Promethean have a range of Learner Response Systems including the sturdy and simple-to-use ActivExpressions and ActiVotes as well as ActivEngage software which can be used on existing netbooks or laptop computers.  Coming soon will be Promethean’s ActivEngage mobile – for use on iPads, iPhones or Android devices. With this range of flexible options for communicating, teachers can draw on a variety of strategies for engaging students – including using devices in pairs to facilitate substantive conversation; or using devices one-to-one for self-paced adaptive testing.

Static vs Dynamic Assessment

How do we use the technology currently available to ensure that the assessment moves beyond static formative assessment to dynamic assessment.  Many current assessment models allow teachers to assess students prior to a task to determine their individual point of need.  Teachers can then personalise learning by setting tasks to allow each student to achieve the intended learning outcomes.  The problem with this process is that the student learning needs will evolve as soon as they commence the learning process.  So how can we make the assessment a constant and dynamic part of the learning process?

One of the answers to this question lie with student feedback.  Instant feedback to the learner is recognised as an important factor for learning to take place.  With Promethean LRS teachers have an option to display results immediately after the assessment takes place.  Students will know if they answered correctly before moving on to the next question on their device.

Self-paced functionality of ActivEngage and ActivExpressions also allow the assessment to be adaptive to the needs of each individual student.  Whether it’s simply completing the test at each students’ individual pace or full adaptive functioning where the questions given to each individual student are dependent on the previous results.  Teachers choose the beginning level and then questions become more difficult as students answer a set number correctly – building student confidence and motvation. Results are tallied instantly to provide immediate feedback and assistance for those who need it.  Results can also be exported to Excel.

School Wide Assessment Data

Many school wide assessments take time to administer, mark and then collate results.  For school leaders it can be a lengthy process obtaining important data to influence school decisions, track program effectiveness and determine student needs.  One exciting new feature coming soon to Australia is Promethean’s ActivProgress.  With ActivProgress, as soon as assessment tasks have been completed using the ActivExpression, ActivEngage or ActivEngage Mobile devices, school leaders will have access to the data in a range of formats directly from their office.  ActivProgress completely removes the process of both marking and collating standardised assessments.

For further information: Informed-Teaching-and-Learning.pdf

Chris Drage reviews a new-generation whiteboard, the multi-touch Promethean Activboard 500 Pro.

The ActivBoard 500 Pro system, demonstrated at BETT 2011, is the latest interactive whiteboard (IWB) to join Promethean’s ActivClassroom and it raises the bar for this technology with its pen-plus-touch capability for collaborative board work.

Students today are so at home with their touch-screen mobile phones that they expect to engage interactively with information technology, and the ActivBoard 500 Pro’s new pen-and-touch technology, combined with Windows 7′s gesture capability, provides a natural way of interacting with technology modelled on real-world behaviour and gestures.

View the full article: http://www.agent4change.net/resources/hardware/844-promethean-pioneerswhiteboard-gestures-and-apps.html

To find out more about the ActivBoard 500 Pro

Andrea Federico, Assistant Principal at University Park Primary School sees the award as recognition of the excellent achievement of teachers in her school who have been involved in extensive training and sharing of best practice. The use of the IWB technology has improved student engagement and motivation in Mathematics. The use of the technology contributed to improved NAPLAN results in Numeracy for both years 3 & 5 where state means were achieved in both cases.

Sue Harvey, ICT Manager at Lara Lake Primary School, stated that the school was proud to accept the CoE Award which acknowledges the teaching staff’s ongoing commitment to using the IWB technology as a powerful teaching and learning tool.

The two schools join Staughton Secondary College in Melton which was also recognised as a Promethean Centre of Excellence earlier this year.  All three schools will be part of our ongoing commitment to share best practice in technology with other schools.

For further information please contact:

Andrea Federico, University Park PS: Federico.andrea.l@edumail.vic.gov.au
Sue Harvey, Lara Lake PS: Harvey.susan.a@edumail.vic.gov.au
Amanda Neumann, Lambourne:  amanda@lambourne.net.au

Brimbank Weekly Article.pdf