Investing in Technology and Confidence with the ActivPanel
A bit of background
Situated in the rural community of Lenham is Lenham Primary School, a good school with a family feel. With an attendance of over 200 children, Lenham Primary school is made up of pupils and staff who take PRIDE in everything they do. Using PRIDE values to celebrate achievements, the school is passionate about creating a caring environment and great learning experiences for all children.
Personal excellence, Respect and Resilience, Inspiration, Determination and courage and Equality and friendship (PRIDE), is championed at the school, and the school is seen as an important part of the community.
Key Considerations
As a result of a new housing development being built around Lenham Primary School’s grounds, the school successfully secured funding from the local authority to future proof the facilities for new and existing students.
Recognising the need to upgrade its technological provisions, Lenham Primary School embarked on a journey to improve its front of class display units. Previously relying heavily on projectors and whiteboards, much of the technology was out of date or no longer provided a sufficient educational purpose. Understanding that projector bulbs only have a lifecycle of around three years and are therefore costly to replace, the total cost of ownership of any new edtech needed to be carefully considered.
After undertaking a review of the market, it was clear to Lenham Primary School that interactive flat panel displays (IFPDs) had transformed the edtech market quite drastically in terms of both software and hardware and became the focus of Lenham Primary’s technological upgrade. Lenham Primary School undertook a market evaluation of the technology that was available and would meet the school’s needs. Following this, Lenham Primary School sought edtech advice from Promethean. Noting Promethean’s education pedigree and its expertise in helping schools’ transition from legacy technology to implementing new products, Lenham Primary School undertook several demonstration training sessions before introducing the ActivPanel interactive display school-wide.
Why the ActivPanel?
Promethean emerged as the preferred manufacturing partners based on its commitment to providing both a software and hardware solution that is suitable for the classroom environment. Additionally, Promethean’s commitment to provide on-going after-care support and training after the ActivPanel was implemented into 12 classrooms and one in the headteacher’s office increased Lenham Primary School’s confidence in its investment. It was essential for Lenham Primary School to have one point of contact to resolve any issues that may arise with the panel, ensuring the level of classroom disruption would be minimal.
“The ActivPanel was chosen as we were looking for an alternative front of class display unit that would adapt with us as a school and would withstand the test of time. Promethean provided the support that we required to make the decision to move to the ActivPanel as well as guaranteeing effective aftercare support and further assistance should it be needed in the future,” said Andrea McCluskey, Headteahcher at Lenham Primary School.
The implementation of the ActivPanel in every classroom has encouraged all teachers and students to learn collectively. Transforming lessons into flexible workspaces that can embrace interactive elements to engage all students, the ActivPanel has become a valuable tool across a variety of subjects. With access to ActivInspire lesson delivery software as standard, teachers are able to use a vast suite of tools to create and deliver dynamic lessons. For example, in maths lessons, utilising the place counters on ActivInspire has encouraged collaboration and engagement and using a selection of educational numbers apps has helped to promote enjoyment into subjects that are usually seen as difficult.
Andrea concluded:
“We use the ActivPanel in every lesson and it has been very well received by all staff and students at the school. Promethean provided invaluable training sessions to help us feel comfortable with the new technology and has even been in since to work on a one-to-one basis with staff who are ready to explore the panel further to benefit the classes. We are investing heavily in edtech in our school as it is our responsibility to prepare the students for future education and are confident that our investment in the ActivPanel will help us on our journey.”
Download the Lenham Primary School customer story here.
Would your school benefit from a Promethean ActivPanel?
Promethean provides free advice and consultation on education technology, all free of charge. If you would like to speak to one of our experts, or arrange a free demonstration, please schedule a virtual demonstation.