May 10, 2010 – (PUYALLUP, WA)– Beginning today, May 10, through June 11, Qwizdom will be giving away over $2700 in interactive learning systems, curriculum and software across the nation through a Twitter Promotion, or “Tweetaway.” The company says it hopes to see the technology encourage teachers/administrators to create engaging classroom experiences that help students succeed.

How to win:
Follow @Qwizdom on Twitter…
Trivia questions will be posted to Twitter at 7PM EST on Thursdays and the first educator to reply to @Qwizdom with the correct response will win prizes of increasing value as the promotion continues.

Tweetaway prizes are as follows:
May 13 – Qwizdom connect with premium service
May 20 – Qwizdom connect with premium service
May 27 – Q7 tablet + WizTeach tools
June 3 – Q7 tablet + WizTeach tools
June 10 – Complete Classroom Set including 24 Q2 student remotes, a Q7 teacher tablet, Qwizdom Connect Software, and WizTeach tools

The “tweetaway” and giveaways are open to educators across America. (Please note that this promotion is not available to educators outside of the United States). Limit one prize per school, one prize per educator.
For more information on Qwizdom, visit www.qwizdom.com.

About Qwizdom, Inc.
Qwizdom provides integrated education technology solutions for thousands of schools throughout the U.S. and U.K. Striving to make learning both effective and engaging, Qwizdom offers the most advanced radio-frequency classroom response technology (patents pending), a complete software learning system, more than 150 interactive curriculum programs, and a digital learning network. Founded in 1984, Qwizdom has offices in the Seattle area, Cleveland, and the United Kingdom. For more information, please visit www.qwizdom.com.

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Media Contact:
Ian Bryan
828.242.1868
ianbryan@sensiblecity.com

Gordon Lampley is Qwizdom’s Week 2 Tweetaway winner.  However, he does not want to keep the prize,  a copy of Qwizdom’s Connect software and access to Premium Services.  Gordon retired from teaching last year and won the prize for his former teaching partner of 9 years, Kathleen Ballenger.  Gordon taught middle school Math and Science for 34 years.  Most recently, he taught at South Stanly Middle School in Norwood, North Carolina where Kathleen still teaches. “I am tickled that we can transfer my prize to Kathleen.  I have spoken to her and she is excited about the possibilities,” said Gordon.

Kathleen is a Board Certified teacher that has been teaching 7^th grade Math and Science for 16 years. “So I hear Gordon won something through your Tweetaway contest and is giving it to me!” says Kathleen. “I’m very anxious to try out the software and especially the curriculum. My plan is to use it as an assessment tool, I’m also excited to play the games!”

Congratulations Kathleen!

Click here to learn more about Qwizdom’s connect software.

Isaiah Porter, 13, center, and Chris Chan, 13, right, feel the thrill of competition as they answer U.S. History questions using the Qwizdom Student Response System at school. The technology keeps kids engaged and encourages quiet students to participate at Los Alamitos School District schools.

LOS ALAMITOS–Oak Middle School has seen a significant jump in its state test scores since the introduction of a new learning technology that forces students to participate in classroom lessons and helps teachers better tailor their lectures, officials said.

Social Studies teacher Todd Schmidt acted as the guinea pig for the Los Alamitos Unified School District in using a hand-held, question-and-answer program called Qwizdom that he says helps students better learn and retain information.

“There’s this lofty goal that sounds unattainable, but (we can) actually achieve it: to get every student to answer every question, every time,” he said.

The technology allows the teacher to ask a question related to the lesson, then students plug in the answer on a hand-held remote. The teacher can see who has answered and who hasn’t.

Answers are projected onto a computer screen that uses kid-friendly graphs and games to keep students engaged.

Schmidt said Qwizdom specifically benefits students who are shy or not confident to answer questions out loud in the classroom because it allows them to participate anonymously.

“It is non-threatening,” he said. “I have proof that shows these kids are definitely getting it.”

And that proof comes in the form of better standardized state test scores, he said.

“We had a 20-point jump in Social Studies in theCalifornia State Test,” Schmidt said. “Los Alamitos is 75 percent proficient, which is three times the state average. Last year, we went up to 84 percent because we’ve been using these. I think next year our scores are going to be even higher.”

The program also lets teachers better mold their lesson plans because they can see what students are grasping or what concepts may need more attention.

“Now, I know exactly what to hit,” Schmidt said. “It has impacted my teaching so dramatically… because I know they’re understanding and retaining the material.”

The program started in Schmidt’s classroom last year and this spring the district has been incorporating the hand-held devices into more classrooms and a variety of subjects including math, language arts and science, he said.

Contact the writer: jfletcher@ocregister.com

Click here to read the original post.

Garcia celebrates his win at TCEA last Thursday with Qwizdom's Gretchen Herzog.

