Entry from Australia takes top prize in second annual event
CALGARY, Alberta --- September 28, 2007 --- SMART Technologies announces that the 2007 overall winner of SMART’s World Teachers’ Day Video Contest is Lisa McCallum of St. Therese Primary School in Sydney, Australia. McCallum’s entry, narrated by children in her kindergarten class, was chosen because it demonstrates, in an entertaining way, the benefits of SMART Board™ interactive whiteboards in the classroom and the enthusiasm of the students when they use the boards. McCallum’s video shows how she uses Notebook™ collaborative learning software to engage her class in reading and counting. McCallum will receive an all-inclusive trip to London, England, to attend BETT 2008, the world’s largest education technology trade show, a SMART Board interactive whiteboard and an iPod shuffle. The winning video can be viewed on SMART’s website at www.smarttech.com/wtd.
World Teachers’ Day (WTD) aims to raise awareness of, and appreciation for, the vital contributions that teachers make to education. Started by UNESCO to recognize teacher contributions around the globe, WTD is celebrated on October 5 in over 100 countries. Teachers from 23 countries around the world submitted videos in the second annual SMART WTD Video Contest. All the entries demonstrated how SMART Board interactive whiteboards improved student engagement and learning outcomes. The global winner was chosen from five regional winners, who will each be awarded a SMART Board interactive whiteboard and an iPod shuffle.
“The Catholic Education Office (CEO) Sydney is absolutely delighted that one of our gifted and creative teachers is the global winner of the 2007 SMART World Teachers’ Day Video Contest,” says Seamus O’Grady, director of curriculum, CEO Sydney. “The SMART Board interactive whiteboard has been a critical element in reshaping pedagogy for 21st-century learners and is being increasingly adopted in our schools.”
“The quality of the entries we received this year was outstanding, making it difficult to choose winners,” says Nancy Knowlton, SMART’s CEO. “The videos are vivid examples of teachers all over the world using SMART Board interactive whiteboards to improve student engagement and learning, something we feel is worth celebrating on World Teachers’ Day.”
Regional winners
North America – Mary Lehman from Stony Brook Elementary School in York, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Latin America – Eliane Amstalden Möller from Colégio Notre Dame de Campinas in Campinas, Brazil
Asia Pacific – Lisa McCallum from St. Therese Primary School in Sydney, Australia
Europe – Tatiana Oskolkova from Grammar School No. 10 in Novosibirsk, Russia
Africa and the Middle East – Peter de Lisle from Hilton College in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
