February 04, 2008

Humboldt Electric leads SMART Board innovation in the classroom through partnership with St. John Community School

What started as a partnership between Humboldt Electric and St. John Community School has now grown into a model of how a school can use technology in the classroom. The successful use of SMART Boards in St. John Community School has many other schools in Saskatoon and area taking note and looking at St. John's model.

St. John Community School is a Saskatoon Catholic School, located on Avenue N South in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The school serves a community which has many economically challenged families. Humboldt Electric was interested in helping the school stimulate learning in the classroom. The idea of using SMART Board technology was discussed and Humboldt Electric purchased the first SMART Board for the school. The Catholic School Board matched that purchase, giving St. John Community School two SMART Boards to implement as a pilot project.

A SMART Board is an interactive computer used as a replacement for a traditional chalkboard or whiteboard. A touch-sensitive display connects to a computer and a digital projector shows whatever is on the screen of the computer, from educational programs to information on the Internet. The SMART Board creates a conduit between the information available on the Internet (and in other digital formats) and the students in the classroom. It allows teachers to easily present a wealth of information and materials to students in a way that is both engaging and interactive.

The introduction of the first two SMART Boards worked so well that St. John Community School and Humboldt Electric have gone ahead with the purchase of enough SMART Boards to have one in each classroom (Grades One to Eight).

Humboldt Electric also helped with purchasing a SMART Board/laptop computer combination so the school could experiment with how the two could work together. The laptop/board combination has now become the preferred installation of this new technology. Principal Dave Knowles believes the technology is worth every penny.

"We now have SMART Boards up and running in all of our classrooms Grades One to Eight, and we've noticed an improvement in the learning of the children due to the use of this technology. Teachers can access some of the best teaching materials available and present it to the students using the SMART Board. We are the most high-tech elementary school in our division. Other schools come to us to see how we're using the SMART Boards. We have really become a model for using this new technology in the classroom."

– Dave Knowles, Principal, St. John Community School, Saskatoon

The SMART Boards continue to be an important part of how St. John Community School delivers education to its students. Humboldt Electric continues to work with the school on future ideas and programs.

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