The reopening of South Africa’s schools reignited safety concerns in the classroom and the pressure of successfully navigating the national curriculum in a new education landscape during the pandemic.
By Joel Chetty, business account manager: education at Epson South Africa
For most schools, this means introducing entirely new measures to promote safety in the classroom.
This added disruption creates new challenges for learners, including an inability to focus and engage with teachers during lessons. Projector technology will now assume a larger role in creating safer classrooms and schools during this period.
How technology is promoting social distancing in classrooms
Projector displays in classrooms enable schools to adopt a hybrid approach to learning, where lessons include both in-person and virtual learners. This technology allows learners and teachers to safely connect and collaborate without increasing the risk of falling behind in the curriculum.
By combining projectors with document cameras, schools can focus their attention on learners in the classroom and at home. Both groups can view the content displayed in the class and participate in the lesson.
Classrooms that don’t have enough room for pupils to practice social distancing effectively can move to a larger venue within the premises with a portable projector – allowing teachers to keep learners safe while maintaining a collaborative environment.
Unlike flat panels, which have fixed screen sizes, projectors can produce much larger displays. Content is scalable to allow every learner to view what’s on-screen without loss of image quality or the need for constant zoom adjustments.
Establishing a dynamic learning experience
The introduction of social distancing in schools removes learners’ ability to burn excess energy through physical activities. For this reason, projector displays have become essential classroom tools in the creation of engaging experiences that grab and retain the focus of pupils in the classroom.
They increase concentration, enjoyment and understanding, and reduce eye strain and fatigue during lessons. That’s because, unlike flat panels that typically produce smaller and brighter content, projected content is on a larger display and therefore fills a larger percentage of the visual field.
Exciting, visually appealing and bright content from online sources like Google Earth or YouTube can provide immersive and captivating demonstrations of what’s taught in the classroom.
Creating a seamless learning environment, at home and school
Introducing projector technology in the classroom creates an opportunity to use captivating content and create an environment where learners can wirelessly compare and share work with their peers and teachers.
This technology bolsters blended learning efforts and promotes social distancing by allowing in-person and virtual learners to participate in the lesson and teachers to use larger venues if the classroom is too small.
Lockdown has presented an opportunity for schools to adopt educational tools that enable pupils to access new, exciting, and uninterrupted learning. Interactive projectors, like the Epson EB-735Fi and the Epson EB-1485Fi, allow teachers to comply with Covid-19 safety regulations, create safer environments, and minimise the risk of spreading the virus.