Ready” and “Positive Change” grants, Beaver Acres Elementary School teacher Heather Hoxie is using one-to-one (1:1) devices and an interactive touch display to individualize class instruction. Hoxie replaced her classroom’s whiteboard with the InFocus JTouch Interactive Display. The display is bright enough to use at any time, even with all the classroom lights on. Each of her student’s individual devices is equipped with InFocus Lightcast software so they can wirelessly share or cast content to the JTouch for higher-level collaboration with no lag time or VGA cables.

Interactive display solutions like the Microsoft Surface Hub and Google Jamboard are popular on the enterprise level; in K-12, affordability and scale are critically important. Interactive whiteboards that are easy to use, offer cloud access, and have more budget-friendly price points appeal to modern school districts that may want to standardize.

While some AV integrators like Bryant-Cravens see interactive flat-panels on trend in K-12, the projection market has never been stronger. Just look at the new Optoma ZH420UST laser projector. This protean 1080p device incorporates a laser light source, 4,000 ANSI lumens, 100,000:1 contrast, and 0.25:1 ultra short-throw ratio. Warping adjustment and automatic edge blending are built in. When combined with an Optoma Projected Capacitive Touch (PCT) screen, multiple participants can interact with the content.

COGITO CRITICALLY, ERGO SUM
5 tips to turn your students into critical thinkers (Nureva) www.nureva.com/blog/5-tips-to-turn-your-students-into-critical-thinkers

VR IN K-12
ClassVR Case Study: St Wilfrid’s C of E Academy (Blackburn, UK)
www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=101&v=e2DQ-Ro1aRY

3 AGILE VIDEO MEETS LEARNERS ANYWHERE

From a school play to a band concert, video streaming is helping broader communities connect with and support more student activities. Family and friends who cannot attend in person can feel the pride of graduation or the excitement of a production of “The Music Man” with Facebook Live, YouTube, or Periscope via smartphones. At the heart of professional-grade streaming systems are recording, encoding, decoding, and multi-platform distribution solutions. While these systems used to be relatively costly, they are becoming more affordable, they offer more automated features, and they are coming in more compact chassis designs.

A smart video broadcast and streaming solution is literally making dreams come true at the Plum Borough School District in Pennsylvania. Plum Borough runs the biggest school fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, due in large part to its energetic, student-produced annual telethon. Plum Senior High School students produce the telethon under the direction of TV Production teacher Rick Berrott; the broadcast reaches the broader Pittsburgh region via community access channels and the school district’s YouTube channel.

Last year, however, the school’s standard-definition (SD) video production equipment was failing, so Berrott needed a new solution. Working together with Jeff Waller and his team at the Production Consulting Group of Wexford, Pennsylvania, they implemented a NewTek TriCaster 460 to produce the telethon as well as morning announcements that are broadcast live every school day. A TriCaster Mini was also purchased for school board meetings and sports events. With three to four students available to produce each broadcast, Berrott says the TriCaster is easier to operate than their SD system since it allows them to quickly adjust their JVC ProHD cameras using the position icon. “The TriCaster is so much more powerful and also hands-on,” he said. “It’s not just a studio in a box, it’s like having a production team in a box.”

4 EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES FOR MEMORABLE K-12 EXPERIENCES

2018 is a banner year for artificial intelligence on the consumer level; some of the most notable offerings are Alexa, Echo, Invoke, and IBM Watson. Now there is Watson Assistant, a customizable voice assistant for potential to help classroom designers create systems that respond to individual commands or requirements for each room and/or instructor. They can also be automated and customized.

While AI is increasingly present in AV and classrooms, the broader adoption of Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), Mixed Reality (MR), and Internet of Things (IoT) in K-12 is not quite there yet, according to AVISPL’s Tracie Bryant-Cravens. “Most of AR and VR is leveraged today in higher education.” She believes that gamification is the “first step” for K-12 and Virtual Reality.

“Augmented Reality is moving more quickly, thanks to tools like Amazon Echo. You used to have information at your fingertips—with Google, for example. But now you have information at your ‘lips.’ I used to have to look up my vocabulary words in the dictionary;now my eight-year-old daughter asks Alexa how to spell and define her vocabulary words.”

