Wolverhampton school the first in UK to trial new classroom technology
Ground-breaking new technology aimed at monitoring whether pupils are engaged or losing interest in lessons will be tested out at a Wolverhampton school.
Executive Smestow Academy in Castlecroft will be the first in the UK to test out the MyViewBoard Sens – a device that is currently predominantly used in schools in China.
It is set up above an electronic whiteboard and when switched on, it monitors student engagement, taking into account room temperature, CO2 levels, the amount of light, and even the pace at which the teacher is talking.
Headteacher Clive Jones said he was really excited that a Black Country school would be the first to try new, pioneering technology.
He said: "Our job is to see how well it works. It reports back to a dashboard which the teacher can look at after. We're going to test it on a few senior leadership team meetings first and then put one each in two classrooms to run a trial.
"What's amazing to me is that this is in a school in Wolverhampton. I can understand if they wanted to try it out at a cutting edge school in London, but they chose here. And that's what's so exciting."
Mr Jones said the device would be able to tell when a student loses engagement, but that it 'was not as simple' as a student just looking down at their desk.
He added: "It tracks a few different things. We're going to see how it works.
"It's just a once in a lifetime opportunity to be at the forefront of a school in Wolverhampton and really push the boundaries of what might be capable in class – with technology straight off the shelf. It's massively exciting."
Company View Sonic visited the school earlier this week to discuss the technology, and chose Smestow for the trial because they were impressed with the current equipment provided for students.
Mr Jones added he felt "very fortunate" that the school was chosen.
