• Wireless Sound
System at Sands
Middle School
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14912 South Heritagecrest Way • Salt Lake City, Utah 84065
801.233.8992 • 800.330.0891 North America • 801.233.8995 fax
Copyright 2006 Listen®Technologies Corporation
Don’t miss a single sound.
Teaching middle school students is challenging
(albeit rewarding) work. At Sands Middle School
in Phoenix, Arizona, Librarian Mary McAskill
faced more than the usual hurdles: compromised
vocal cords and the ambient noise of an air
conditioning system. Essentially forced to yell
in order to be heard, her vocal cord problems
became serious, while her students continued to
tune out. (As any parent knows, adolescents and
raised adult voices are like oil and water.)
Surgery for a vocal cord implant helped McAskill
regain her voice, but only amplification was going
to master the ambient noise problem and allow
her to resume her teaching schedule. Reading
about a wireless sound system at another school,
a solution seemed plausible.
McAskill further researched the issue and found
Listen Technologies. Impressed with their
thorough assessment and quick response time,
she arranged for a Listen representative to
provide an on-site demonstration. She liked what
she heard.
The system, one that Listen refers to as
a “soundfield,” employs a wireless collar
microphone and two strategically placed
speakers. McAskill can now teach in her normal
speaking voice, doesn’t need to repeat herself as
much, and can freely move about the room. “The
sound quality is professional, the system isn’t
goofy looking, and it literally saved my career,”
she states, noting that despite her successful
surgery, the possibility of going on disability was
quite real. She likes it so much, in fact, that a
behind-the-ear model microphone is next on her
list to purchase for the system
Just as rewarding to McAskill is the student
response. “I teach them how to find books,
conduct effective research, and use the
computer lab, critical tools for their success.
Now that students can hear me clearly
over the air conditioner, they are more fully
engaged.” The sound system has also proved
useful for functions such as library-sponsored
family reading nights, teacher presentations
and in-services. “All and all, we are getting
better, more effective use of our library,” says
McAskill, and that, for any librarian is music
to the ears.
Wireless Sound System Boosts
Teacher Effectiveness, Student
Learning
SandS
Middle
School
