SUNNYVALE, CA. (PRWEB) May 16, 2017 -- Silicon Valley education company, zSpace, Inc., announced today that it named St. Charles Community Schools a District of Distinction for its innovation and leadership in providing students with lifelike and immersive learning experiences through the use of mixed reality in classrooms. The district is in the Village of St. Charles, Saginaw County, Michigan, is the first in the county and second in the state to implement a zSpace learning lab, a mixed reality technology that allows students to learn STEM subjects using immersive images that they can move and manipulate in applications across a wide-range of standards-aligned curriculum.
The company designated St. Charles Community Schools as a District of Distinction for its desire and ability to showcase its use of zSpace mixed reality technology as a leader in STEM education and innovative use of technology for teaching and learning. As a zSpace District of Distinction, the school district and zSpace will collaborate and share best practices on cutting edge developments.
zSpace delivers the ultimate learning experience to inspire curiosity and accelerate understanding. The all-in-one-computer combines elements of VR and AR to create mixed reality computing experiences that are interactive and lifelike. Each all-in-one computer features tracking eyewear and a stylus, allowing students to interact with objects and really understand the science behind them. Unlike other virtual reality solutions, such as head-mounted displays, zSpace enables interaction and group collaboration. In addition, zSpace empowers students to “learn by doing” in an environment where it is easy to undo mistakes, make changes, and not worry about material costs or clean up.
“Offering 21st Century Learning is a school district and Board of Education goal, and zSpace has moved our delivery for our STEM platform to a new level” said Michael R. Decker, superintendent, St. Charles Community Schools. “It is an engagement piece for all our students to learn about STEM from hands on, project-based learning. zSpace is very interactive and today’s youth are very comfortable with the virtual reality delivery through technology outside the classroom. We are excited to bring this into the classroom and offer our students a unique method to learn about science, technology, engineering and math. It was a showcase during the visitation from Michigan State Superintendent Brian Whiston.”
At St. Charles Community Schools, 10 zSpace mixed reality stations are set up as a zSpace STEM lab in a room the school has named the “Project-based Learning Lab.” Each station accommodates two to three students. One student lifts, turns or takes apart virtual objects using an interactive stylus. The other student makes observations and records data. All students wear custom 3D glasses to create a communal mixed reality experience, unlike solo virtual reality technologies such as Oculus Rift or Google Cardboard. In addition, students can watch the teacher or another student demonstrate their work on a second monitor or smart LED panel visible to the entire class.
Every student at St. Charles Community Schools will have access to the zSpace lab at some point in the school year in science class. Software includes state standards and Next Generation Science Standards based lesson plans in life science, earth science, engineering and physics. Students can learn about everything from circuits to cells.
About St. Charles Community Schools
St. Charles Community Schools is located in the Village of St. Charles, Saginaw County. St. Charles Community Schools is dedicated to offering the best in technology, including zSpace 1:1 technology at middle and high school and dedicated computer carts at the elementary; along with curricular infusion of Leader in Me at the elementary level; and Project-Based Learning (PBL) at the secondary levels. You can contact St. Charles Community Schools at (989) 8645 – 9961 or at http://www.stccs.org.
About zSpace
zSpace delivers the ultimate learning experience to inspire curiosity and accelerate understanding. Our product, zSpace®, combines elements of VR and AR, on an all-in-one computer, to create mixed reality computing experiences that are immersive, interactive and lifelike. Among its numerous awards and accolades, zSpace was named “Cool Vendor” by Gartner, Inc., “Best in Show at ISTE” by Tech & Learning Magazine for three consecutive years and was ranked #143 on the 2016 Inc. 500 list. zSpace is a privately held, venture backed company located in Sunnyvale, California, and has been granted more than 25 patents for its innovative technologies. For more information, visit http://www.zspace.com, or follow on Twitter @zSpace.
Amanda Austin, zSpace, Inc., http://www.zspace.com, +1 4084984130, [email protected]
SOURCE zSpace, Inc.
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