In England, however, there are already exciting use cases of VR in K-12 environments. As NewBay editor Michael Garwood reported from the ed tech trade event BETT2018, “One of the most prominent and busiest stands at the show belonged to AVANTIS—a specialist in educational technology for over 20 years—who was showcasing the benefits of its ClassVR solution.” At St Wilfrid’s Academy in Blackburn, UK, the ClassVR portal is enabling teachers to see students’ VR headsets in real time, and deliver and shape VR experiences collaboratively with groups. Since studies show that 90 percent of people remember what they experience at far higher rates than what they hear, read, or see, experiences can help transform learning, from immersing a student in the trenches of World War I to marching in Selma for civil rights. The possibilities are endless.

These “a-ha moments” have the potential to unfold in students’ minds long after the school year ends. After all, aren’t the most surprising discoveries the ones we make about ourselves?

5 INTERACTIVE PROJECTORS ENHANCE ACCESS TO ALL TECH

The mission of Parkland School District in Allentown, Pennsylvania, is to ensure that students are empowered with success strategies for lifelong learning. That’s why Robert Uhl, telecommunication specialist, has worked to fit eight of eleven schools with smart classrooms including Hitachi’s CP-TW2505 interactive projectors.

Parkland School District is made up of eleven schools including eight elementary schools, two middle schools and one high school and Uhl oversees the classroom and other AV equipment for the entire district. On top of the eight schools with smart classroom technology, Uhl also helps with the technology in the TV studios for the student-produced morning show and the digital signage used throughout the schools.

“We’ve been involved with Hitachi for well over a decade,” says Uhl. “Before the CPTW2505s, we had other Hitachi projectors tied into the Hitachi’s Starboard technology that we installed about ten years prior. The new projectors give us many more options with how it interacts with other technology. We often use Video Over IP in some classrooms for the morning shows, and also use the projector to watch cable networking throughout the day. We still use standard TVs in most classrooms, but all classrooms are smart.”

Uhl says that one of the best parts of the upgrade for teachers is that they get to utilize the entirety of their whiteboards again. “With the Starboard program we were using before, we had to mount it onto the whiteboard in the classroom, which took away a considerable amount of whiteboard space. Now, teachers are able to enjoy the benefits of an interactive projector while also utilizing their entire whiteboard space.”

Right now, Parkland School District has well over 200 Hitachi projectors including approximately 180 interactive and 30 standard projectors. This summer, Uhl is looking to complete the upgrade in the last three schools in the district.

Margot Douaihy is the editor-at-large of AV Technology. She teaches and advises students at Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, New Hampshire.

EXTEND THAT SIGNAL

Are you a K-12 technologist needing to extend USB and HDMI in an economical way? Check out the Hall Research EX-HDU extender comprised of a single-gang Wall Plate Sender and compatible Receiver. The product uses only a single Cat5/6 cable to 200ft long. HDMI audio is extracted and is provided both as analog stereo and multi-channel digital. The Receiver can also be used to control other equipment by providing programmable contact closure I/O, RS-232 and IR outputs. Receivers with LAN connectivity are also available providing integrated user configurable WebGUI and IP control.

INFO

AVI-SPL
avispl.com

BenQ
benq.com

Hall Research
hallresearch.com

Hitachi America
www.hitachi-america.us

InFocus
Infocus.com

Installation VR K-12 Focus
installation-international.com

ISTE Standards for Students
iste.org/standards/for-students

NewTek
newtek.com nureva.com

Nureva
nureva.com

Optoma
optomausa.com

Wainhouse Research
cp.wainhouse.com

Los Angeles, CA — Roland announces the availability of the R-07 High-Resolution Audio Recorder, a convenient handheld recording device for musicians, journalists, students, and anyone who needs to capture sound on the go. The R-07 features multiple high-quality recording modes, plus unique dual recording and hybrid limiting functions that ensure perfect audio capture every time. It also includes Bluetooth® for remote operation and features Bluetooth-capable audio streaming enhanced with Qualcomm® aptX™ audio technology.

While today’s smartphones have the capability to record audio, achieving high-quality results requires using external peripherals that are fussy and inconvenient. Stylish and easy to carry in a pocket, the all-in-one R-07 makes it simple to capture high-resolution audio wherever the user travels.

The R-07 supports mono and stereo WAV recording at rates up to 24-bit/96 kHz and MP3 recording at rates up to 320 kbps. Top-quality onboard stereo mics are always at the ready, while handy scene setups configure all the critical recorder settings with one touch. The R-07 is powered via two AA batteries or USB bus power, and comes in a choice of black, white, and red colors.