Austin High School teacher, Gil Garcia, (@giltron on Twitter) won over $2,000 in education technology for his multimedia film-making classroom. Garcia and his 11th and 12th grade students were “in the field” at the Texas Computer Education Association Conference, shooting their own news segments, when he found out he had won. As the first educator to correctly answer a trivia question posted to Twitter, Garcia and his budding reporters headed back to school (just down the road) with a full suite of classroom technology.

Garcia’s winnings include 24 electronic student response remotes (known as Q2s), which students use to respond to questions. The teacher presents questions on a screen, verbally, or by using paper-based activities, while the students respond via their remotes. The teacher‘s computer instantly receives the responses and records the results, thus allowing the educator to gauge students’ overall comprehension or to zero in on a struggling pupil.

In addition to the remotes, Garcia received a Qwizdom Q7 presenter tablet for interactive whiteboard control and instant question creation anywhere in the classroom. Customizable WizTeach tools for teachers and Connect Software are also part of the prize package. Connect Software tracks student progress by recording which state standards a student has mastered, as well as gathering data on pacing, performance analysis, predictors of success or failure and early identification of academically at-risk students.

Garcia, already a tech-savvy teacher with a multimedia classroom, told us he uses an iPhone application to control his presentations in class, so he’s looking forward to taking the Q7 presenter tablet for a spin.

“The other awesome thing about Qwizdom is that I can get to the silent help-seekers who never raise their hand, but need the extra attention,” Garcia says. “I want to put a response system in the hand of every student in my class so that during my lectures I can check in throughout to be sure everyone is understanding along the way.

“Now, I will be able to see, ‘Did I miss something here?’”

For more information on Gil Garcia, visit his Austin High School media arts blog.

By: Jessica Fera, WPXI.com

[click here to watch the feature story at wpxi.com]

NEW BRIGHTON, Pa. – Technology is not only changing the way millions of Americans live, work and play, it’s changing the way students are learning in one Beaver County School District.

“Little New Brighton is on its way to being a premiere district in Beaver County. It really is,” said director of technology Rob Lee.

Inside every classroom at New Brighton Middle School you’ll find cutting edge teaching tools that include interactive whiteboards called Eno boards.

“They have every capability from simply being a display screen in which teachers can display various lessons on them, to being fully interactive where teachers can toggle between pictures and class notes and videos and even write over top of what they’re displaying,” Principal Joe Guarino told WPXI.com’s Jessica Fera.

“You’re interacting with the board instead of just sitting there reading off a text book, day dreaming. You’re picking, clicking things that open up links and you’re gonna remember it more and get a better grade,” said seventh grade student Maria Taylor.

Also helping these students make the grade are Quizdom hand-held clickers.

“In the age of text messaging and cell phones, the kids are taking a great liking to those. They’re using those for instant feedback in the classrooms. Teachers can see what the kids are getting and what they are not getting,” Guarino said.

“Using it has made it more entertaining to learn and engaging in it makes me want to learn,” said seventh grade student Paul Radatavich.

Teachers here say the students’ positive attitudes are producing positive results.

“Academically I know I’ve been able to get some really tough concepts through using those types of technology,” said science teacher Anthony Martella.

The middle school and high school are full equipped with these devices and the elementary school is not far behind.

“Because there’s not as many federal dollars for K-5 we still have some work to do,” said Superintendent Dr. David Pietro. “We’re hoping within the next two years we’ll have the type of equipment you’re seeing today in every single classroom in our district.”

The nearly $400,000 needed to jumpstart this initiative has come from a combination of taxpayer dollars along with state and federal grants.

“We feel it’s an investment in our students and that it’s something we need to do to provide our students an education for the 21st century,” Pietro said.

This district has high hopes for the future.

“I feel in the coming years we’ll be a beacon in technology integration not only in the county but in the entire Commonwealth,” Lee said.

[click here to read the entire story at wpxi.com]

02.08.2010 – AUSTIN, Texas – Most American educators are familiar with Qwizdom’s interactive classroom technology, but only those attending the Texas Computer Education Association Conference this February will have the unique opportunity to squeeze in hands-on time with the company’s newest hardware release – the Q6 student response system.

Available for pre-order in late march of this year, the Qwizdom Q6 Student Response System is unique in that it offers more opportunity for collaboration than with any previous system, including an easy-to-use keypad similar to a cell phone, text input and a larger LCD screen to view full responses. The small, ergonomic radio frequency remotes allow each student to communicate with the teacher from up to 328 feet away and are durability-tested to withstand the rigors of the classroom.

