For my secondary education I attended South Gray High School. We were fortunate to have quite a bit of technology in our classrooms. First, we had the one-to-one laptop initiative. Each student in our high school had a MacBook that they could use in class and also take home with them. Another piece of technology that we had in our classrooms were SMARTboards. Because of this I decided to listen to a podcast that discussed SMARTboards in the elementary classroom. I listened to It’s Elementary #43: “Interactive White Boards” on EdTechTalk.
In this podcast Maria Knee and Alice Mercer discussed several different kinds of interactive white boards, the differences between them, how they are or can transform a classroom, and some concerns they have. Because my teachers only use the SMARTboard brand of interactive white boards I did not know about any other types. Maria and Alice talked about a Promethean white board. Instead of being touch sensitive, this type of white board uses special pens to write on the boards. Alice said that she really liked the Promethean because teachers or students can write on the board by hand, and the board will convert that writing into type. Maria also talked about how she really enjoys having this type of board in her classroom because of the age group of students she works with. Younger children have to be able to manipulate objects on the boards with one hand while having their other hand also on the board for balance. Because the Promethean is not touch sensitive the child’s other hand does not confuse the board. However, a SMARTboard is touch sensitive so the child’s other hand does confuse the board.
Maria and Alice also talked a lot about how classrooms need to become more student centered. Many teachers are afraid of using technology in their classrooms. But these interactive white boards are so easy to use that after some professional development training teachers can use them successfully in their classrooms. If these boards are used successfully they can help move a classroom from teacher centered to student centered. Once teachers get used to using them they can gradually let the students manipulate and learn on them. One of the major things that Maria cautioned teachers is to not spend too much time on the boards themselves, but let the students spend time on them as well. She said that students should be at the boards more than teachers.
Unfortunately, in my high school our teachers did not take full advantage of the SMARTboards. They mainly used them to show movies or a PowerPoint. Hopefully now that they have had these tools for several years they are letting the students manipulate them more. I think that interactive white boards could definitely transform a classroom. They enable elementary kids to get out of their seats and start discovering for themselves. They not only help kids get comfortable with technology, but also get some kids excited about learning again. I hope to learn how to use these interactive white boards to their potential incase I have one in my classroom someday.
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