3 Schools Win $15,000 Classroom Makeovers

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Three schools were named winners in Interwrite Learning's first "Classroom Makeover" contest, a competition that called on students and teachers to produce videos parodying a song while demonstrating technology used in the classroom. Each winner took back a $15,000 classroom makeover (consisting of various interactive technologies) and a $1,000 cash prize.

The winner in the K-5 category was Richard Colosi's class at Canandaigua Primary School in New York. The grade 6-8 winner was Jason Coogan's class at Ilminster Intermediate in Gisborne, New Zealand. And the grade 9-12 winner was Jonathon Blackburn's class at J.M. Tate High School in Florida. Each winner's videos had science or technology themes. Winners were selected by a panel of judges, with Internet votes counting for 30 percent of their final scores.

Winners received $15,000 in classroom technologies, including and Interwrite Board, Interwrite Pad, Interwrite Cricket, a Mitsubishi XD206 projector, a digital sound system from FrontRow, a Pixie wall-mounted modular control system from SP Controls, and a day of professional development from Brewer Technology and Learning. They also received $1,000 in cash and a celebratory party for the entire school.

The winners were chosen from more than 220 entries from the United States, New Zealand, and Australia. Further information, including videos from the entrants and a list of honorable mentions, can be found at the links below.

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About the author: David Nagel is the executive editor for 1105 Media's online education technology publications, including THE Journal and Campus Technology. He can be reached at [email protected].

Proposals for articles and tips for news stories, as well as questions and comments about this publication, should be submitted to David Nagel, executive editor, at [email protected].

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


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