EDU6210 Article 3: Interactive Whiteboards

The Impact of Interactive Whiteboards on Teaching and Classroom Dynamics

Khambari, Mas N. 2014. “The Impact of Interactive Whiteboards on Teaching and Classroom      Dynamics.” PhD dissertation, Department of Philosophy, University of Wisconsin, Madison

Although this was a great article, it was very lengthy because it is a dissertation. Because it is a dissertation there is a ton of great information about the subject. The focus of it is different kinds of interactive whiteboards, how they can be used in the classroom. and what students think of them. Khambri says that these tools teachers are more often calling up individuals to show the rest of the class how to get an answer. When students are able to show what they know to others, the students show more pride in themselves. With students who do not speak the native language, they are still able to participate in lessons. This would be especially relevant in math where a student can rely on not only language but numbers. Teachers are also seeing that when a student at the interactive whiteboard or SMARTBoard does not know the answer or what to do, the other students are volunteering to help them. Learning then becomes more of a team approach where everyone wants to see each other succeed. 

The article goes into many different ways teachers are utilizing these boards. Some examples include making videos, using pictures and labeling them, formative quizzes, and core academic work that are seen as games more than learning. It also talks about what exists out there for teachers already and how to share this info with one another and professional development. Again because this is a dissertation there is a study where the methodology and results are discussed very in depth. The article strongly urges teachers to use these devices as it encourages students to participate and feel like they are part of the lesson.

Personally I love using interactive whiteboards. I have one in my classroom and use it every day at least 2 class periods a day. Just a few other ways they can be used daily in the classroom include classroom calendars, Jeopardy style reviews, and sight words. With students who have cognitive disabilities and focus on functional skills there are programs that teach how to do laundry, dressing appropriately for the weather, how to dress and act at a job site, and how to use a debit card. Websites like SMART exchange are a great resource because they are fully functioning programs for free. To make it even better they are split up by grade level and subject. Once you have a program it is incredibly easy to modify and change it to what you need for your classroom. With such a huge amount of programs that already exist and easily being manipulated, these boards can be greatly beneficial for daily use in the classroom.