Using the free R-07 remote control app on an iOS or Android mobile device, users can wirelessly manage various R-07 functions and also monitor status and levels while the R-07 is placed in a prime recording location that’s out of reach.

For added protection during storage and travel, Roland is also offering an optional soft zippered pouch (CB-BPR07) and a sturdy bag with a shoulder strap and pockets (CB-BR07).

To learn more about the R-07 High-Resolution Audio Recorder, visit Roland.com.

Qualcomm is a trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated, registered in the United States and other countries, used with permission. aptX is a trademark of Qualcomm Technologies International, Ltd., registered in the United States and other countries, used with permission.

Calling the auditorium at Groves High School, located in Beverly Hills, MI, a “multiuse” venue is a bit of an understatement. The school’s thriving theater program, various types of music ensembles, and diversity of film and other events are just one part of its calendar. The 909-seat auditorium also sees use by elementary and middle schools in the area and is rented by local community groups as well as a church.

“We are booked most days out of the year,” said Stephen Carpenter, auditorium manager at Groves High School. “We certainly put our AV system through its paces.”

[Tech & Learning has announced the winners of the TCEA Best of Show Awards]

Until recently, that system was not just heavily used, but outdated. Physical features, like the chairs and curtains, had seen an overhaul in 2000, and, over the years, there have been some small adjustments to the audio and video systems. “For many of those renting the space, it was inadequate for their expectations of a modern performance venue,” Carpenter said, explaining one of the reasons Groves brought in Richard Boner of BAI in Austin, TX as the advising consultant and Advanced Lighting & Sound (ALS) to work on a project that brought the auditorium to a place far ahead of most high schools.

“The system for Groves HS consists of two separate systems working together or separate, as they were designed,” said Bob Sullivan of ALS, who was the project manager for the installation. “The primary AV system was designed to provide reinforcement for theatrical presentations as well as support for a variety of concerts and events that require live sound reinforcement. The project was a retrofit to an existing space that had been updated about 20 years ago.”

To best address the various needs of the auditorium, ALS installed a Yamaha AFC-3 (Active Field Control) system, an acoustic conditioning system designed to adjust and enhance the architectural acoustic characteristics of facilities that host a wide range of applications. Installing the AFC system, however, was no easy option, Sullivan said. The sheer number of speaker runs required to accommodate the system provided quite a challenge.

“Over the house, the ceiling, there is open construction with acoustical panels,” he said. “The design allowed for AFC speaker placement in the open spaces available between panels. The room has tiered seating in the back, and getting access to the ceiling for wiring and speaker installation was accomplished through lifts and scaffolding. Installation over the stage was more challenging because everything had to be coordinated with the stage rigging and lighting.”

Because of the dense rigging placement on stage, discrete mounting pipes weren’t an option. Ultimately, the AFC system had to be installed on moving line sets that accommodate the theatrical teaser curtains. “We had to install the wiring in a way that would allow for service and minimize the chance of damage to cabling if line sets were moved beyond the cabling limits,” Sullivan said. “On stage, Yamaha IF2205 speakers were used due to their size and the ability to conceal them behind the stage teaser curtains.”

As part of the project, the sound booth was relocated further back in the house, and, again, wiring was a big challenge, since existing conduit paths were limited. “Even some of the existing underground paths had to be abandoned because of broken paths or corroded pipes,” Sullivan said. “In laying out the system wiring, we decided early on we would leverage the Dante network that was going to be installed to accommodate the Yamaha systems. By minimizing cable requirements to simple Cat for Dante audio, we were able to accommodate the expanded audio needs via the digital domain.”

The first AFC stage system is an artificial band shell for performers, while the second, house system enhances the performance for the audience. The AFC system includes dual FIR (finite impulse response) Cards, a 68-channel REV system for the house with 64 Yamaha VXS8 speakers, four Yamaha IL1115 subwoofers, an eight-channel Early Reflection system using eight Yamaha IF2108 speakers, and a 24-channel stage system. All systems use Ri8-D mic pres and XMV8280-D amplifiers in conjunction with AFC3 processors equipped with Dante cards to communicate with the Ri8-D and XMV amplifiers. A Yamaha CL digital audio console and Rio stage boxes are also part of the new Dante network. A 12,000-lumen Panasonic PT-RZ12KU laser projector was added to meet Groves’ video needs, as well.

