Technology & Learning - April 2009 - (Page 24) PRODUCTREVIEWS PRODUCT: AVERVISION CP300 www.avermedia-usa.com/presentation Retail price: $699 The compact digital document camera has a 3.2 megapixel sensor, 8X digital zoom + 2X AVERZOOM (total 16X zoom), fast-response auto focus, a laser positioning guide, split screen, and picture-in-picture. The camera can store up to 80 images and will support 1,280x720 resolution. There is also a selection of online lesson plans, a software tutorial, and training videos to help teachers get started. The software for this camera allows it to be completely controlled from a computer. Presenters can annotate an image on the camera. They also have both remote viewing and remote control of the camera over a LAN. PROS: Unlike some other document cameras, the CP300 is easy to move from one classroom to another. The software is simple to learn and use. Since the camera lets users record and annotate any process, a teacher of any subject can record something she wishes to teach or remediate and annotate the process. This is recorded as an AVI file, which the teacher can then post on her Web page for students to view. This is in addition to providing all the standard functions of a document camera. The split screen and picture-in-picture screen allow the teacher to display both a “live” sample and a reference sample (from one of the 80 stored images), or from the Web and the screen at the same time. A microscope adapter is also available. CONS: The advanced features may take longer to learn than those on some document cameras. But the online software tutorial and training videos are helpful, and the basic setup and operation are as simple as most. OVERALL IMPRESSION: At $700, this is an affordable and worthwhile addition to any classroom. PRODUCT: DREAMBOX LEARNING K-2 MATH www.dreambox.com discounts available Retail price: $12.95 per month per student; volume ered are based on NCTM standards. Students are given continual positive reinforcement as they move through the tasks. The online dashboard is a great standards-based report card on a student’s progress through the program. Online support provides teachers and parents with tips on how to transfer math skills to everyday life. Progress emails are sent to parents automatically every time the student uses the program. CONS: The program would benefit from some type of administrative module that handled security and reporting for classroom use. OVERALL IMPRESSION: This is a great example of one of the many Web-based learning tools out there. Because it is Web-based, updates can be done automatically, so schools can ensure that the curriculum is linked to the latest standards. DreamBox Learning K-2 Math is an interactive math curriculum for grades K-2 that is built on a standards-based mathematics curriculum and offered in a fun, adventure-style interactive game. The program presents indepth math lessons that develop computational fluency, conceptual understanding, and problem-solving ability. DreamBox analyzes a student’s individual responses and dynamically customizes the content and sequence for each child. The program keeps track of the student’s progress and remediates and accelerates the student as needed. PROS: The graphics and audio are attractive enough to hold the attention of students at the intended grade level; the screen action is appealing without distracting from the lesson. The vocabulary is also age-level appropriate. The program readily adapts to the individual student’s learning style and pace. The areas cov- 24 | TECH & LEARNING http://www.avermedia-usa.com/presentation http://www.dreambox.com
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