Putting interactive white boards in all “core” classrooms in the district was our superintendent’s goal about 4 years ago. Regardless of your personal opinions on that topic that goal has been reached. During this process we visited a district that had a reputation of being on the cutting edge creating IWB lessons. My teachers traveled to this school for a full day of workshops. It was disappointing to find that all the lessons were created in PowerPoint and were basically retyped versions of the textbook projected onto the white board. I remember walking out of session with one my teachers and saying to her, “Please don’t ever do that to our students.”
Now that most of my teachers have spent at least one year getting used to the IWB’s (Yes, they all have one.), my hope is that there is more student interaction and ownership of this learning device. One horror story I heard at FETC is that IWBs in some classrooms are covered up with bulletin boards.
Then I saw the iRover at FETC. Would this be the answer?
I still think it depends on the teacher but this is a really good concept. The iRover is only the furniture, or cart, and we would use IWB and projectors that we already have. At first I wanted to buy one for everyone right there on the spot. Even my instructional specialist saw the potential.
All of my teachers have writing centers that hold chart paper. This cart holds the IWB. It is important to have teacher/student created writing posted around the room. One concern I have would be if all writing were done and saved on the IWB and not displayed around the room. It is important to have a print rich environment.
In our primary classrooms our SMART boards are placed at a level the students can reach and interact with. So I ask myself this, if the boards are already at a level the students can reach and the students are not using them, is putting them on a different piece of furniture going make a difference?
If you are a principal, how have you implemented interactive white boards in your school? How do you monitor how they are being used?
In my first grade classroom I have my IWB on one side of our carpet and an easel cart (like this one but with a regular white board instead of an IWB) on the other. We move back and forth between the two frequently. I think my easel is critical because it does allow us to use chart paper and post our thinking/learning all around our room.
Using IWBs well is a real challenge. I've had one in my classroom for about 5 years and I am still making progress. We have them in all classrooms and I think it was a poor use of resources. If teachers want one, it is probably worth getting them one. Until they see the potential and feel energized about it they won't take the needed time to figure out ways to learn it. And I don't think they need to. They are a great tool when used well, but don't need to be forced on anyone.
Hello all, this is my first post here, just getting familiar with the place!
Yes, it takes time to figure them out! Considering everyone was getting one regardless, most of mine were glad to have one. The "interactive" part is still a work in progress.
Thanks for your comment!