Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/137888
Wednesday, June 26, 2013 Ed Tech Show Daily Britannica (Cont'd. from p. 1) know us as the preeminent publisher of trusted reference materials for libraries, but we've changed our product offering to focus exclusively on digital resources that can be used both in libraries and in school classrooms. These products are used daily by over 80 million educators and students worldwide. ESD: What would you say makes your company unique? MR: Britannica offers the most comprehensive, up-to-date and trustworthy content to users anytime, anywhere, on any device and, most importantly, at a highly affordable price. We're uniquely known for providing resources that are easy to use, accessible to all learning styles, and easy to integrate into popular federated search systems and learning management LearnPad (Cont'd. from p. 1) quote: "This is the way tablets should be managed in a school environment. A great deal of thought has gone into the design to reflect the needs of schools and how they operate. Excellent online management system provided and very easy and quick to use. Excellent price. Impressive and convincing testimonials." What the judges saw, and what Educational Resources believes, is that there are plenty of "devices" on the market already. Here at ISTE, you will probably find at least 10 different hardware companies trying to sell you a tablet of some kind. A tablet though, is not the systems. No other company provides the value we do. ESD: Where is your current product emphasis? MR: We are addressing educators' greatest areas of need, from meeting Common Core standards and promoting differentiated learning, to improving student performance using whatever technology is available, including computers, interactive whiteboards, tablets, and mobile devices. Our interactive resources are used across all core subjects, including English/language arts, science, mathematics, social studies and foreign language. ESD: To what do you attribute your company's success? MR: Besides our long-standing reputation for quality, Britannica's success stems from listening to educators and answer to driving change in the classroom. The tablet is one component that requires a thoughtful approach to what the device means in the hands of students and teachers. This is why Educational Resources has not just brought the LearnPad to the United States, they focus on the entire LearnPad solution for your ease of use into the only market Educational Resources builds for: Education. The LearnPad solution is a purposebuilt approach to helping tabletize instruction in today's classrooms. The solution's key points are robust and reliable hardware, online management portal that allows teachers to focus on assembling their content into meaningful lessons, and part of my daily lessons. This year, AVer approached Rogers Ranch to pilot their new TabCam wireless streaming camera because of our 1-to-1 iPad initiative. I was one of the lucky teachers given the opportunity to try TabCam and to integrate it into my traditional and iPad curriculum. The app comes with a lot of interactive tools that allow me to manipulate the live video, and add supporting images and video while annotating and marking the whole project. One of the best features of the TabCam is that I can record the entire lesson, including my audio, any annotation I added, any other content, then instantly upload it to DropBox. BS: Basically, TabCam is a wireless camera that streams live video directly to my iPad. I can use it just like a document camera, but since it's wireless, I can move the camera anywhere in the room while keeping my iPad mobile. BS: When I first started with TabCam, I used it like a regular document camera, but then realized there was so much more to it. The mobility part of it was great since I wasn't tied to one location and I could move it anywhere AverMedia (Cont'd. from p. 1) ESD: Tell us about the TabCam and how it works? Pathway Innovations (Cont'd. from p. 1) many options to take photos and videos of documents in their classrooms. An iPad has the ability to serve as a document camera. We, at Pathway Innovations and Technologies question why one would want to do that. ESD: If someone can use an iPad, why would they need a document camera like the ones you produce? JM: We believe that a document camera from the HoverCam is a perfect complement to an iPad in the classroom. An iPad has so many apps that ESD: How has this product helped you in the classroom? are useful in the classroom – why would anyone want to waste that processing power and all those apps to use it as a document camera? ESD: That makes sense. How do you envision using the iPad and your document camera in unison? JM: Thank you for the segue. That leads me to my next point. There is a lovely app for the iPad called Splashtop. Splashtop is a remote access app that allows someone to control a computer remotely, right from the iPad. As a teacher walks around the classroom, it ill behooves her to lose out on the flow of the lecture by hav- developing interactive solutions that directly address obstacles to achievement affordably. When all is said and done, a product can have all the "right stuff," but