The first event held in the upgraded auditorium was a true test of the system, explained auditorium manager Carpenter. “Our ‘collage concert’ in an amalgamation of all of the different music and performance groups—so we had concert choir, show choir, orchestra, marching band, concert band—it was a full evening of different types of music in the space,” he said.

“With the new system, we were able to adjust the music on the fly so it would be tuned specifically for each group, so it sounded optimal for each of them,” he continued. “And the Yamaha system, it picks up the sound and distributes it so that you get the same feel, whether you’re on stage or in the audience. That probably is the single best thing that’s come out of this upgrade.”

“The AFC solution is more than a multi-speaker reverb system,” Sullivan concluded, noting that everyone on his team was amazed at the performance of the system. “It is truly a unique solution to room acoustics and performance limitations associated with stages that lack a band shell.”

cross posted at www.avnetwork.com

Mary Bakija is a freelance writer based in Brooklyn, NY.

Show control company KissBox returned to ISE to launch two new products aimed at those responsible for the design and implementation of control systems in theme parks, museums, visitor attractions, live shows and many other types of venue, as well as those involved in music technology.

The AU6TR is the first of a new range of KissBox transceivers, developed to transport digital audio over IP networks with minimal latency. Its ruggedised design makes it ideal for deployment in harsh environments such as live/stage applications.

The second new product from KissBox is the CM-MIDI2 which integrates both the powerful RTP-MIDI implementation of KissBox’s MIDI2TR professional transceiver, and the USB-MIDI communication standard found on many music products. The CM-MIDI2 is ideal for musical applications where high speed communication between USB and RTP-MIDI is needed.

On the KissBox stand, the company partnered with Showlogix to demonstrate the TC2TR (Timecode over Ethernet) interface, highlighting the capabilities of the CM-MIDI2 as an RTP-MIDI interface.

“We see a growing trend in the entertainment industry to use Ethernet as the preferred infrastructure, with more and more control systems evolving into network-based distributed systems,” said
Sierk Janszen, co-founder of KissBox. “Using our solutions can greatly simplify control protocol handling and provides the possibility of setting up a distributed control network, utilising readily available, affordable off-the-shelf Ethernet infrastructure building blocks.”

Designed to use the open RTP protocol as well as to be compatible with the Ravenna protocol, the AU6TR delivers peer-to-peer audio streaming as well as audio streaming from/to an external source - similar to a networked sound card. It can perform local real-time audio processing, with integrated control through the network.

The AU6TR can also be used as an RTP audio Interface. It will receive RTP digital audio streams from any compatible device and output them as analog audio signals. Being a transceiver, the AU6TR will also stream analog audio input signals it receives on its inputs to connected receiving devices and software.

The CM-MIDI2 acts as a gateway between the three available MIDI interfaces; any MIDI stream fed into one interface can be re-distributed to any of the two other interfaces. For example, MIDI received on the MIDI-IN DIN connector can be sent both to RTP-MIDI and USB.

The RTP-MIDI interface of the CM-MIDI2 can be used directly with Apple Mac, iOS and Windows devices. It manifests itself as a standard MIDI interface, available for MIDI software such as sequencers, digital audio workstations, SysEx Editor/Librarian and so on.

KissBox solutions are widely deployed where reliability, flexibility and high performance are required. A recent example is the Canon of the Netherlands exhibition, which opened late last year at the Netherlands Open Air Museum in Arnhem. In order to deliver to visitors a highly personalised, engaging experience, over 50 KissBox networked RFID readers are deployed.

More information about KissBox can be found at: www.kissbox.nl

Nureva Inc.announces its first trans-Atlantic student collaboration project using its Span visual collaboration system and HDL300 audio conferencing system. The project kicked off in December and involves 4th-grade students from Pheasey Park Farm Primary School in Birmingham, UK, working with 12th-grade students from Riverview High School in New Brunswick, Canada, in six sessions over three months. The goal is to help students build communication and collaboration skills by exchanging ideas about how artificial intelligence and other technological innovations will impact their lives.

Each learning space is equipped with a 20' 2" (6.16 m) wide Span system and an HDL300 system that enables them to share and discuss their ideas. The 60 students from Pheasey Park and Riverview post their ideas and photos to a Span canvas in the cloud. Students see all the contributions instantly and interact with the information in real time. Together, they sort, combine and debate ideas as if they were working in the same room.

