Job Discussion Forums

[gregd75]

As you may well know, through reading these posts, I have a small language school.

I have been thinking about Interactive Whiteboards for my school. I hope that they would allow me to enter the new millennium and to really have a point of competitive difference against my competition. They look really amazing and a huge resource to have.

However, what do you guys think? Is anyone using them in their classes? Do they work? Are they worth the investment?

Any thoughts or comments would be appreciated!

[Insubordination]

They are worth it if they are connected to the internet/laptop. I've been using them since January this year and dived right into the technology. Mostly it has involved all the teachers designing pretty PowerPoint-type lessons with embedded links and audio.

Writing on the board itself is over-rated and I still prefer the standard whiteboard. The inbuilt games and software that come with Smartboards are pretty cool and students respond well to the interactivity.

The thing I like doing most is uploading my own documents and projecting them onto the screen and then editing them. I prefer a projected MS Word screen to type on with a laptop over writing with the smartboard pens.

I found that most of my colleagues were resistant to/negative about the smartboards/IWBs. I would infinitely prefer a classroom with one, but I still think you should install a standard whiteboard beside it. Apparently, it's not good to use a normal whiteboard maker on the IWB screen.

Anyway, in my opintion, a data projector and laptop is preferable to IWBs.

[Guy Courchesne]

[MotherF]

Some course books now come with software for IWB, I think like Interchange or some of those type of course books. I think if high schools used something like that it would really help the high school teachers overcome their difficiencies, either in English language skills or teaching skills. It would probably also really help cut back on their prep time as most of those poor souls teach 8 hours a day (and groups of up to 40!).

I've not used one myself and I'd probaby end up mostly using it like I would a computer projector. Like Insubordination said, with a power point lesson, or simply to project images. Much better in my class size than holding up a laminated magazine photo!

[leslie]

I've been using one for a few months now with Touchstone books.

Sometimes I find the board distracting because the students have the same page in their paperback studentbooks.

But the idea is for the students to use and interact the whiteboard... and not just have the teacher stand up front using it.

Sometimes it's a great way to quickly check answers.
Other times, it seems to take more time than I want to get a student to walk up to the board, write their answer, and then check it - when it might just be faster to ask orally.

It takes time to figure out how to use it effectively.

The students seem to really like it though.

Greg, you should ask Cambridge to give you a demonstration of it.

[Dragonlady]

out of date

[FreddyM]

You can make one yourself on the cheap using a Wii remote, and download and install "free" software that will make it interactive.

How to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5s5EvhHy7eQ

Software (can be really great if you dig into it):

http://www2.smarttech.com/st/en-US/Support/Downloads/default.htm

It's the software you use that really makes the difference. I mostly use it just for display purposes using a projector and a laptop, primarily because I don't really have the time to make fancy lessons to make them interactive, and because it's difficult to drag the huge interactive board to my classroom. And even getting ahold of a projector is difficult enough for me, so I don't even use that as much as I'd like.

edit. oops! i forgot to add...

you can make a pseudo-interactive whiteboard with just an ordinary projector, any computer, any white screen, and a wireless mouse. just hook everything up, use software like the one from smarttech, and all of a sudden you have a giant computer screen everyone can see and interact with using the mouse and computer.

[mejms]

[Phil_K]

[McMurphy_RP]

When interactive whiteboards were coming into fashion, I piloted one for my school in the U.S. and have subsequently trained many teachers in their use. My short answer to your question would be, "Yes, but..."

Here's the longer answer. IWB's are a fantastic tool, but like any other tool they are only effective if the user (teacher, in this case) is trained on how to use them. With IWB's, that necessitates support in two general areas: the technology and the pedagogy. It's been my experience that teachers who are not comfortable with the technology either use the IWB's in superficial ways that do not do anything to augment the quality of the instruction, or they do not use them at all. Likewise, if a teacher is not exposed to ways of using the product to improve instruction, the IWB can easily become a very expensive chalkboard or overhead projector. I've seen both of the above scenarios happen time and again. But when sufficient support is provided for open-minded teachers who are being asked to use IWB's in their classrooms, it can become an extremely powerful means of enriching instruction and the learning environment.

[MotherF]

Today, I visited Cambridge's teacher support site for the first time in at least a year and saw this series of video tutorials How to use an Interactive Whiteboard .