if schools can't afford it, especially in this era of tight budgets, what value does it really offer? For example, with our new Britannica School product, schools can provide a student with access to the world's most comprehensive information resource for one year at less than the cost of a school-sized carton of milk. That's the unique value we're known for and that our customers appreciate. ESD: What products do you see as being hottest this year? MR: Educators will be very excited about Britannica School for many reasons, but especially because it's the only digital resource that automatically adjusts to provide the same viewing experience on any the ease of using their own existing digital content in addition to simple to add apps to aid instruction. Taking these three key elements and combining them into a simple solution that allows teachers to focus on instruction, guiding the students and removing distractions from instruction while not having to "block" apps, and give the IT department the information they need, when they need it, but not increase their daily workload. Included in the solution are all of the other elements that Educational Resources' 25+ years in education have pointed out are critical: Professional Development, Ease of Deployment, Extended Warranty, Leasing programs, etc. Of course, the LearnPad also meets while controlling the camera from the app. Once I got into the interactive tools like the annotation and lesson creation, I was able to demonstrate content from the live camera and include supporting elements from other sources. Recently, my class conducted a pH experiment with various solutions. I moved the camera to the different groups so everyone could see the strips change colors as each were tested and I was also able to note the differences and tie them to a pH color chart I brought into the app. During the lesson, I recorded the entire thing through the app from start to finish, and once it was completed, I immediately posted it to DropBox where my students could review it later, or absent students could experience it. The lesson was easy, yet ing to walk back up to the front of the room. Splashtop for iPad allows the teacher to control our document camera remotely, using the iPad as a virtual mouse. The iPad is so powerful that it does not need to be limited to being just a document camera. ESD: So are you saying that it would be beneficial for a teacher to have an iPad and a document camera in her classroom? JM: I am saying that if someone is investing in education by purchasing an iPad, it is more beneficial to use the power of the iPad for more than as a document camera. The most efficient 39 device. Elementary educators also will be happy to see the product's new interface for younger students. It definitely will change the minds of those who, in the past, thought that Britannica appeared too difficult. We continue to experience success with Image Quest, a product that provides instant access to a searchable database of rights-cleared educational images―photos, illustrations, and maps―that can be used in projects, presentations, websites, lesson plans, and interactive whiteboard activities. And, our newly-released Pathways: Science product continues to gain a strong base of advocates because it helps correct students' common misconceptions that stand in the way of true science understanding. For more information, go to www.eb.com, call 800-621-3900, email contact.eb.com, or stop by booth 9200 at ISTE. the requirements for all of your upcoming PARCC and SmarterBalanced assessment needs. This is because our company focuses on schools, not consumers, and understands the importance of curriculum, common-core, and sound pedagogy as it relates to tablets. Come see Educational Resources at booth 9174 and see why you should be expecting more from the other tablets at the show at a price that you can afford. See why you don't have to attend one of 186 sessions to learn how to use the LearnPad solution. Sit in on a demonstration and get all your questions answered. For more information, visit booth 9174 at ISTE. interactive and comprehensive. ESD: How do you see using TabCam in the future? BS: It really seems unlimited in the sense that I can still demonstrate real content in my class, while having the interactive features to support it. I'd like to start using the upload feature more, not only for student review at home but also to create lessons for substitutes and even share with other schools for collaborative projects. I am also testing a Flipped Classroom Model, and this product gives me the best of all worlds whenever I need. For more information, go online to www.averusa.com, call 408-263-3828, or visit booth 10244 at ISTE. and effective way to use an iPad's full potential and get the benefits of a document camera is to use an iPad equipped with the free app, Splashtop, with one of our document cameras, such as the Solo 5. ESD: That sounds like a really powerful way to educate in a modern classroom. JM: That is exactly what we believe and hope. I'd like to invite anyone who is interested in learning more to stop by our booth for a demonstration. For more information, visit www .thehovercam.com or stop by booth 13076 at ISTE.