If you are a video creator and having hard time finding royalty free songs, YouTube has already a solution for that and it has made it super easy!

YouTube launched its YouTube Audio Library back in 2013, and it’s an audio library with songs and sound effects that you can download and use as you create your videos. The tool lets you see how popular your chosen song is and you can select the star to add the track to your favorites.You can easily search tracks by genre, mood, instrument, duration or attribution. And, you can read about the free music attribution & monetization here.

Enjoy!

cross-posted at ozgekaraoglu.edublogs.org

Özge Karaoglu is an English teacher and educational consultant in teaching young learners and teaching with web-based technologies. She is the author of Minigon ELT book series, which aims to teach English to young learners through stories. Read more of her ideas about teaching English through technology and Web-based tools at ozgekaraoglu.edublogs.org.

BARIX SIMPLE PAGING SOLUTION
(www.barix.com)

Simple Paging is an IP-based paging solution for K-12 schools that reproduces live announcements from a desk or on the move with absolute clarity, giving end users an intelligible and flexible paging and communications tool. The complete station includes one or more Barix Annuncicom paging stations and Exstreamer devices to receive an decode audio at end points. Using Simple Paging, multiple paging groups can be set up in as little as 10 minutes, with no need for in-depth IT knowledge; tags are easily associated with paging zones to establish groups. High-quality IP voice paging announcements can be made from fixed paging stations plus iOS/Android tablets and smartphones without further configuration once power, the network, and loudspeakers are connected. Alarm buttons and background music streams can be delivered over the same system.

CALIFONE BLUETOOTH VOICESAVER PA
(www.califone.com)

Perfect for leading groups of up to 20 people, the Bluetooth VoiceSaver is for presentations in the classroom and on the go. It’s ideal support for those needing either a vocal assist or increased projection. The lightweight wireless headset for the VoiceSaver enables hands-free convenience and operability from up to 20’ away from the receiver. Its rechargeable battery will function for up to six hours on a single charge and refreshes in four hours. The Bluetooth functionality and hands-free design in the PA system makes the tool extremely mobile, allowing teachers to interact more with students in the classroom. The VoiceSaver comes with a one-year warranty for school use, making it unlike items purchased from a consumer electronics stores, whose warranties would be voided if used in schools.

JUNO WITH BLUETOOTH
(www.gofrontrow.com/juno)

Juno with Bluetooth maximizes student engagement by clearly and evenly spreading the teacher’s voice to every corner of the learning environment. Equipped with a Smart Microphone for teachers, a student microphone, and a high fidelity stereo sound tower, Juno with Bluetooth also enriches lesson delivery by enabling wireless audio streaming of instructional content, which needs to be heard just as clearly as teachers’ and students’ voices. Juno is the perfect audio solution for today’s dynamic, modern learning environments.

LIGHTSPEED ACTIVATE INSTRUCTIONAL AUDIO AND VIDEO PLATFORM
(Lightspeed-tek.com)

Lightspeed’s new Activate product line includes the Activate Station charging and control center, portable two-way audio pods the size of a glasses case that double as handheld microphones, and the Activate App. The new Activate App directly aligns with Lightspeed’s Collaborate. Using an iOS or Android device, educators can capture and share audio and video in the classroom, providing authentic evidence of student learning as well as a coaching resource for teachers. Utilizing the device’s camera, the Activate App syncs up high-quality audio from the microphone or student pods, overcoming the inability of the device to capture high-quality audio beyond a few inches of its built-in microphone. Teachers can then easily share these videos with coaches and peers for feedback and professional development.

SHURE GLX-D ADVANCED DIGITAL WIRELESS PRODUCTS
(www.shure.com)

The GLX-D Advanced Digital Wireless is an enhanced suite of products, including the GLX-D Advanced Frequency Manager, rack mount receiver system, remote antennas, and accessories. GLX-D Advanced offers exceptional digital audio, automatic frequency management, and intelligent rechargeable batteries. Using the new Frequency Manager, GLX-D Advanced users can seamlessly and confidently operate up to nine simultaneous systems in typical conditions (11 channels in optimal conditions). With a new rack-mountable configuration, GLX-D Advanced allows up to six GLXD4R receivers to be linked to a GLX-D Advanced Frequency Manager via the RF ports. To simplify installation, the Frequency Manager automatically assigns optimal frequencies to all six receivers utilizing patented data communication via the existing RF cables. Linking two Frequency Managers together enables the use of additional rack mount systems.

