NECC 2008 Grand Prize Winner!!

Billy Goins, a teacher at Casey Middle School in Mt Vernon, Illinois, was awarded Qwizdom’s “Grand Prize” at this year’s National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) in San Antonio. Hundreds of NECC attendees entered the drawing, hoping to win this $5,500 value, which included:

• 1 Q4 Student Response System
• 1 Q2 student Response System
• 2 Year subscriptions to Qwizdom Connect Premium
• 2 Q7 Presenter Tablets
• And a Nintendo Wii

Congratulations Billy!
And thank you to everyone that stopped by the Qwizdom booth at NECC 2008, we had a great time!

Qwizdom, Inc. is pleased to announce that Technology & Learning Magazine named the Qwizdom Student Response System as a winner of the 2006 Awards of Excellence.

This prestigious 24-year-old recognition program honors innovative applications that break new ground in some important way and also best-of-breed examples that demonstrate clear superiority over similar products in the market. The Awards of Excellence winners were chosen by over 35 educator-judges who evaluated more than 110 entries.

"This year's educator-judges certainly gave all entries a grueling test-drive," said Technology and Learning Editor-in-Chief, Susan McLester. "These award winners reflect the highest quality in education technology products today."

The Qwizdom Student Response System brings unmatched interactivity and learning to the classroom and is the only solution designed to actively involve every participant and track performance in both group and individual learning environments. Qwizdom's multi-key radio frequency remotes provide instant feedback to every participant. Students can respond to questions posed during lessons, tests, reviews, and learning games. Teachers are able to pinpoint and focus on students' individual needs, since all the grading and reporting is done within the student data management system.

"We are honored to be acknowledged this year by such a respected awards committee. It is always very exciting to see the impact Qwizdom's technology has on student learning. With the release of our state-standardized curriculum, ReadySet, and our easy-to-use PowerPoint toolbar, Actionpoint, Qwizdom continues to be a leading force in the future of educational technology." - Darin Beamish, President of Qwizdom, Inc.

The Qwizdom Student Response System was also a finalist for the 2005 CODIE Awards and a winner of the 2005 Media & Methods Awards Portfolio.

About Technology and Learning

Technology & Learning (www.techLEARNING.com), published by NewBay Media LLC, is the number one publication in the K-12 educational technology market. In 2006, Technology & Learning was recognized for its commitment to excellence, receiving several of the industry's top media accolades, including Best Computer Magazine/Trade, and a Web Marketing Association Web Award Education Standard of Excellence for techLEARNING.com

Qwizdom, Inc is a leading designer, developer, and marketer of innovative, technology-based learning products and related proprietary content. Dedicated to making learning effective and engaging, Qwizdom products are designed for all age groups, in schools and corporations.

Qwizdom offers the most advanced radio-frequency classroom response technology (patents pending), a complete software learning system, and over 150 interactive titles that encompass over 200,000 slides of exclusive, school-only curriculum content. These interactive products are used in thousands of classrooms and corporations around the world. Qwizdom, founded in 1984, has offices in Washington State, Ohio, and the United Kingdom.

NECC 2007 Car Giveaway Excitement!!

With the announcement of two new products, the Q2 remote and the Qwizdom Online Interactive, the Qwizdom booth was very busy at this year’s National Educational Computing Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

However, the biggest buzz around the exhibit hall was that Qwizdom was giving away a car before the conference was over. To enter the drawing, attendees were only required to participate in one of Qwizdom’s interactive presentations that showcased the Qwizdom Interactive Learning System.

At 4:00 on Tuesday, approximately 400 hopeful attendees gathered around the Qwizdom car, a Scion XB, which was covered top-to-bottom with Qwizdom’s logo and remotes. The crowd was so overwhelming and large that Jaci Hendricks, Qwizdom’s Public Relations Coordinator, had to jump up on top of a table to draw the name! The entire convention center could soon hear the chants of Qwizdom and people cheering with excitement. When the name was called, a small scream rang out from the audience. It was Heather Blanton, an Instructional Technology Resource Teacher from the small town of Wise, Virginia!

“I was just excited to possibly win a Qwizdom shirt. I’ve never won anything before!” said Heather. “I’m planning on leaving the Qwizdom logos on the car for awhile, because I think it will generate more conversation about educational technology and hopefully help me acquire more Qwizdom systems into my school district!”

Qwizdom would like to thank everyone that stopped by the booth. Each and every one of you helped to make NECC 2007 the most exciting and successful conference of the year!

June 16, 2007 "For the Love of the Game"

Is it time for the "Slam Dunk" to go the way of the peach basket and two handed set shot? That is the question Tom Newell, former NBA and WNBA coach, wanted to answer when he dreamed up a variation of today's basketball game. Frustrated by the effect of the "Slam Dunk" on the game, the individualized showmanship, and the lack of team-oriented play, Newell has organized an experimental basketball game he calls "For the Love of the Game." He has raised the rim 12 inches, from 10 feet to 11 feet, a distance most fans won't notice from courtside, but a very big difference to players. It's an interesting enough experiment that Fox Sports Northwest will carry the game "live."

A longtime NBA scout and co-director of Family SportsLife Today, Newell wants to see more than just the effects of the heightened baskets. He wants to quantify the effects, in real time, using technology, so he can later compare it to a regular NBA game. He also wants to know what the fans think of the game. To do this, he has contacted Qwizdom, a technology company based in Puyallup, WA. “The integration of Qwizdom’s technology catapults my little ‘experiment’ to a whole new level,” said Coach Newell. “We’ll be able to capture an immense amount of data with a few clicks of the button and legitimately analyze whether raising the basketball hoop is viable. With Qwizdom’s technology, what was originally just a fun idea could easily turn into fodder for national discussion.”

Qwizdom sees “For the Love of the Game” as a unique application of their product. They’ve come on board as a co-sponsor and will pass out 1,000 interactive remotes to fans in the stands. Using Qwizdom’s radio frequency remotes, fans will answer questions posted on the Jumbotron throughout the game. The real-time results will be transferred into graphs and displayed on the giant screen within seconds. The remotes will allow fans to supply instant feedback about their view of the game as it is played. The data can be accessed at courtside during the game, or stored for future evaluation by sports analysts around the country to gauge the feasibility of and public desire for an 11-foor hoop.

Qwizdom’s Patrick Leonard, a lifelong athlete and basketball coach, points out there are countless ways to engage sport’s fans beyond data collection. “Imagine being at a baseball game and chiming in that the batter should bunt,” he said, “or the runner on first should steal, or voting on the winning mascot during a halftime antic. With Qwizdom interactive remotes, possibilities for audience engagement are limited only by lack of creativity.” In a podcast entitled “Meeting Audiences Where They Live,” which can be heard on Family SportsLife Today’s homepage, Leonard and Coach Newell discuss Qwizdom’s role in this history breaking game.