TOP Designs an Interactive Classroom for Leading Local High School

Founded in 1915, Bishop England High School is the oldest and largest Catholic secondary school in the Diocese of Charleston. Also known as "BE", the school is often called the “Flagship” school of the Diocese.

The school boasts a highly qualified faculty and staff with 73% of their classroom teachers holding a Master’s degree or higher and has a 99% graduation rate with 98% of graduates continuing their education at a college or university.

As top universities begin to teach using more and more technology, high schools around the nation are struggling to keep up with this wave of change. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is at the forefront of open learning and the school places extreme value on digital learning. That's why we modeled our BE classroom designs around MIT's digital tools and classroom management strategies for students to learn-by-doing through collaboration and content creation rather than consumption.

What's so different about this interactive classroom?

Our first goal was to create a classroom with technology that is familiar, intuitive, maintenance-free. That's right. No bulbs to replace, no shadows, no warm up/power down time, and no dirty dry-erase boards. A classroom where classes are conducted the way the teachers want and NOT around the technology itself.

Our second goal was to increase student engagement and teacher mobility. The interactive classroom layout and advanced display systems are designed to enhance collaboration, interactivity, and connectedness. Our design also helps to enable a personalized, 1:1 learning environment by wirelessly communicating with mobile devices and laptops.

What's in the classroom?

The focal point of the classroom is a large touchscreen display called the, Sharp Aquos Board. The open architecture of the AQUOS BOARD interactive display seamlessly integrates with existing hardware and software investments. Other Sharp displays are mounted throughout the classroom to make sure that each and every student has the ability to see clearly.

The chairs and desks are designed with wheels to encourage students to be more collaborative in problem solving. The desks also include large dry erase boards and hooks for bags and coats.

The large glass boards that span the entire length of the classroom are designed to allow students to demonstrate problem solving right where they sit. There's no need for students to huddle around a single dry-erase board. The glass boards also come in a variety of colors, include a lifetime warranty, and clean up much easier than the alternative.

To learn more about classroom and office technology, call a member of our sales team at 843.769.7774.