Visit LightSPEED's site - great research material and technical information. 'Listen to ABC Radio National 'Life Matters' interview with Professor Carol Flexer about the value of classroom sound enhancement to improvements in literacy and numeracy' - (15MB MP3 file) Read Margaret Cook's 2007 'The Age' article explaining classroom sound enhancement - (PDF file) Hear and Learn, the exclusive Australian distributor of LightSPEED classroom sound enhancement systems, supplies premier classroom sound enhancement products to education instituations Australia wide. These systems capture and broadcast voices, computer audio, DVD/VHS audio - all the sounds of teaching - in ways proven to increase literacy and numeracy and improve teacher welfare. Audio conditions in classrooms: It’s a jungle out there Teachers compete with the sound of heating and cooling systems in classrooms, the sound of computer keyboards, the sound of students and external noise such as air and road traffic - even the groundsperson mowing the lawns. This creates what is known as the sound floor. So, try and visualise this. The noise floor is usually quite high, and is consistent throughout different areas in the room. That is, there is background noise everywhere. But, traditionally, the signal we need to be well and truly over and above this noise - the voice - is not delivered everywhere. Nor are the new sounds of teaching - computer audio, DVD/VCR, MP3. The voice is strongest at it’s source - the teacher - meaning children seated the furthest away get a weak signal. Audiologists agree; brains (via the ears) need to be given every chance of hearing the sounds of teaching over and above this sound floor. In fact, they need to be 15 decibels above the noise floor to achieve the required signal-to-noise ratio. And, this 15 decibel margin needs to be offered to all students irrespective of where they are seated. Teacher welfare: Capturing voices is a key to better teaching Requiring teachers to speak for prolonged periods at a volume above your natural volume is harmful. Teachers have won compensation because it has been established that employers did not maintain a healthy and safe workplace. And, speaking in a natural, eloquent way is more comfortable to students and gives the teacher the ability to present, not bellow. Distribution: a cornerstone of better learning When these sound of teaching are distributed evenly throughout the room, the impact is dramatic. One Australian study concluded that students in a classroom with such a system operating, achieved literacy and numeracy scores one third higher than a classroom that did have a system. This improvement was achieved in one term. "Students in a room with a soundfield system improved their literacy and numeracy scores by a third in one term" "Dr Robyn Massie" National Acoustic Laboratories "Hearing is the Velcro to which... academic competencies are attached" Professor Carol Flexer - US Professor of Audiology The LightMic: how does it work? All LightSPEED involves up to two LightMics being used to capture voices. Usually it is worn as a pendant but can be held in the hand - students usually do this - and can be connected to an audio device (eg MP3 player) via cable. Transmission occurs via infra red light to a receiver/amplifier. It is very important to understand the advantages of this. Unlike transmission via FM radio, infra red lights bounces around inside the room; it cannot leak and clash with the multitude of other radio signal floating around. This ensures that students cannot hear teachers if they leave the room. This ensures privacy. This means that if there are numerous systems in a school, they can operate independently and harmoniously. It does not work by line of sight. While a remote control for your TV does not work if someone stands between it and the TV, the LightMic emits numerous beams of light at various angles; it cannot drop out. The Sounds of Teaching: how are the distributed? For standard sized classroom, the unique Redcat is perfect. Stood or mounted in the middle of the back wall, the Redcat plugs straight into a power plug. The black strips collect the infra red light, and the flat panel speaker in the middle broadcasts the sound throughout the room given its unique and extraordinary ability to emit a very broad and non-directional signal. Up to two LightMic voice signals can be received simultaneously, and an input and output allow other sound sources to be broadcast, and recording devices and personal hearing devices to be connected. The Sounds of Teaching: how do they integrate with an Interactive White Board? Simple! Firstly, the infra-red signals from the LightMics are captured by a sensor mounted in the ceiling. For normal sized/designed classrooms, this sensor is mounted in the middle of the ceiling. For larger rooms, it may be necessary to have two sensors. Your usual install design involves computer audio and DVD/VHS audio being cabled to the projector so that it acts as the ‘splitter’ using its remote control. Form the projector, we run a cable to our one of our amplifiers. This is the 820 - it is one of three types of amplifiers. The others are similar but with more inputs and outputs. As you can see, it is designed with simplicity in mind so that any teacher can use it. The rear of the 820 is where the connections are. Sensor, inputs and speaker are connected at the rear. The equaliser is set and forget according to the type of speakers used This is the WMQ speaker. This are placed in each corner of the room according to installation instructions provided. There are other types of speakers too; those that replace ceiling tiles, hang on the wall etc. How much does this cost? It has been proven that an investment in LightSPEED is cost neutral. Warranted for five years and proven to reduce sick leave, infrastructure cost are offset by reduced absenteeism and therefore less cost of sourcing relief teachers. And, very often schools purchase audio equipment for classrooms anyway - equipment that does not capture and broadcast voices and the other sounds of teaching in the best way. Currently, are most popular solutions cost less that $2000 ex GST per classroom. Price can be less if you add voice to an existing sound system. We ask that you contact us (see contact page) so that we can fully assess your needs and advise accordingly.