Tools You Need for Your Future Connected Education Space

We hear a lot about the “connected space of the future,” particularly in education. Let’s think: what are the applications that are relevant right now? The ones where with a few hundred dollars, someone willing and a bit of effort, you could have up and running in the classroom of today. Read on to find out.

Learning aids

One of the most effective ways to implement a connected system right now in your classroom is through learning aids. Take ScanMarker, a company that makes a digital highlighter that allows you to scan anything you mark into your computer, allowing you to use digital notes, quotes, research and feedback. With a smart device like ScanMarker, an inefficient process becomes efficient, which is really what IoT-enabled classrooms are all about. 

Smart(er) whiteboards

The smart whiteboard. From a static blackboard to a whiteboard that could produce digital documents, now you have an even smarter whiteboard — or a smart whiteboard 2.0 as some are calling it.

Right now, even on a smart whiteboard, if you draw a diagram or create something manually, it has to be wiped away before you can start again. However, if you use an app like Miro, you're able to make your smart whiteboard even smarter. The idea behind these apps is that it saves all of your brainstorming sessions, answers and notes and stores them in the app where they can be reached at a later date. No longer do students have to scribble down notes from the board. Instead they can listen and participate, then access notes later.

These notes could be shared further too, with classmates, professors, and parents, thereby bridging the gap between the offline experience in the classroom and the online user interface. 

Digital signage

Perhaps the easiest way to make your classroom smarter right now is through digital signage. The art of using TV screens to share content is not new, but is still widely utilized within education. 

All that’s needed to set it up is a TV screen, a smart device such as a $35 Amazon Fire Stick and a simple digital signage software platform that can cost as little as $20 per month. 

The applications are huge. Digital signage screens can be used to provide real-time updates to students and staff, as well as safety notices and emergency information. They can share school social media feeds, wayfinding, class timetables and general information such as world news. 

For departmental feeds, the screens can share educational content, additional reading and even pop quizzes to keep minds occupied as students wait in the halls. 

Be smart with your screens: keep the content refreshed and curated to your audience — for example, if you put a screen in your hallways, then the content should only take a few seconds to inform.

Smart classrooms

How smart are classrooms right now? Not very. 

In any industry, there is a push to make individual offices or colleges more energy efficient by linking devices such as thermostats and lighting. These types of amenities, once made smarter, would be able to detect temperature, time of day, number of people in the room and more, all of which would allow them to adjust automatically to become more efficient. 

These types of applications are available now and not only improve the efficiency of schools, but include students at the same time. 

Artificial intelligence

For students with disabilities or limited capabilities, there are connected systems available now which lend an element of artificial intelligence. 

One example is Microsoft’s Seeing Artificial Intelligence app which can run on the student’s smartphone to provide a play-by-play account of what’s going on around them. Anyone partially-sighted would enjoy a more inclusive role within their school community. 

Gamification of object-led learning

There are software products already available that help educate through gamification. One example is the popular Kahoot, which puts traditional quizzes in a game show format that students can play on their phone connected to an instructor’s screen.

In the classroom, the opportunity to teach through similar methods, where real world actions are linked and measured, could help students to learn faster and in a much more visual way.  

Examination monitoring

As well as smart everyday learning there are also systems available that make the examination process more efficient. One example is Proctortrack, which is specifically designed with online testing in mind. The program is meant to make remote proctoring easier and dissuade cheating, relieving educators of their responsibility and encouraging fair learning among students.

About ScreenCloud

ScreenCloud helps teams in 9,000+ organizations around the world communicate with those who matter most, using the screens on their walls and the content already in their systems. 

ScreenCloud’s digital signage can inform students on campus by showcasing social media feeds, emergency alerts, and live broadcasts – or even simply the news or weather. ScreenCloud also offers a discount to customers in education.

Sign up for a free demo and see how digital signage can work for you today.