Samsung has announced two new education solutions designed to help students develop critical technical skills and the ability to work in a team environment.
According to the company, the solutions were specifically created to enhance the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) curriculum and create more collaborative learning spaces.
“As schools bring more devices into the classroom, it's important to evaluate the technology and the curriculum together,” says Ted Brodheim, Samsung vice president of vertical business.
“Learning devices become truly powerful when paired with dynamic, interactive content and engaging curriculum.
“We understand the need to simultaneously adopt hardware and content to successfully transform classrooms and impact student outcomes, and we're committed to collaborating with innovative education providers like STEM Fuse and Tidebreak to develop affordable solutions that help schools re-imagine teaching and learning,” he says.
The solution created by STEM Fuse and Samsung addresses the STEM learning gap in primary and secondary schools by helping educators integrate STEM curriculum into their classrooms, labs or after school programmes, Samsung says.
The multi-sensory solution combines STEM Fuse's digital curriculum with Samsung Galaxy Tablets to help students better understand and apply concepts related to STEM.
The solution can be integrated into core teaching or used as supplemental curriculum, and also comes with comprehensive professional development to help teachers incorporate it into their classrooms.
Offered in packages of 10, the bundled solution includes a choice of STEM Fuse STEM PACK licences or STEAM Pack licences with reading curriculum for 90 days for each device; 10 Samsung Galaxy TAB E 9.6 devices; and complimentary virtual professional development.
“We had been looking for a hardware partner for awhile and then selected Samsung based on the quality of their products and ease of use for teachers and students,” said Carter Tatge, STEM Fuse founder and CEO.
“With Samsung's hardware and our curriculum, it's a peanut butter and jelly solution. We really liked Samsung Chromebooks and Galaxy Tablets as they fit course material very well. The ability to offer an easy to use bundle with attractive pricing for schools is really game changing,” Tatge says.
Samsung says today's learners are digital natives and thrive in technology-driven environments. Recognising this, Samsung has partnered with Tidebreak to help schools and colleges convert classrooms into collaborative learning spaces.
Combining Tidebreak's collaboration software with Samsung large-format and interactive displays (LFD), this BYOD compatible solution enables peer-to-peer collaboration and co-creation of content on a single screen, the company says.
Student devices - including laptops, tablets and smartphones - can connect wirelessly, allowing them to share content and exchange ideas, while educators can facilitate the experience.
Conceptualised at Stanford University in the US, Tidebreak is designed for collaborative learning in primary and secondary schools as well as higher education.
Each new bundle includes Samsung Large Format Displays and/or E-boards; and a 30 day licence for one of Tidebreak's collaboration software options: ClassSpot, ClassSpot PBL or TeamSpot , depending on instructional needs.
“With the bundle, we wanted to create an offering that was both meaningful for collaboration and motivates students to want to learn,” says Andrew Milne, Ph.D., Tidebreak CEO.
“The solution goes beyond just wireless presentations with the co-creation of content that works to transform the learning experience.
"It's a simple solution that radically improves performance, making it easy to go from a standard classroom into an advanced learning space for students and teachers,” Milne says.
The Tidebreak and STEM Fuse solutions will be available by the end of February, first to US customers with other countries yet to be announced.