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This Elmo Can't Sing, But It Can Help Teach

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MARILYN BROWN

mbrown@tampatrib.com

Published: December 23, 2008

TAMPA - Children and their parents have all sorts of electronic gadgets on their Christmas lists.

So do teachers.

Elmos, Smart Boards and TI-Presenters are at the top, say Hillsborough County school officials.

The sophisticated classroom tools may look foreign to adults, but they are as familiar as cell phones to students and educators.

"Kids don't think of it as technology anymore," said David Smith, manager of customer service and support for the Hillsborough County School District. "It's just an extension of themselves."

Every classroom in the district's 200-plus schools has had Internet access since 2000. Schools have an average of one computer for every four students, he said.

The devices that connect to those computers and projectors vary by school. Lennard High used grant money to buy interactive Smart Boards for every classroom, for example.
Smart Boards are interactive electronic whiteboards that quickly are replacing traditional white boards and other training tools in classrooms and boardrooms. Two Hillsborough high schools opening in August will have about 20 Smart Boards each, said Michael Lindow, the district resource teacher who coordinates technology for high schools.

And Elmos, a brand of document camera, are found in schools districtwide, Lindow said. The devices have been around for about a decade, but they are becoming "relatively affordable," he said.

Anything flat or nearly flat, including a frog being dissected, can be placed under the arm of the Elmo, photographed and projected on a large screen, then saved, he said.

"I would have loved to have that as a science teacher," Lindow said. "In frog dissection, even the kids who don't want to touch it can see."
LEARNING CURVE
Here are a few of the gadgets teachers are using, with prices:

Smart Boards: Looks like a regular whiteboard but is touch sensitive, enabling users to write notes with electronic pens and create and save displays. Connects to a computer or digital projector. Can be mounted on a wall or rolled on wheels. Price: $1,750 on wheels; up to $2,500 if permanent mounting is required.

Elmos: A brand of document camera that takes pictures of relatively flat objects and allows their images to be projected on a computer or screen, including a Smart Board. Price: $437.

TI-Presenters: A brand of large graphing calculators that can be digitally connected to Elmos or overhead projectors to display formulas and graphs to entire classes. Price: $200.

LCD Projector: Projects images from a computer or presenting device onto a screen. Price: $570.

Source: Hillsborough County School District

Reporter Marilyn Brown can be reached at (813) 657-8069.

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