Elder High School might be upgrading their projectors and smart boards to wireless Backlit LCD Monitors. According to Jeff Fuell, the technology committee’s vision is to further Elders faculty and staff with technology to further enhance the curriculum integration and better engage students in the classroom. The next generation of tablet format, which is already out, will definitely take advantage of these monitors. The WiDi technology will be included in the monitors in the next few months and will be a key factor in achieving a true wireless connection for teacher tablet devices. Seton has already updated there technology and uses these screens in their classrooms today.

Mr. Warren did try a version of these screens but wasn’t wireless. I talked to Mr. Warren and he said, “If we were to switch to the widescreen monitors, I would hope to have one larger than the model that I test. It had the same width as out SMART Boards but was shorter.”

He later went on saying that it would be an improvement for both students and teachers in the classroom.

The price of the Backlit LCD Monitor for each classroom comes at a price, but they are getting closer to the combined cost of projectors and Smartboards. New technology continues to appear and Elder’s technology committee is hoping to see the price continue to drop on these monitors, which can cost from $2000-$3000, which includes installation. Elder’s administration and technology committee are very conscious with controlling expenses and at the same time continues to supply new technology for the betterment of their student’s learning experience. Issues with existing projectors are visibility and cost of replacement bulbs. The new monitors use less energy and ever if on for 8 hours a day 5 days a week, can last at least 10 years. I met with a few members of the technology committee and asked them what they would rather prefer.

Mr. Rogers who teaches not only journalism, but all graphic design classes said, “I like the idea of the Backlit LCD Monitors more because it has a more vivid picture that I can use for other classes like graphic design.

Another member on the technology committee is Mr. Ruffing, who teaches various math classes. Mr. Ruffing said, “I like the Backlit LCD Monitors, the students can see better, but I need to be able to write on my tablet.”