Data Projectors or Flat Screen Televisions? Old Adobe’s Perspective
Author: Rick Phelan
Published: 06.11.15
What is the best means of sharing computer displays for teaching and learning in 900 square foot classrooms? This was one of the questions in the minds of planning teams from the Old Adobe Union School District after passage of a school modernization bond in June 2012. The choices before school planners centered on differences between traditional classroom projectors and large flat screen television monitors. To arrive at a decision, Old Adobe Union School District Technology Coordinator Larry Black described a process where panels of teachers at each site were invited to provide input on the final decision: “We mocked up options with a large flat screen TV and a projector with a screen and did comparative work on both simultaneously.”
Teachers felt that large flat screen television monitors were best for Old Adobe Union classrooms. Their reasoning was:
- TVs had substantially better picture quality and color
- TVs were less influenced by atmospheric light (open windows & fluorescents)
- No noise from fans
- No heat venting into classrooms
- Faster restart functions
Planning team members did further research comparing traditional classroom projectors and large flat screen television monitors. Their work revealed four additional elements that reinforced ideas from staff input meetings:
- TVs were a third of the cost compared to classroom projectors
- TVs provided more HDMI ports (HDMI is the current standard for most Audio-Visual couplings)
- TV power consumption was less
- TVs eliminated classroom tripping hazards from projector extension cords
Given these factors, district work went ahead installing flat screen televisions into Old Adobe Union School District classrooms. At this point in time 100% of active classrooms in the Old Adobe Union School District have flat screen television displays. All libraries and most of the specialist rooms have flat screen computer displays also. Larry Black states that Old Adobe still uses data projectors in their multi purpose rooms. Flat screen televisions were not large enough for these spaces. Thinking about projectors versus flat screen televisions, it’s a matter of “form fitting function.”
Evaluating Flat Screen Televisions
After over a year of use in the Old Adobe Union School District, how do teachers and students evaluate the flat screen televisions for teaching and learning? District Curriculum Director, Craig Conte states the flat panel TVs have been generally well received by staff. He believes that district usage of display hardware doubled after the switch from data projectors to flat panel televisions. Conte estimates that 80% of Old Adobe Union teachers use them daily and the other 20% use them at least twice a week. Teachers have been positive about the picture quality and found success screencasting data to them from laptops and tablets. Students have been overwhelming positive about the TVs.
Challenges expressed by Conte and Black about TVs are architectural and procedural:
- Lateral viewing angles of the TVs are preferable at 30° or less. Students who are seated close to the front of the room beyond this angle have trouble viewing the screen as clearly as students toward the center.
- A few teachers haven’t liked how the TVs were mounted in their rooms (eg. too low preventing viewing for students at the back of the classroom)
- The large screen TV supplants whiteboard space and offers the versatility of using many tools quickly (eg. video, Web2.0 resources, tablet apps, etc). This is an area where Old Adobe teachers are working on developing their technology integration pedagogies.
Not resting on their heels, Conte and Black have also incorporated Front Row sound systems with each flat screen TV. They state that teachers have been pleased with the improved sound quality from the overall audio-visual system in classrooms.
Contact Information
Old Adobe Union School District
http://www.oldadobe.org/
Larry Black, District Technology Coordinator
lblack@oldadobe.org
Craig Conte, District Curriculum Director
cconte@oldadobe.org
Blog: Technology for Learners
