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For more information about other Microsoft customer successes, please visit: casestudiesCustomer: Nordal SchoolWeb Site: lier.kommune.no Customer Size: 9 employeesCountry or Region: NorwayIndustry: Education—K-12 Customer ProfileNordal School serves first through seventh-graders in the rural municipality of Lier, in southern Norway. The school has 70 students, and is one of eight primary schools in Buskerud School District. Software and ServicesMicrosoft OfficeMicrosoft Office PowerPoint 2007TechnologiesMicrosoft Mouse MischiefMicrosoft EducationCustomer Solution Case StudyNordal SchoolLier MunicipalityNorway00Norwegian School Improves Instruction and Student Interest with Interactive Tool“I use Mouse Mischief to insert questions and exercises throughout a lesson, which brings lessons alive for my students and encourages me to use computers in the classroom more.” Geir Wahlquist, Fifth-Grade Teacher, Nordal SchoolNordal School, in Lier, Norway, is an early user of Microsoft Mouse Mischief, an add-in to Microsoft PowerPoint 2010 and Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 that makes presentations interactive. Teacher Geir Wahlquist has found that the two-way feedback of Mouse Mischief helps him personalize lessons and teach more effectively. Students love the hands-on participation, and Wahlquist uses the computer more in teaching now that he can involve students. Business NeedsNordal School is a primary school in the rural municipality of Lier, Norway. The Buskerud School District serves approximately 3,200 students, and Nordal School has 70 students, in grades one through seven. Because of its small size, Nordal School is able to offer highly personalized instruction to each student. However, it’s still a challenge for busy teachers to assess students’ understanding to ensure they are teaching students at the appropriate level. “I assemble students in compatible groups, but with the constant readjustment of groups, I never have enough time to reach all levels,” says Geir Wahlquist, a fifth-grade teacher at Nordal School. Keeping students interested in learning is another challenge that Nordal, like most every other school, faces. Nordal teachers wanted to use more computer-based resources in teaching, but there are only 24 computers at the school—12 in a computer lab and 12 portable computers on a mobile cart. “Because we use computers so infrequently, the kids tend to see them as times for play rather than learning,” Wahlquist says. “Plus, I didn’t really use presentation programs such as Microsoft Office PowerPoint in teaching, because they provided one-way communication—me talking to students. Kids get bored quickly if they aren’t involved.”SolutionIn early 2010, Ivar Berg, ICT Advisor for the Lier Municipality, attended a meeting of European educators and learned about Microsoft Mouse Mischief, a downloadable add-in to the Microsoft PowerPoint 2010 and Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 presentation graphics programs that is free of charge*. Mouse Mischief enables teachers to create interactive presentations by adding multiple-choice questions to their presentations. Students can participate by answering questions using mice that are connected to the teacher’s computer. When Wahlquist heard from Berg about Mouse Mischief, he immediately began thinking about how he might use it, and eagerly volunteered to test it for Nordal School. He downloaded Mouse Mischief, set up the system, started building Mouse Mischief–enabled lessons, and introduced it to his class. “The kids took to it right away,” he says. “They loved it so much that they wanted to know how they could get their own copy to use at home.”To Wahlquist, the magic of Mouse Mischief is in how it opens up two-way communica-tion in teaching. In a recent lesson in ethics, he posed this question on an Office PowerPoint 2007 slide: “Do your mom and dad always tell the truth?” The students anonymously answered yes or no using computer mice and Mouse Mischief. “The whole class could see all the answers, which launched a great discussion,” Wahlquist says. “I also use Mouse Mischief to review for tests; it helps get through more material faster.”BenefitsFrom his early look at Mouse Mischief, Wahlquist has found that it helps in personalizing lesson plans, engaging students, and turning presentations into two-way conversations.Better Lesson PersonalizationWahlquist uses Mouse Mischief to gain a clear picture of where each student is in his or her understanding of a particular lesson, which makes it easier to create individual lesson plans and arrange students in appropriate learning groups. Immediate assessment also helps him gauge his teaching pace and better estimate how much material he can cover. “I use Mouse Mischief to help me group students into different levels,” Wahlquist says. “While some groups work with Mouse Mischief to collaborate and learn, I have more time to give other students individual attention,” Wahlquist says. More Effective TeachingBecause Mouse Mischief makes Office PowerPoint 2007 interactive, Wahlquist uses it more. “PowerPoint is a great tool for presenting information, but it’s always been a one-way medium,” Wahlquist says. “Now, I use Mouse Mischief to insert questions and exercises throughout a lesson, which brings lessons alive for my students and encourages me to use computers in the classroom more.” “It’s just like a game!”What students like about Mouse Mischief is that it makes learning more fun. “It’s just like a game!” says a student in Wahlquist’s class. “Doing things together is fun. We don’t have to sit alone in front of a computer.”“It is exciting for students to see if they are the first to get a correct answer,” Wahlquist says. Also, Wahlquist has noticed that because all students are involved in answering questions, they take more time to read a question and think before clicking on their answer. “Mouse Mischief forces everyone to participate rather than sit quietly in the back of the room.”Inexpensive and Easy to UseBecause Mouse Mischief is simply a new add-in for Office PowerPoint, with which Wahlquist, fellow teachers, and students are already familiar, it is intuitive and easy to learn. “I felt comfortable with it right away,” Wahlquist says. “Other teachers at Nordal are eager to start using it.” Nordal plans to purchase 20 computer mice, at a cost of U.S.$10 to $15 apiece, and place them on a mobile cart that teachers can share. “The cost-effectiveness of Mouse Mischief is not only in the free software and inexpensive hardware, but also in the fact that you don’t have to go through one or two hours of training,” Wahlquist adds. “Time is always in short supply for teachers.”____________________________________________*Access to and use of the Internet may require payment of a separate fee to an Internet service provider. 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