Give Every Student A Front Row Seat (NAPSA)—While it may sur- prise most people that the average grade school student misses 25 percent of what a teacher says (Crandell & Smaldino, 1994), studies prove that acoustically hostile classrooms are the biggest barrier to learning. Noise echoes off uncarpeted floors, high ceilings, windows and hard desks intensifying the noise of active students. FrontRow Active Learning Systems compensate for these problems, gently amplifying andclarifying teachers’ and students’ voices, essentially giving every student a front row seat. These systems—thefirst such products ever to be cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as safe and effective devices for improving classroom communication—include a small, lightweight wireless microphone for the teacher, one to four small speakers and a handheld pass-around microphonefor the students. “Common sense says that stu- dents who hear moreclearly learn better. On any given day, nearly 43 percent of elementary school children may fail a hearing test due to factors such as the common cold, making classroom voice amplification and clarification systems as important as the lights and pencils,” says Rick Pimentel, president, FrontRow. The system can be easily installed in a classroom for approximately $800 to $1,300, nearly the same cost as a computer, making teaching more enjoyable for teachers and learning easier for all students. Because FrontRow systems result in improved learning, they are an important, cost efficient tool for schools anxious to comply with the “No Child Left Behind Act.” Wireless microphones can significantly improve academic performance. In addition to improving children’s listening skills, active learning systems could also be a relief on school budgets: U.S. schools may lose as much as $2.5 billion annually in sick leave for teachers with vocal problems, according to the University of Iowa’s National Center for Voice and Speech. By using this system, teachers no longer have to raise their voices to be heard and can teach from any place in the classroom, confident that every student can hearclearly. Headquartered in Petaluma, California, FrontRow’s wireless classroom products are significantly improving academic performance and assisting teachers in over 60 countries and 45,000 classrooms worldwide. Its parent company, Phonic Ear, has helped people understand each other better in classrooms, stadiums, the- aters, cinemas and other public facilities worldwide since 1963. Today, it is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of hearing sys- tems. For more information, visit www.gofrontrow.com or call 800227-0735.
