Wii love learning (DL dated 14 July 2010)from

The following article is from the Digital Life (DL) of the Straits Times dated 14 July 2010, Wednesday, by JOYCE CHUA.

Maris Stella High students use an interactive screen system in class which they helped to develop. JOYCE CHUA reports

Mention the Wii Remote and large-screen TV and the idea of fun and games comes to mind.

However, at Maris Stella High, they are the ingredients of a breakthrough system which takes learning to the next level.

The Wii Remote, used with game consoles from Nintendo, is a key component in an interactive screen system developed by the staff and students of Maris Stella High.

Dubbed the Student Interactive Screen (SIS), this system has made learning more fun, collaborative and interactive at the school.

During a Maths class, for example, groups of students can tackle complex algebraic equations on the screen and then save the notes and sketches they have scribbled directly in their laptops. They can then easily share the content.

The school said that compared to the traditional classroom whiteboard, this system has made students more proactive during lessons. Building it from scratch, instead of buying a commercial system, has also saved the school thousands of dollars.

Secondary 3 student Lim Yu Liang feels that the new learning method has allowed him to speak his mind more easily, hence boosting his self-confidence.

The staff of Maris Stella High came to know of the technology through a YouTube video posted by Johnny Chung Lee, a researcher at Microsoft Applied Sciences and a Carnegie Mellon PhD holder.

In his video, Lee demonstrated how a Wii Remote can turn any flat surface into an interactive screen with multi-touch capabilities. His clip has had over 3.2million views since it was uploaded in late 2007.

With the information and software provided by Lee on his website, Maris Stella High developed a working prototype in September last year.

The school has since developed three different versions: a classroom version, a portable version and one using a mini-projector instead of a TV.

The classroom and portable versions both use a 32-inch LCD TV, while the mini-projector version uses a small projector to display images on any flat surface, turning these surfaces into interactive screens.

Creating an interactive screen system from scratch helps cut costs, said a spokesman for Maris Stella High. An in-house system costs less than $1,000 to assemble, while commercial systems cost about $5,000 to $10,000 each.

What is unique about the SIS is that students play a crucial part in making the system work. All students are required to make their own infrared LED pen from schematics given to them during the compulsory Design and Technology classes.

The main objective is to help students lead discussions and engage in self-learning, while the teachers guide and facilitate the process.

'The use of the SIS has helped me become a more independent learner,' said Denzel Low, a Secondary 3 student who uses the SIS for various subjects, including Maths.

It will not be surprising to see other schools adopting this technology, said a Maris Stella High spokesman. It has already shared its expertise with over 20 schools, including Raffles Girls' School and Woodlands Secondary School.