It’s the third and penultimate day at the world’s leading event for education technology, BETT 2012. On what is traditionally the busiest day of the exhibition, the bee-it team set off around the show to uncover the latest innovations and best cutting-edge education technology.

 

The day began at Stand SN70 in the Special Education Needs zone to discover what assistive technology company, Texthelp, has been up to over the last twelve months. Best known for its literacy support tool, Read & Write 10, Texthelp has stepped into the mobile phone marketplace by releasing four mobile apps for BETT 2012. Speaking about the latest developments, CEO, Mark McCusker said:

 

“We felt it was very important to create mobile versions of our popular software as we recognise that times are changing in the education sector. Several years ago, a pupil would go into school or college with their own laptop and this was seen as revolutionary, but now pupils have iPhones and tablets with their own internet connections constantly transmitting data. We want to ensure that our products are accessible via as many routes as possible, so mobile applications were the logical step.”

 

Visitors to BETT 2012 are encouraged to try out the four new Android and iOS ready apps – Read and Write Web, Speech, E-Book Reader and Dictionary – as well as the computer-based products available on the Texthelp stand.

 

After seeing hoards of people clutching their Frog goodie-bags over the last two days, the next stop was the Frog stand (Stand M50) where staff from Costello Technology College were on hand to demonstrate how they have been using the popular Frog learning platform. Assistant Headteacher, Dominic Tester explained:

 

“We have been using the Frog platform for around two and a half years, with great success. We don’t see Frog as another tool for staff to learn, but instead as the main aggregator for all other tools we use. All homework is set via Frog and pupils can access their own personal planners, workspaces and classroom resources through the system.”

 

He continued:

 

“One of the major features for us as a college is the simplistic way in which teachers can create podcasts. The Frog platform gives teachers everything they need to make their own recordings which automatically get added to an RSS feed which is then pushed through to the pupils’ iPod touches or iPhones. This has been a really great way to ensure our pupils are kept up to date with the latest news in each subject through an engaging medium.”

 

Frog, which recently expanded into Malaysia, is now available to UK schools through a variety of pricing structures. Managing Director, Gareth Davies took a few minutes away from the stand to explain more. He said:

 

“We have always maintained that using Frog is not about getting some fancy piece of kit into schools for the technicians to work out, but is instead about whole school improvement. We want headteachers to be involved from day one and to ensure that the senior leadership team gain sufficient coaching to fully maximise return on investment for the school.

 

“At present, we are able to offer numerous pricing structures with free finance to suit each school, ensuring that they can pay for Frog over a given period of time.”

 

If you’re visiting BETT, you can try out the Frog learning platform and speak to schools that have already successfully implemented the system on Stand M50.

 

Exhibiting a short walk away on Stand J9, Chris Scarth, Director of online markbook and assessment tool, Classroom Monitor, took a few moments away from the hubbub to explain more about the latest tweaks to the well-known system. Chris said:

 

“The basic functions of Classroom Monitor are still the same, but we have added some major new features for BETT 2012. The first is a general design tweak to help make viewing and assessing the markbook more straightforward and user-friendly for teachers. The second has been quite a time-consuming addition; we have now linked every APP objective to free online educational resources.

 

“This means pupils, teachers, and parents can now have access to a wealth of relevant resources to help pupils understand and develop particular skills related to the curriculum.”

 

The hard work is far from over for the Classroom Monitor team however as they endeavour to add hyperlinked resources to every foundation, early years and national curriculum objective, as well as some Key stage 4 and 5 objectives, by the end of 2013.

 

Visit Stand J9 to find out more about these developments and to try Classroom Monitor out yourself.

 

Classroom Monitor being demonstrated to a visitor

 

The next stop of the day was Stand S34, where Tribune Business Systems explained how their virtual desktop solutions are saving schools money whilst opening up anytime, anywhere learning in even the most rural of areas.

 

By offering schools V Sat internet links and virtual desktop interfaces, pupils and teachers are able to access their personalised school desktops from anywhere with an internet connection, be that on a computer, tablet or even a mobile phone. During BETT, children from local schools have been demonstrating how the system works by showcasing the work they are doing in school, as well as completing their project-based work whilst they’re at BETT!

 

The benefit of a system such as the one Tribune provides is that, not only do the pupils have access to their personal files and work, but they can open and use any number of memory intensive applications, providing them with access to programs that they may not have at home.

 

To try out the Tribune virtual desktops for yourself make sure you plan a visit to Stand S34.

 

Back downstairs in the Grand Hall, it was on to the Promethean stand (Stand B30) to catch up with the team and view the products on show. There is a noticeable change in the way that Promethean is exhibiting at BETT this year as visitors are encouraged to take a guided tour of learning – from classroom to collaboration to mobile and home.

 

The first product to experience is the multi-touch interactive whiteboard and pen with integrated Windows 7 and Active Inspire suite. Two engaging presenters explain how the board can and is being used in classrooms across the globe, and offer innovative ideas about which free resources can be used alongside it. Audience participation was encouraged through the new ActivExpression 2 voting system; a robust and attractive handheld device with full QWERTY keyboard. It’s worth noting that the software installed on this device is also available to download for Android and iOS devices from the marketplaces – a great feature for schools with an open mobile phone policy.

 

New to BETT 2012 is the impressive ActivTable, Promethean’s first interactive table with integrated speakers, over 70 included activities and an activity wizard to help customise lessons. The table is capable of dealing with an impressive 32 simultaneous touches and can run up to six web browsers at any one time, making collaboration easy and fun.

 

Promethean's ActivTable being tested out

 

Whilst the table is not set to be officially released until summer 2012, it is highly recommended viewing if you are visiting BETT this year.

 

Across the hall on a very colourful stand, Sherston Software were busy demonstrating Early Years World, a collection of mini adventures and interactive activities designed to nurture young learners’ IT skills. For slightly older children, Sherston has Planet Sherston, a powerful world full of cross-curriculum resources for three to eleven year olds, on display.

 

Planet Sherston includes a comprehensive tracking and assessment tool alongside an intuitive, adaptive learning engine which constantly assesses each pupil’s strengths and weaknesses and then tailors activities to these criteria.

 

For visitors to BETT, Sherston Software is offering 10-day and 30-day free trials for both systems. Simply head over to Stand B56 and pick up your trial codes.

 

The final visit of the day was to Pearson on Stands B40 and C40. Visitors to the stands can expect to see the well known Fronter learning platform being demonstrated as well as E1, Pearson’s own Management Information System (MIS) and the new school finance system, E1 Finance.

 

From BETT onwards, Pearson will be offering Fronter and E1 as an integrated system to help improve access to anytime, anywhere data and to simplify processes, regardless of the technical ability of school staff. Additionally, Pearson is demonstrating a completely free service called Results Plus.

 

The Results Plus system is designed to feed information back to schools about how well their pupils have done in exams and drills down to individual questions in an attempt to find common trends about strengths and weaknesses amongst pupils. By encouraging schools to take mock exams through the system, teachers are able to instantly see the areas in which pupils are struggling and can therefore spend more time focussing on these areas as part of their normal exam preparation.

 

To take advantage of Results Plus, click here.

 

And with that, BETT closed its doors on another day of discovery and learning. The bee-it stand (Stand P39) has enjoyed another busy day – so much so that all of our fuzzy bee bugs were snapped up! Fear not though, as the team will be back tomorrow with a new army of bees, as well as your opportunity to win a Kindle so make sure you visit the bee-it team on Stand P39!