It is often said that school days are the best days of your life. That’s especially true when you have inspiring teachers, supportive friends and an environment that encourages you to do your best. Today, there’s another element that contributes to the quality of education for pupils of all ages – technology. In the last 15 years, technology has revolutionised education. No longer is it restricted to being in the ‘computer room’; today, it’s at the heart of the learning experience for students of all ages.

Technology’s prominence is in evidence at the Valrovina Primary School in the Veneto region of Northern Italy. Home to 71 students aged between six and ten, the school is an excellent example of how technology is being used to help teachers and pupils alike to share and generate ideas, content and, of course, knowledge. In fact, not only do the pupils and staff benefit from technology, but the school’s future has depended on it. Some years ago, the small community of Valrovina was gravitating towards the city, meaning that there were fewer pupils attending the school. To address this grave situation and the risk of the school’s closure, the teaching staff decided to invest in technology in order to maximse the quality of their teaching while enriching the learning experience for pupils. This investment in technology – in conjunction with a dedicated bus service to and from the remotely located school – has been applauded by parents and has transformed its fortunes. Today, more than half of the school’s pupils now travel in from the city.

Helping to facilitate this sharing environment is the Vivitek NovoPRO wireless collaboration
solution. The NovoPRO enables instant wireless connectivity to a projector and wide device compatibility for up to sixty four simultaneous participants. Thanks to its flexibility, NovoPRO can be used with a standard projector, whiteboard, monitor and any make or model of interactive touch projector.

Valrovina Primary School teacher, Anna Mancuso, explains more: “The great thing about NovoPRO is that it puts the student and the teacher at the centre of the lesson, and not the projector system. This means that students and teachers can continue to work from their desk with their device, sharing their work easily and effortlessly.” She added: “I think solutions like this point toward the school’s future in terms of the types of learning and teaching aids we have in the classroom.”

NovoPRO’s depth of functionality and flexibility have helped the school respond effectively to the popular Bring Your Own Device model thanks to its ability to connect up to 64 devices simultaneously, whether they are iOS, Android, Windows or Chrome tablets, phones or laptops using WiFi; so whether it’s a teacher explaining the study goals for the week, or students sharing homework results with their fellow classmates, NovoPRO makes it quick and simple for teachers and pupils alike to connect and share across multiple platforms. Anna added: “Even though we were keen to adopt a BYOD model, previously we had to invest a lot of time creating materials that were compatible with all devices. With NovoPRO we have guaranteed cross-platform compatibility which is so beneficial on many levels.”

The students and the teachers at Valrovina also benefit from NovoPRO’s ability to project any device’s display in real time for video streaming and file sharing. Meanwhile, key functions such as on-screen annotations as well as web browsing are all enabled to increase participation and collective creativity. Importantly, NovoPRO enables the teacher to remain in control, and they can lock all student device screens to keep the focus on the subject being taught. Anna pointed out: “I really appreciate the fact that NovoPRO provides me with control over the students’ content. Knowing that they are being observed, means they work diligently and responsibly but without strict control.”

Needless to say, NovoPRO is compatible with all Vivitek’s digital projectors which provide teachers with ease of use and reliability in the classroom, as well as providing students with a great visual learning aid. The interactive education portfolio also features 3D technology and is available with short-throw and ultra-short-throw projection lenses to avoid shadows on the screen and efficient use of a space-limited classroom.

Based on its performance to date, Anna would have no hesitation giving the NovoPRO a glowing end of term report, recommending it to other schools and education institutions looking to ensure schools days remain the best days for pupils of all ages.