The ability to hear an instructor is critical to students’ success. No matter what their age, students who struggle to hear and comprehend words due to hearing loss or other issues often suffer from delayed speech and language skills, lower grades/academic achievement, social isolation, and poor self-esteem. These things all contribute to success, or lack of it, later in life.
Studies have shown that students who sit in the back row of their classrooms miss 30% of what their teachers say because they cannot properly hear the lesson taught at the front of the classroom. When combined with the fact that hearing loss is on the rise in young people (an estimated 12.5% of students aged 6–19 have permanent damage to their hearing from excessive exposure to noise, according to studies conducted by the American Speech-Language Hearing Association), it is obvious that students need assistance to hear better in their classrooms.
When properly amplified, sound in a classroom improves students’ attention and thus their interactions increase. In other words, students learn and retain more through increased hearing ability. Classroom amplification systems allow students to hear more clearly and learn more. These systems improve speech intelligibility, comprehension and retention through proper engineering. Studies have also found that test scores can improve from 10%–30% with amplified sound in classrooms.
ListenPoint2.0 from Listen Technologies is the perfect sound amplification system for today’s classrooms. It amplifies sound through an entire classroom and includes expandable and customisable features and benefits for instructors. Some of these include the ability to integrate multiple audio sources to enhance lessons with multi-media, easy installation and operation, and the incorporation of an assistive listening system for students with hearing loss. In addition, with the M1 Microphone unit in the ListenPoint2.0 system, instructors save their voices; instead of shouting to get students’ attention, they can simply teach.
With hearing loss on the rise in young people and more interruptions in classrooms becoming commonplace, it is harder for students to focus on their instructors, whether in kindergarten or seniors at a university level. Sound amplification systems, like ListenPoint2.0, are hugely beneficial in educational spaces. They allow students to comprehend what a teacher is saying, thus resulting in more lesson retention and higher grades. Systems like these also make lessons more enjoyable because they incorporate multi-media sources such as videos, music, internet and even VoIP Skype technology. An incorporated microphone, like the M1 mentioned above, saves teachers from voice strain throughout the year. Finally, with ListenPoint, students with hearing loss can participate and engage.
All students deserve the opportunity to hear their teachers clearly and learn. After all, success starts with a great education, and a great education starts with great sound.
For further information about Listen Technologies visit: www.listentech.com