VIDEO: From China on how Israel and ORT are using smart classrooms to enhance the teaching and learning environment for students. View video on CNTV

English translation of video:

In the north of Israel schools are starting to use hi-tech classrooms which, instead of using traditional blackboards, teacher and students are using interactive white boards and laptops in smart classroom. The IWB is able to show learning materials on which the teacher can annotate and show the internet and video material. These are the first hi-tech classrooms in Israel funded partly by the government and partly by NGOs. Students find that this technology narrows the technology gap between home and school and which improves their results. Teachers say that now they spend less time controlling the classroom and more time teaching because students have more concentration in classes with an IWB. Students are pleased they no longer have to stand up to answer question in class because the voting kits allow them to answer as a group which lets the teacher know how well the material has been understood without embarrassing individual students. Each classroom costs £18,000 and by 2013 will have installed 1000 classes. Starting in the north and moving into the south and more rural areas the project will be completed in 2013.

SOURCE: CNTV