A Visit to Baltimore County Public Schools’ Mays Chapel Campus

Ryan Imbriale, BCPS Executive Director, reviews the district’s S.T.A.T program with SchoolCIO attendees. In September, Tech & Learning hosted its SchoolCIO Summit, an invitation-only event for K-12 school leaders, in Baltimore, MD. The topic for this conference was digital equity. Despite the varied demographics of the attendee districts—from rural to mid-sized suburban to large urban—the conversations found many common themes: disparate family economics, home-connection challenges, sustaining program funding, and so on. The other common theme related to the solution for many of these challenges: innovation. It was this theme that inspired the opening event, a visit to Baltimore County Public School’s (BCPS) Mays Chapel Elementary School.

Innovation is certainly evident on this energetic campus. BCPS hosts, Ryan Imbriale (executive director, Department of Innovative Learning) and David Robb (supervisor, Office of Innovative Learning Projects), welcomed our guests and then gave us free rein to walk through the school. Each classroom is a model of blended learning in action. Students sit at modular desks that can be moved easily into any configuration. Some gather in beanbag chairs; others pedal in bicycle-like chairs while reading from their book or device. They share notes on their HP Revolves and write on notepads. They gather around interactive whiteboards and present their ideas. We also visited their media center, where students check out materials and produce a daily TV show in a state-of-the art production studio.

Mays Chapel features a state-of-the-art video production studio. When our group returned to the meeting room, Ryan Imbriale, BCPS Executive Director, presented the details of the S.T.A.T. program, which serves as the framework for the district’s multi-year transformation into a complete 21stcentury technology environment.

The Students & Teachers Accessing Tomorrow framework (http://showcase.bcps.org/eight-conversions.html) consists of the following eight conversions:

■ Curriculum: BCPS curriculum focuses on alignment to standards, infusion of P21 skills, and integration of digital options for text, materials, activities, and assessments.

■ Instruction: Instruction focuses on the same elements as Curriculum.

The media center at Mays Chapel. ■ Assessment: BCPS uses embedded, machine-scored formative assessments within the learning cycle.

■ Organizational Development: BCPS recognizes that professional learning is necessary at all levels of the organization.

■ Infrastructure: The infrastructure is composed of hardware, software, and network resources that allow for customization and personalization.

■ Policy: BCPS made a systemic shift in language that emphasizes empowering students and staff over mandating rules.

■ Budget: BCPS reallocated funds to support the implementation of the Theory of Action.

■ Communications: BCPS recognized that communication is essential to involve all stakeholders. They communicate via social media (#BCPSTAT, #BCPSLH), the BCPS TV Channel, the Parent University, and more.

The other important component of the S.T.A.T. framework is the district’s digital ecosystem, BCPS One. This online environment features integrated tools and resources for all BCPS students, staff, and parents. BCPS One houses six major subsystems, including Learning Management, Student Information, Digital Content, and Professional Learning Systems. The purpose of BCPS One is to promote user access, collaboration, and productivity while streamlining administrative processes.

SchoolCIO Summit attendees were inspired and impressed with the students and staff of Mays Chapel. Said attendee Adam Phyall (director of Technology and Media Services, Newton County Schools, GA), “Learning about their S.T.A.T. framework just saved me months of planning as we roll out our 1:1.”

“Connecting and exchanging ideas with like-minded people is the best part of SchoolCIO Summit,” says Scott Harris (technology director, Neosho, MO, School District). Watch for additional takeaways in the next issue of Tech & Learning, and consider joining the SchoolCIO community (www.schoolcio.com) to be considered for future SchoolCIO Summits.

TOOLS THEY USE AT BCPS

AV Tools across the district include: Promethean, Smart, Epson, InFocus, BoxLight, Mimio, and Audio Enhancement. BCPS has partnerships with Comcast, Verizon, and the local county government service, called BaCON.

