New at SMART Technologies: 3D-Ready SMART Board 600i, Mixed Reality Document Camera, Scholastic's Story Stage App for the SMARTTable, an IPO, and more!

A lot is happening at one SMART Technologies, one of my favorite "interactive" companies.  Not long ago, SMART Technologies, a company most known for interactive whiteboards found in classrooms and businesses, acquired one of my favorite interactive touch-screen display companies, NextWindow. (SMART Technologies' acquisition of NextWindow: A "smart window" to the world)

SMART Technologies is moving ahead into the world of augmented reality (AR) with a new document camera.  The company's latest interactive whiteboard, the fourth generation 600i,  is ready for stereoscopic 3D content, which is on the way via the Discovery Channel and other media companies.  The SMARTTable looks like it will be provided with more content, at least in the UK, where Scholastic has partnered with SMART Technologies to provide multi-touch and multi-student interaction via the collaborative Story Stage application.

For those with money to invest, SMART Technologies has filed for a proposed initial IPO (Initial Public Offering).


-The SMART Table at Wolfe School 

New SMART Document Camera 330 is mixed reality ready:  Document camera enables exploration of 2D, 3D, animated and audio-enriched content
"Mixed Reality Technology -Manipulate and explore 2D, 3D, text, animation and audio-enriched content on the SMART Board interactive whiteboard by placing a physical object bearing a digital marker under the SMART Document Camera lens"


SMART introduces next-generation SMART Board™ 600i: New projector lowers total cost of ownership and is 3D-ready
"Available in both standard and widescreen formats, the latest generation of the 600i system features an improved and easy-to-use extended control panel (ECP) and a fully integrated short-throw projector that is 3D-ready and has a longer lamp life. The newly designed ECP is mounted to the interactive whiteboard bezel, not to the wall, making it aesthetically pleasing and easier to install."


SMART and Scholastic to develop multi-touch educational content:  Story Stage application for SMART Table to encourage student creativity and collaboration
"Story Stage is an easy-to-use resource designed to facilitate collaborative literacy work. The interactive activities use digital puppets to encourage pairs or groups of children to work together to create their own imaginative retellings of familiar stories."


SMART Classroom Suite 2010 enhances interactive learning: New version offers improved wireless performance and greater support for formative assessment
"The software combines classroom management, assessment, lesson creation and assignment management tools in one offering."


RELATED
SMART Technologies Files for Proposed Initial Public Offering: Stock to be listed on NASDAQ and TSX
Scholastic Story Stage
SOMEWHAT RELATED
Updates: Cognitive "bursts", technology-supported interactive whiteboards, digital storytelling, social skills, and reflections about a new SMARTtable. (long post)
SMART Technologies' acquisition of NextWindow: A "smart window" to the world
InfoComm AV Whitepaper:
Reaching Learners: Immersive Education through Interactive Multimedia (pdf)
By Lynn V. Marentette, Sp.A., NCSP and Anthony Uhrick, VP Sales & Marketing, NextWindow "The value of an immersive approach to education, using multimedia technologies, over traditional classroom environments."

Also posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.

Evolver, DimensionM, 3-D algebra games used in Broward County, Florida. RTI ready with built-in data-tracking of progress!

When Dimenxian, the first version of a 3-D algebra game, developed by Tabula Digita came out, I had the chance to try it out with a few students who were struggling in math, and found it to be effective. Since then, Tabula Digita has come out with more options, and the games have been adopted by many school districts.

Broward County, in Florida, is using Tabula Digita's DimensionM games as supplemental resources to teach pre-algebra and algebra skills to students in 24 middle schools.

Resource: Video Games for Learning:
http://www.dimensionm.com/docs/VideoGamesforLearning.pdf



Information from a recent Serious Games Source article:

"The DimensionM product series offers several titles incorporating key algebraic concepts in both single and multiplayer formats. The games are aligned to meet the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics's standards, as well as several state standards, for grades 6-9."

"The supplemental curriculum offers lessons that cover topics such as proportions, number lines, and adding and subtracting integers to linear equations. The software also provides automatic progress tracking for each student, enabling teachers to analyze results and provide additional instructions based on those results."

Here are the curriculum alignments, from the Tabula Digita Website:

"All of the game content of Tabula Digita's DimensionM products is aligned to National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards, as well as the standards of selected states. Currently we have alignments for grades 6-8."

