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The Smart Classroom project, recently presented by the Ministry of Education, will begin in September this year. It will start only in grade X (the first year of high school) as a pilot project covering 60 high schools (6 in Tirana), with the aim of expanding nationwide within three years. Shekulli visited Andon Zako Çajupi High School, where the project was tested a year ago, and, with computer science teacher Diana Myrto, offers a fuller explanation of how it will work.
First, in September, each of the 60 schools will have at least two “smart classrooms,” each with an interactive projector installed. The classrooms will then be equipped with a laptop for the teacher and 40 tablets for students, connected in a network. All the equipment will run through a program localized into Albanian.
This is called the “classroom management program” and has been created specifically to support teaching. Alongside it will be an electronic class register containing all students’ data in the system.
The interactive projector does away with chalk
The projector makes electronic writing possible. “There is no longer any need to write with chalk. The teacher and students can write with a finger (by touching the tablet screen) or with electronic pens, which will allow them to work without having to go up to the board, because everything is displayed through the projector.
“Unlike the other projectors we have used so far, what is special about this one is precisely that integration, which encourages interactivity in teaching,” computer science teacher Diana Myrto explained. It should be noted that, while awaiting the other equipment, A. Z. Çajupi School had already installed the interactive projector.
Tablets instead of exercise books
In class, students will have tablets instead of exercise books. The tablets will be controlled from the teacher’s laptop and cannot be used for anything other than lessons, because they will have only one program. “The teacher controls everything students can do. They can no longer take advantage of being in front of a computer, because they are fully monitored from their teacher’s computer. Websites are blocked.
“Social networks, from Facebook to YouTube, are not allowed on this platform. These have often been a source of distraction for students in computer labs.
“The tablets and laptop are networked through the classroom management program, which can be opened only from the teacher’s laptop. This program allows the teacher to record and distribute videos, teaching materials and tests. Meanwhile, data storage devices such as USB drives can be used only by teachers. Students have USB ports on their devices, but these are disabled by the system and do not recognize the drives.
“Then, if the teacher wants every student’s attention, it can all be achieved with one button. Clicking the ‘Silence!’ option freezes all the students’ tablets, and they can do nothing with them, no action at all, so their attention turns to the teacher,” Diana Myrto says.
The classroom management program
The proposed program combines easing teachers’ work with encouraging interactive teaching. First, all student data will be registered in the program, with each student shown as connected to a tablet. Through the “implement document” option, the teacher will be able to distribute materials and tests.
This is where the innovation lies. Tests can be created electronically in the program and marked very quickly through it as well. “They are created by choosing among 4 types of questions: multiple-choice, true-or-false, extended-response and fill-in-the-blank questions.
“Everything is done through the program, which then also does the marking, except for extended-response questions. The results appear in a matter of minutes, and statistics can then be produced. Through them, the teacher sees which question students got wrong most often, or the reverse, and can also see the overall result and their level.
“Ultimately, classes can also be characterized as strong or weak, and the teacher can set objectives accordingly. At the same time, this program also tests teachers’ own ability to convey knowledge to their students,” said Diana, who believed the program could be used for every subject.
The project will encourage students to study consistently
The “smart classroom” will require students to prepare consistently, because the teacher’s questioning will be more inclusive. The days when a maximum of two or three students were questioned in a lesson will be over. Within one lesson, the teacher will be able to question every student at once by sending the questions to all their tablets.
From this perspective, students’ performance is expected to improve because their knowledge will be checked more often.
A first at A. Z. Çajupi School
The “smart classroom” was first tested on 28 May 2014 at Andon Zako Çajupi School. Besides the school’s top students, the test was attended by Education and Sport Minister Lindita Nikolla and Prime Minister Edi Rama, who interacted through tablets in a simulated digital lesson.
What changed after the first demonstration
“Last year, the project used an interactive whiteboard. In the current project, that element has changed, and we have an interactive projector. The program in the first demonstration was entirely in English, while the current one is in Albanian. Training followed the same approach.
“At that time, the training was in English. There were two teachers, with an interpreter. For the current program, meanwhile, the training has been in Albanian, because the program has been localized.
“I believe this will help older teachers, who find not only the language but also the technology somewhat difficult. The first program allowed a wider range of interaction, and students could misuse it. There were cases when they played games.
“One student even managed to crack the wireless code and access the internet. The current program does not allow this, because the tablets will have only one program, nothing else,” said Flutura Malo, a biology teacher at Andon Zako Çajupi High School.
Responding to technology
Teacher Flutura Malo said that when she taught a lesson through the “smart classroom,” she enjoyed teaching because her explanation was more interactive. As for students’ response, however, she said that remained to be seen. “Only top students have taken part in the demonstrations, and we do not know how students at a lower level will respond to this method.” She also stressed that the same issue applied to teachers, especially older ones.
“The same can be said of teachers. We do not know how much older teachers will absorb and use it, those approaching retirement who are more conservative in how they explain a lesson.”
The electronic class register
Another component of the “smart classroom” program will be the electronic class register. According to A. Z. Çajupi High School teacher Diana Myrto, it will not only ease teachers’ work but also provide transparency for parents. She says the electronic register could make parents’ meetings unnecessary, because parents will be able to access all their children’s data in real time. “Every piece of information in this register will be visible in real time.
“We have been told that every parent will have an account (profile) with a password and will be able to see all their child’s indicators from home: what they are doing, whether they attend lessons regularly and how they have been assessed.
“This is fantastic for parents, because there will not even be a need for parents’ meetings. Everyone will be able to log into their account and see their child’s entire progress and records, absences and assessments. Having seen this information, a parent will no longer have to come to a meeting every two months,” Diana Myrto said. This is very positive, especially for students who do not do well at school and tend to lie or hide their marks.
Parents will be able to ask their children for an explanation as soon as a mark is received. “The good thing is that both sides are transparent, and it is work that you, as a teacher, do not have to do twice. You enter an absence or a mark, and you do not even have to make calculations; everything is done automatically.
“On the other hand, we teachers need to be more attentive, because the system is easier to check. For example, attendance might not be taken. The school administration can see that immediately and ask for an explanation, so oversight through the electronic register is more direct too.” The school office will also be able to access the electronic register, so incidents of the kind seen in the past will no longer occur.
Cases of students stealing or losing registers will no longer be possible. Paper registers required everything to be written with only one type of pen.
Published in “Shekulli” on 9/04/2015