■ Discovery

■ DreamBox Learning

■ Follett Destiny

■ HP Revolves

■ Lightspeed

■ McGraw Hill’s EnGrade LMS

■ Safari’s Learning Object Repository

Learning is a multi-sensory experience. Educators understand that classroom set-ups need to optimize sight lines for students, and provide consistently high levels of access to teachers’ spoken presentations and the audio components of multimedia learning. There’s even more to the story, when teachers, technology specialists, and administrators factor in the multiple learning styles that students bring to class. Some are visual. Some are kinesthetic. Others learn best by hearing information and speaking to reinforce their knowledge. And of course, today’s wealth of technology-enhanced learning resources and the drive for personalized learning also underscore the need for high quality audio delivery as a required part of instruction.

Choosing the Right Headphone Solutions

Some learners are distracted by noise around them and that makes it difficult to focus and stay on task. For these learners, many educators are recognizing the advantage of noise cancelling headphones, to limit noisy distractions and interruptions. Other learners improve comprehension and retention by listening to instructional content and/or reading and listening simultaneously. Here, clear, crisp audio is critical so students can engage fully in the concepts and content being presented. And in reading and foreign language classes, students need to speak aloud and hear themselves accurately, to develop fluency, expression, and reading confidence. Headsets that include built-in microphones and are designed to reproduce the student voice accurately and without distortion are critical to student progress.

Durability and Reliability Are Part of the Equation

From a practical standpoint, headphones and headsets for school use are in a class by themselves. They need to be designed for constant, rugged use and be priced affordably for whole class, small group, and individual users. Warranties that work in the education setting are critical as well, to protect schools’ investment in this kind of equipment.

A Headphone is a Headphone…Isn’t It?

Headphones have become a standard consumer product but savvy school technology leaders and teachers have come to realize that many “consumer” models simply are not designed or engineered for the rigors of constant educational uses. Further, consumer warranties typically don’t cover school uses. It’s an important distinction and one that can save schools time and money over the longer term.

Califone Specializes in Audio for Education

In 2016, Califone is celebrating its 70th anniversary and the company has been designing and delivering audio equipment for education throughout its long history. Case studies that provide educators’ own stories in using Califone headphones and headsets can be found at www.califone.com/casestudies and the company’s catalog, videos, and other educator resources are available online at www.califone.com/community.php. The company has recently introduced a new gaming headset, for use in instructional games and other game-based learning environments. Information about this latest Califone innovation is available at www.califone.com/products/gh507.php.

Resources

Watch the Listening First Video:

Watch the 3068 Series Video:

High-Quality Headphones Help Boost English Literacy Skills in Young Learners – Read the Case Study

Browse our Teacher Reports Here

Tales2go.com■Retail Price: $600 to $1,900 per year per school building, depending on student population. Licenses are also available for individuals, classrooms, districts, and consortiums.

Quality and Effectiveness: Tales2go, a streaming audiobook service, gives users access to over 5,400 high-quality titles from well-known publishers, including Scholastic, Recorded Books, Blackstone Audio, and Weston Woods Studios, and from leading storytellers, such as Bill Harley, Odds Bodkin, Regi Carpenter, and Willy Claflin. Titles include classics as well as contemporary titles, fiction and nonfiction, for students in grades Pre-K–12. Some Spanish language titles are available for all ages and Spanish language music is also available for younger students. Teachers can search Tales2go’s lesson plans, which are aligned with Common Core State Standards, by listening skills such as phonics and fluency. Because professional voice actors read the books, students can build listening and vocabulary skills by hearing fluent readers. They can also listen while reading along with printed texts.

Ease of Use: Setting up a Tales2go account is simple, and once it’s activated, Tales2go creates all student and teacher accounts and connects users to a team of dedicated specialists who can help with any problems. Browsing and searching for titles is also easy—by keyword, age, grade level, genre, Lexile level, author, characters and series, narrator, publisher, new and different, and so on. Each category allows users to further narrow their search for the perfect book. Tales2go also offers Webinars and video tutorials to get started using their technology in the classroom.

Creative Use of Technology: Available for use in a Web browser, and as an app for Apple iOS and most Android devices, Tales2go offers unlimited, simultaneous, instant access to titles—even without a continuous Internet connection. Students can bookmark their stories at school and continue to listen to them at home. Each student receives a one-year license to “take home” titles on a personal device. Tales2go will generate metrics reports at a school’s request, providing information about the amount of time spent listening and on what type of device (school or BYOD) the listening occurs. The more details schools provide when they set up their accounts, the more detailed the metrics reports will be.