As the teacher presents questions on a screen, verbally, or by using paper-based activities, pupils enter responses with their remotes. The teacher‘s computer instantly receives the responses and records the results, allowing the freedom to easily manage and control the format and speed of the lesson. The instant response also allows the educator to gauge students’ overall comprehension or to zero in on a struggling pupil. In turn, a student is notified when their response has been received and can silently signal the teacher for help, easing the fear of judgment by peers or falling behind in class.

The device’s 1.8 × 1.5” LCD screen allows for up to 116 character input per transmission. Multiple mark, numeric, sequencing, rating scale, yes/no, fractional/decimal, multiple choice, true/false, and short answer questions are all supported by the Q6. Battery life is a year on average.

Software used with Q6 remotes is both PC and Mac-friendly, integrating easily with PowerPoint® and Keynote®. Additionally, Qwizdom Connect software works with hundreds of thousands of pre-made curriculum resource slides.

For more information, visit Qwizdom online at www.qwizdomnews.com.

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About Qwizdom, Inc.

Qwizdom provides integrated education technology solutions for thousands of schools throughout the U.S. and U.K. Striving to make learning both effective and engaging, Qwizdom offers the most advanced radio-frequency classroom response technology (patents pending), a complete software learning system, more than 150 interactive curriculum programs, and a digital learning network. Founded in 1984, Qwizdom has offices in the Seattle area, Cleveland, and the United Kingdom. For more information, please visit www.qwizdomnnews.com.

Media Contact
Ian Bryan
828.242.1868
ianbryan@sensiblecity.com

One year ago, Qwizdom was featured on the Nightly Business Report as part of their coverage of the “Business of Education” in Orlando and Miami-Dade. With FETC just a week + away, we’re posting the video for reference.

WWL Ch. 4 News’ Rob Nelson visits Mary Bethune Elementary School in Jefferson Parish to see how technology is changing the face of education in throughout the region.

“Classrooms throughout the metro area are now officially in the Digital Age,” says Nelson. “Kids especially like Qwizdom…”

]]> http://qwizdomnews.com/2010/01/cbs-news-eye-on-education-qwizdom-in-new-orleans/feed/ 1 http://qwizdomnews.com/2010/01/during-fetc-qwizdom-to-tweetaway-over-20000-00-in-interactive-classroom-technology/ http://qwizdomnews.com/2010/01/during-fetc-qwizdom-to-tweetaway-over-20000-00-in-interactive-classroom-technology/#comments Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:09:09 +0000 admin http://qwizdomnews.com/?p=82 Going to FETC? Click here to view our Media Focals.

Qwizdom will kick off the Florida Education Technology Conference (FETC) by giving and “tweeting away” over $30,000.00 in student response systems and software to educators attending FETC and across the nation. The company says it hopes to see the technology encourage teachers to ring in 2010 with interactive, engaging classroom experiences which help students to succeed.

Two ways to win:

1. Visit Qwizdom on the trade show floor…

Qwizdom can be found in booth 515, a demonstration area, and in booth 438, where conference attendees can spend hands-on time with the Q7 tablet, a mini interactive portable whiteboard. Conference badges will be scanned at both booths, automatically entering attendees to win Q7 of their own. Qwizdom representatives will demonstrate various education tools every hour, on the hour, in booth 515 and participants will receive a Qwizdom Tshirt for attending. Wearing the T-shirt is another way to win. A tap on the shoulder from a Qwizdom representative means a free classroom set of Q2 remotes. Also up for grabs every hour is a Q7 Tablet, Premium Service and Connect software.

2. Follow @Qwizdom on Twitter…

During the Florida Educational Technology Conference (Jan 12- 15), Qwizdom will ask its followers basic trivia questions. Prior to each trivia question, the company will tweet at least two hyperlink “hints” leading to where the answer may be found. (Think of it as an open-book test!) The first correct response made in reply to @Qwizdom will win.

Tweetaway prizes are as follows:

Thursday 1/14 – Set of 24 Q2 Student Response Remotes with a Q7 Tablet, Connect Software and WizTeach Tools.

Friday 1/15 – Set of 24 Q2 Student Response Remotes with a Q7 Tablet, Connect Software, WizTeach Tools and Premium Service.

The “tweetaway” and giveaways are open to teachers across America. (Please note that this promotion is not available to educators outside of the United States).

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About Qwizdom, Inc.
Qwizdom provides integrated education technology solutions for thousands of schools throughout the U.S. and U.K. Striving to make learning both effective and engaging, Qwizdom offers the most advanced radio-frequency classroom response technology (patents pending), a complete software learning system, more than 150 interactive curriculum programs, and a digital learning network. Founded in 1984, Qwizdom has offices in the Seattle area, Cleveland, and the United Kingdom. For more information, please visit www.qwizdom.com.

Media Contact
Ian Bryan
828.242.1868
ianbryan@sensiblecity.com