from Technology & Learning
Get up to speed on the latest product releases in the education market.
Hardware
Hitachi's CP-X608 projector for large venues has PC-less operation capabilities, 4,000 ANSI lumens, and 1000:1 contrast ratio. It features vertical and horizontal lens shift and can project onto screens up to 100 inches with its 1.5x zoom lens.
Pearson Assessments' iNSIGHT 150 scans 15,000 sheets per hour and has two modes: one reads pencil marks, the other, blue or black ink. The scanner also interprets mark sense and binary coded numbers, OMR, bar codes, and hand and machine printed characters.
iNSIGHT 150 scans 15,000 sheets per hour.
Software
Knowledge Matters' new simulation, Virtual History—Ancient Egypt, serves as an addition to traditional instruction for the history module. Students assume leadership roles of an Egyptian village, and their decisions determine if the village succeeds or fails.
In Virtual History—Ancient Egypt, students' actions determine whether a village thrives or fails.
Reading Comprehension and Critical Thinking from Siboney Learning Group encourages students in grades 9-12 to learn from critical thinking and comprehension exercises based on stories and video clips where they control pace and story choice.
School Loop's Version 3.0 helps teachers track students' workload, grades, and progress. Instructors can now monitor grade trends and not just absolute grades, plus underperforming students are now placed in high priority groups automatically.
The MizuniMotiv information management/data warehousing tool provides secure, Web-based delivery of district and student information.
GenevaLogic's Print-Limit Pro 6.2 for Mac OS X servers manages large print jobs and can function on multiple platforms at once.
Using Saf-T-Net's AlertNow, administrators can rapidly get messages to tens of thousands of parents, faculty, staff, and even students with text-based or voice messages sent to landlines, cell phones, or PDAs.
ClassLink's ClassSync synchronizes user lists with a school's student information system. Synchronization capabilities make ClassSync able to identify bad log-in accounts, fix organization unit paths, and correct missing information.
Adobe's updated Photoshop Elements 5.0 features frames that are like virtual scrapbooks; drag-and-drop capabilities into flexible layouts; and a gallery service for sharing photos for free. Premiere Elements 3.0 has a simplified user interface and a new Monitor window that simplifies editing, dealing with effects, and transitions such as stop-motion capture. Acrobat 8.0 features an updated user interface, simplification of PDF creation and use, and real-time Webconferencing using the new Adobe Acrobat Connect.
Resources
Encyclopaedia Britannica's 2007 Ultimate DVD (and CD-ROM) reference suite features interactive videos and tours including Classical Music Browse; printable virtual note cards; three encyclopedias-student, adult, and kid versions; more than 166,000 links to magazines and other online resources and over 100,000 articles; and Homework Helpdesk.
Harcourt Achieve has teamed with High Points Learning to offer students an online math practice solution, NorthStar Math. With more than 4 million problems to choose from, teachers can generate state-standards aligned assignments for different levels of students, generate reports, look up step-by-step solutions, and grade returned homework online. For grades 3-12.
Casio now offers the opportunity to turn in your old TI graphing calculators for cash when you buy new graphing calculators.
Whiteboards
InterWrite SchoolBoards 1071 and 1085, both from GTCO CalComp, feature durable interactive surfaces, electromagnetic technology, optional wireless Bluetooth connection, and wide-format 16:9 aspect ratio.
Promethean's 95-inch Activboard is designed to withstand humidity and rigorous classroom use. Activboard comes with Activstudio software that features lesson plans aligned with state standards, which can be searched by state, grade level, subject area, and keyword.
SMART Technologies' SMART Board 600i interactive whiteboard features a Unifi projector with integrated audio, a connection module to add peripherals, and SMART Board software version 9.5.
The SMART Board 600i interactive whiteboard ships in January 2007.
Numonics' Intelliboard 77 features electromagnetic technology, a multimedia pen, 2,000 clip art images, and Virtual WhiteBoard software.
Hitachi Software Engineering's Starboard FX Series includes the FX-63, FX-77, and FX-82W whiteboards, which feature customizable function keys and toolbars, Bluetooth and USB connectivity, and wireless pens.
RM's Easiteach version 3.3 whiteboard software has a new speech engine with seven languages, new foreign language characters, additional voting ability, and new bin and pen tools.
