WESTMORLAND — If one listened closely, one could almost hear a pin drop in a highly attentive classroom.
The sound of learning with mostly silent electronic gadgets keeps Westmorland Union Elementary School teacher Michelle Padilla’s class “focused and interested in what’s going on.”
The school has equipped all 24 of its classrooms with Eno interactive white boards and QWIZDOM Student Response Systems through federal Title I — or Student Improvement Grant — funding, said principal and Superintendent Linda Morse.
The boards give teachers easy-to-use tools for classroom management and enhance lessons and activities with interactive games, online media and various educational resources, according to a press release.
The QWIZDOM Student Response System, or handheld “clickers,” collects data and gives full-scale assessments of student performance based on their responses to questions given by the teacher.
The clickers also help teachers with everyday tasks like taking attendance, using seating charts and selecting groups for classwork on top of having interactive lesson-based games, according to the release.
“A lot of teachers use PowerPoint in math or language arts lessons so this interactive board allows you to mesh the two together,” Morse said.
“They’re so used to video games and technology at home, now they can use that in the classroom,” she said.
Just less than a month into using the Eno boards, Padilla is already seeing a difference with her class.
“There’s a tremendous amount of volunteers now,” she said, adding that the doodads will help improve her teaching.
Her students agreed.
“It’s new. It makes me feel like I want to pay attention more,” said 12-year-old Alyssa Allen as her classmates worked on prime number factorization.
“It’s kind of hard,” Christopher Garcia, also 12, said after his turn writing on the mobile Eno response pad.
“It doesn’t show you the words so it’s like you’re blind,” he said.
“It’s pretty fun,” he said.
Staff Writer Roman Flores can be reached at 760-337-3439 or rflores@ivpressonline.com
The sound of learning with mostly silent electronic gadgets keeps Westmorland Union Elementary School teacher Michelle Padilla’s class “focused and interested in what’s going on.”
The school has equipped all 24 of its classrooms with Eno interactive white boards and QWIZDOM Student Response Systems through federal Title I — or Student Improvement Grant — funding, said principal and Superintendent Linda Morse.
The boards give teachers easy-to-use tools for classroom management and enhance lessons and activities with interactive games, online media and various educational resources, according to a press release.
The QWIZDOM Student Response System, or handheld “clickers,” collects data and gives full-scale assessments of student performance based on their responses to questions given by the teacher.
The clickers also help teachers with everyday tasks like taking attendance, using seating charts and selecting groups for classwork on top of having interactive lesson-based games, according to the release.
“A lot of teachers use PowerPoint in math or language arts lessons so this interactive board allows you to mesh the two together,” Morse said.
“They’re so used to video games and technology at home, now they can use that in the classroom,” she said.
Just less than a month into using the Eno boards, Padilla is already seeing a difference with her class.
“There’s a tremendous amount of volunteers now,” she said, adding that the doodads will help improve her teaching.
Her students agreed.
“It’s new. It makes me feel like I want to pay attention more,” said 12-year-old Alyssa Allen as her classmates worked on prime number factorization.
“It’s kind of hard,” Christopher Garcia, also 12, said after his turn writing on the mobile Eno response pad.
“It doesn’t show you the words so it’s like you’re blind,” he said.
“It’s pretty fun,” he said.
Staff Writer Roman Flores can be reached at 760-337-3439 or rflores@ivpressonline.com
