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NSW schools connect classrooms with Tandberg systems

Tony Chan | June 27, 2008 | 0 Comments

Video communications solutions provider, Tandberg, has been contracted for 2,300 video conferencing systems inside New South Wales schools. The two year project will bring video communications capability to all schools, and extend the classroom out to offsite locations such as scientific research centres and even to NASA in the US.

According to Lars Ronning, Tandberg president Asia Pacific (excl. China & Japan), the tendor by the school system called for the installation of one system with two screens inside one classroom with some schools installing the systems in multiple classrooms.

“The main reason is to utilize the best teaching resources better,” Ronning said. “At the same time, they can link up to different schools, different regions. They are putting a lot of thought into the content, and how to do this.”

He adds: “We have done some work with them already, like connecting to the Great Barrier Reef, some of the national parks, and they actually go in and have a teaching lesson with the rangers talking about what is happening out there.

“We have some schools going to NASA in the US. There is an Australian going up into space, and the system was used for a speech he gave to students, not from space, but from NASA and talking about the preparation, what is needed, and what they are going to do.”
In some cases, smaller schools are using the systems to expand its knowledge base by contacting specialist teaching resources that may not be available locally.

According to Ronning, the project was part of a campaign promise by the now elected government to enhance connectivity of schools in the territory. The result was a tender this year that Tandberg won.

Meanwhile, Tandberg released two new video conferencing systems last week, including the high-end T1 system featuring a 65-inch screen and support for 1080p high-definition conferencing. Also launched was the E20, a personal video communications system with a 10.6-inch display and 5 megapixel camera.