"Click on one of the links below to download the state and national standards alignments for your school district:'

Evolver Pre-Algebra Alignments
NCTM
California
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Texas

Dimenxian Algebra Alignments
NCTM
California
Florida
Georgia
Florida & OCPS
Illinois
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Texas

Dimenxian Algebra High School Alignments
NCTM
California
Florida
Georgia
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Texas

Evolver Multiplayer Alignments
NCTM
California
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Texas

Evolver Multiplayer High School Alignments
NCTM
California
Florida
Georgia
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Texas

Revisiting Interactive 3-D Brain Anatomy : The Secret Life of the Brain Website

I'm attending the first of three two-day institutes about neuropsychology, focusing on the assessment and intervention of traumatic brain injuries. It has been a while since I studied neuropsychology, so to brush up, I revisited Secret Life of the Brain, an on-line companion to the PBS series of the same name that aired in 2002. The materials cover the human brain from infancy through old age.

My favorite section of this website is the interactive 3-D Brain Anatomy tour. This on-line application allows for zooming in and out, 360 degree rotation, and exploration of the brain by area or function. When you roll over a brain part, you can find more information. The specific area of the brain becomes highlighted, and the rest of the brain becomes translucent.

Description from the website:
"THE SECRET LIFE OF THE BRAIN, a David Grubin Production, reveals the fascinating processes involved in brain development across a lifetime. The five-part series, which will premiere nationally on PBS in winter 2002, informs viewers of exciting new information in the brain sciences, introduces the foremost researchers in the field, and utilizes dynamic visual imagery and compelling human stories to help a general audience understand otherwise difficult scientific concepts."

Update: So you're getting interactive whiteboard! Now what?

(photo from http://www.nextwindow.com/)

If you hadn't noticed, there is an increase in the number of classrooms that have interactive whiteboards or displays. My school will have two whiteboards soon. To prepare for the transition, teachers are searching for information beyond what is provided by SmartTechnologies or Promethean, two industry leaders.

I've mentioned in previous posts that I tried out a variety of interactive whiteboards and large touch-screen displays when I worked on a project for a Human-Computer Interaction class I took in 2007. My favorite was the NextWindow Human Touch display, which contains WiFi and BlueTooth enabled computer. The display stays well calibrated, has a high resolution, and has excellent touch response. It does not require a projector, so shadows aren't cast when people are at the screen, which is formally known as the "problem of occlusion".

Fortunately, there are resources on the web to help teachers learn more about the various ways they can harness the power of interactive technology to support innovative, effective teaching and learning.

I came across this link, posted in Langwitches recent blog entry, Interactive Whiteboards: Which? How? What? that is suitable for beginners:

Thirty-Two Interesting Ways (and tips) to Use Your Interactive Whiteboard

Another good source , from the Georgia Department of Education's Educational Technology Training Center, is the Interactive Whiteboard Links

Here are some of my posts and links regarding interactive whiteboards and displays:

Nobelprize.org's Educational Outreach: Multimedia Games, Experiments, and Simulated Environments

Interactive Whiteboards Increase Student Attention, Engagement, and Test Scores!

Edusim: 3D Collaborative Application for Interactive Displays and Whiteboards

Explore Learning, Interactive Displays, Revisited

Virtual Reality Field Trips, Created by Psychologists

eSchool News Online: Microscope Imaging Station from the Exploratorium

Interactive Information Visualization: Digg Labs Website

Gigapan: Good for interactive whiteboards and large touch screen displays

Visual Simulations for K-12 Education: Great for interactive displays and white boards

Examples of interactive touch screen displays, on the Future-Making Serious Games blog:
http://elianealhadeff.blogspot.com/2007/09/ten-fingers-software-for-serious-gaming.html

For the technically inclined:
Johnny Lee's Wii Hacks
Video: Low Cost Multi-Point Interactive Whiteboard with the Wiimote




Scratch: A new programming language for kids that supports stories, animations, games, music, art, websharing, from MIT


RELATED:

Resource and Research List, "Interactive Whiteboards", from the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities (NCEF)

Education World article "Speaking of Electronic Whiteboards?"

Large Display Research Overview from Microsoft Research (PDF)

Quotes about visual and multimedia literacy, Part I

Quotes about visual and multimedia literacy, Part II


If you'd like to explore and discuss new technologies, join Classroom 2.0. There is a section about interactive whiteboards in the Classroom 2.0 Resources Wiki.

