Interactive Whiteboards

Sacramento School Adds Interactivity to Whiteboards with Short-Throw Projectors

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 08/10/15

A California school has adopted new projectors in each of its classrooms. Glenwood Elementary School with 484 students acquired Hitachi CP-TW3003 interactive 3LCD projectors, which fit several criteria.

With skylights in most of classrooms, the Sacramento school sought a projector model that didn't require ceiling mounting. But IT staff also didn't want to have to consume classroom floor space for projector carts.

This Hitachi model uses "short-throw" technology, allowing staff to place the projectors just above whiteboards, eliminating "the issues of dangling cables and cumbersome projector carts," said district Robla School District Director of Technology Adam VeVea. The devices are installed on the wall near the ceiling above the whiteboards.

The projectors include Hitachi's Starboard software, which, among other features, allows the teacher to import files for display and lets the student interact with what's being projected on the wall or whiteboard with a special pen or, with an optional unit installed, a finger. The projectors can also be installed on a tabletop to create an interactive table display.

"My projector is quiet, reliable, and on the ceiling," reported Elaine Cooper, a fourth-grade teacher at Glenwood. "I love using the pen to overlay different objects and documents on top of one another."

The students have been "positive" too about the use of projectors in the classroom. "We don't have to spend a lot of time waiting for them to warm up or for me to hook up the equipment," said sixth-grade teacher Lina Tran. "I use the 'magic pen' often in math and it really gets them engaged and interacting with the content."

The CP-TW3003 has 3,300 lumens, a 4,000-hour lamp life and weighs about 9.5 pounds.