May 07 2007
A whole month on…
It has been a whole month and more since I last posted to my blog. You may be wondering why? Well it has been a busy few weeks since the Easter break, so much going on. My son, George, is on the very brink of walking for himself and he seems so small and vulnerable when he stands there on his own. He of course had his 1st birthday at the end of April which was great fun, and most of my time out of school has been taken up marvelling at his daily progress. 
As for school – well it is busy as ever. We are nearing the crunch week of SATs exams with my Year 6 children and needless to say we are busy revising and getting ready. So what role does ICT have when it comes to this time of the year?
Well we have continued to use ICT and specific websites to support the children in their revision of the key subjects, especially maths and science. As you may have already seen from a previous post, we are using Turning Point voting keypads to work on our fast mental recall of times tables and on Friday we completed a 50 question (5000 point!) mega test on our 6, 7, 8 and 9 times tables. The children get so motivated, it is great fun.
Next academic year I am going to look into the procurement of another set of voting keypads. Turning Point is a simple, effective technology using Powerpoint that I like. However Smart Technologies, the manufacturer of Smart Boards, have developed their own voting system called Senteo. When I last visited the BETT show in London SMART were wielding the Turning Point system on their stand and I remember asking the question if SMART were going to develop their own so that it integrates with SMART Notebook. They clearly have.
So do we go for Senteo or Turning Point?
It looks like the Senteo devices will be more expensive to buy than the TP keypads. I have also seen some decent offers for buying a class set of TP keypads and getting the second half price. This purchase can also be done through the E Learning Credits budget which is useful.
I suppose the question is whether or not the new SMART devices will bring new features (they have an LCD screen allowing greater feedback and flexibility) that provide value for money.
I would be most interested in any initial thoughts from colleagues who have had the opportunity to use both systems and may be able to shed some light on the advantages and disadvantages of both.
After reading your review, I think you should try eInstruction’s Classroom Performance System (CPS). It integrates with PowerPoint, ExamView, and has a fast grade feature that allows you to use your written tests and the students just click in the answers when they complete the test on their own time. I use it all the time!
I think enstruction is the best. I have used it in my classrom for 6 years. They have been around way longer and their software has more delivery options that TP but I haven’t seen Smart yet. I use the student mode where they take a test shown on paper and then self-pace putting in their answers. I also love the jeopardy style game – well I should say my students do!
Jane, I couldn’t disagree with you more. I have used both systems, TurningPoint and CPS, with my science classes and have found TurningPoint to be much easier to use. Although CPS claims to have more features I find much more value in having an easy time to set up the system and create my presentations. I dont have time to learn a new software which is where TurningPoint really makes my life easy.
Patti, Jane and Mike – many thanks for contributing your comments to my post. I have had the opportunity to use the E Instruction voting system and I would have to agree with Mike, that Turning Point is much more intuitive, and there is a great deal of value in the fact that you do not have to learn a new skill or application. I hope that I find Senteo to be equally intuitive when working with SMART Notebook.
Thanks again for your comments.