Link to post: Chill in an on-line tropical paradise from Unity3d

Take a moment to read my post on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog about a free on-line virtual tropical paradise. If you work with young people who have stress and anxiety, or need tools for calming down when agitated, this application might be worth a try. I'm planning on using it with some of the students I work with who have autism spectrum disorders.

This application would be great on an interactive whiteboard or display to teach a few lessons about landforms and tropical climates!

MegaPost: Resources for All

Since I started blogging, new technologies have made their way into an increasing number of classrooms, and many educators are aware of efforts such as Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Response to Intervention or Instruction (RTI), as well as innovative technologies that provide engaged, interactive learning experiences for students.

I've consolidated information and updated links and resources from some previous posts from my TechPsych and Interactive Multimedia Technology blogs. Although many of the resources cited in this post relate to K-12 education, some of the information is useful for instructional designers, school administrators, researchers, college/university educators, parents, and technologists who are interested in developing interactive multimedia applications for children and teens.

Take the time to review the "MegaPost" on the Interactive Multimedia Technology Blog!

Virtual Field Trips and the TechSavvy Educator

I've been busy with school and work, sorry for the delay in posting to the blog.

A great resource for supporting engaged learning through technology is the TechSavvy Educator blog. You can subscribe to the blog and recieve information about updates through your e-mail.

I especially liked the post about the Kid's Travel Agency, dated 1/31/07, by "Ben", a fifth grade teacher in Michigan. He is using Google Earth and local travel agencies for this project. Google Earth is awesome when you work with on an interactive touch screen, such as a SmartBoard.

3-D Interactive Algebra Game: Dimenxian -First Mission now available!

Dimenxian is a 3-D, immersive algebra game with a backstory, great gameplay, and engaging graphics. A great tool for reaching reluctant math students. The first mission is now available for purchase through the website. The price is about $30.00 and site licenses are available for schools. It can be downloaded or mailed as a CD.

The following is an excerpt from an article posted on the TabulaDigita website:

"Etuk started the company three years ago with co-founder Robert Clegg, an award-winning electronic game designer. Tabula Digita's first product, Dimenxian, is a first-person story-driven game that leads students through an action adventure environment while learning foundational algebraic concepts. The multiplayer educational game challenges players to accomplish several tasks - and learn algebra - to succeed, making the company's motto "learn math or die trying" all the more fitting. "We're losing a whole generation of kids to educational teaching methods that don't resonate with them," says Etuk. "I want to give kids the option to do whatever they want to do. I believe that by grabbing their attention and redirecting it to education, you can open up a whole world of options they might not have considered." Etuk says years of research on teaching math, student testing, and video game playing went into developing the games. The company has a partnership with The Princeton Review and has tested the game with hundreds of children nationwide."

Robert Clegg
Chief Product Officer & Co-Founder, Tabula Digita, Inc.
Robert is chief product officer and co-founder of Tabula Digita. Prior to joining, he founded and launched the company iStadium where he created the world's largest games. He developed games that 60,000 people in one stadium could play simultaneously. He also invented, tested, and managed the production of all computer-based products for the company, and is the sole inventor on all four of the iStadium patent applications. Robert has been working with interactive media and education since 1987, and in 1988 he started his first company, Instructional Sports Software, where he developed the first player training software for NFL football and NCAA basketball programs.

Learn Math or Die Trying: Algebra in a First Person Action Adventure Speaker: Robert Clegg (Chief Product Officer & Co-Founder, Tabula Digita, Inc.) Time/Date: Monday (October 31, 2005) 1:00pm — 2:00pm Audience level: All Presentation Description This poster session offers attendees a sneak peak into the educational video game that’s revitalizing algebra education through an immersive action adventure called Dimenxian. Initial testing of Dimenxian showed an average improvement of a grade level for all kids and two to three grade levels for those performing below average. Surveys revealed that girls were just as engaged as boys: 81 percent of all students thought it showed them how algebra works; 78 percent said it helped them learn; 89 percent said it was fun; and 81 percent wanted to keep going! Learn how students felt about the first action adventure game to teach algebra and how they performed on pre- and post- test studies. The results have surpassed expectations and provide a good indication of how the new generation wants to learn.