Suitability for Use in a School Environment: Students build fluency and vocabulary not only by reading, but also by listening. Common Core State Standards emphasize listening as an important skill, alongside reading and speaking. Tales2go points to research that indicates that the more students hear sophisticated vocabulary, the more proficient at reading and the better prepared for academics they will be. Removing the obstacle of decoding can also help students become better readers as they listen to fluent readers and build comprehension skills by engaging with more complicated story lines. Students can listen to literature above their current reading level to improve fluency and vocabulary. Teachers will be able to incorporate the books into the curriculum easily, and quite a few of the titles are already part of many curricula. Tales2go’s lesson plans also help teachers incorporate listening stations for their students.

OVERALL RATING:

Tales2go is a great resource for teachers who want to help strengthen their students’ listening, fluency, and vocabulary skills, in addition to broadening their exposure to good literature. With a wide selection of books from established publishers, teachers and students are sure to find titles that meet their needs.

TOP FEATURES

● Quality—Great titles and professional narrators mean that the stories are enjoyable and are also effective tools for building fluency.
● Selection—With over 5,400 titles to choose from in a variety of genres (both fiction and nonfiction), there’s something for everyone.
● Ease of use—Tales2go’s search and browse features make it easy to find stories for students.

“Radio is the most intimate and socially personal medium in the world.” – Harry von Zell

One of the safest ways to integrate technology is to get students to record their thoughts, ideas, or learning with web tools and mobile apps. Students can create podcasts, host radio shows, broadcast the news, make a radio drama, post reviews, add sports commentary, deliver announcements, animate a pet or object, and much more! Students can create audio projects for any subject, such as math, science, history, and literature. In my digital book, Learning to Go, find editable handouts and rubrics for creating audio projects. Additionally, find some ideas and tips below along with downloadable slides to get your students creating audio projects.

Enjoyed these resources? Get your copy of The 30 Goals for Teachers or Learning to Go.

Audio Projects for Digital Learners from Shelly Sanchez Terrell

• Begin by getting students to evaluate and analyze podcasts and broadcasts. This way students understand how broadcasters change their tone, summarize the news and engage their audience. Find short historical broadcasts at Otr.com/news.html. Readwritethink has various audio evaluation interactives with printable handouts. Just search audio, radio or podcasts to access them. Find educational podcasts, some student created podcasts as well, at American Art Podcasts, Digital Podcasts, and the Podcast Directory.
• You could also have students listen to segments of popular mainstream podcasts. Some of my favorites with science, history and math topics include, Radio Lab, Serial, Invisibilia, the TedTalk Hour, and This American Life. Please listen to these podcasts first, because some are not suitable for young students.
• After this initial evaluation, your students will generally need to take these steps to produce their audio projects- brainstorm, research, write a script, edit the script, record it, remix it, edit it, and broadcast it.
• At the brainstorming stage, students decide the topic and identify where to gather more insight.
• At the research stage, students gather insight from various sources. The focus should be on primary resources, which is why I like to have students conduct audio interviews. Give them time to identify who to interview or locations where they can contact professionals for Skype or telephone interviews. Storycorps has several audio interviews and provides great information on creating appropriate questions and conducting research.
• Edit and remix audio projects with tools like Garageband, Audacity, Soundation and WavePad for the iPad.
• Students can find free creative commons music and sounds to use for their audio projects at CCMixter, Freesound, and SoundBible. Find additional resources about Creative Commons and sources for CC images and sound clips in my bookmarks here!
• Broadcast and publish their audio projects with tools and apps, like Audioboo, iPadio, Podomatic, Soundcloud, Spreaker, and the Bam Radio Network.
• Some other useful tools and apps for recording audio and doing quick projects include Vocaroo to easily record from the web without registering or an email address, Talking Ben & Tom News iOS & Android app, YakIt for Kids iOS app, Chatterpix Kids iOS app, Adobe Voice iOS/iPad app, Tell About This iOS app, Buncee Pro iOS iPad app (not Buncee Bits), Tellagami, Voxer, Sock Puppets, Narrable, Voicethread, Prezi, Spoken, and 30 Hands.

Challenge
Check out these tools and apps and plan an audio project for your students.

Bookmarks
Find tons of free apps, handouts, and more by clicking on the bookmarks below.

Podcasts & Audio Projects, by shellyterrell

cross posted at teacherrebootcamp.com

Shelly Terrell is an education consultant, technology trainer, and author. Read more at teacherrebootcamp.com.