Technology in Education: The Interactive Whiteboard - Report Example

Technology in education: The interactive whiteboard Introduction Education in the present day and age goes beyond the restrictive realms of schooling and extends throughout the lives of the individual. Inversely, while in school, students tend to pick up things, not just from information that they get from their educators in school but also from the sources, mired in technological advancements such as the internet. In fact education that has been acquired over the internet is a lot more entrenched in the mind of the child, especially given the fact that this education is attained through self-reading and not through the model of instruction (Johnson and Maddux, 2003). It is in this context that the following paper will in quire into the role of technology in general and the use of the interactive white boards in particular with respect to the role that they play, or could play in the school and education system. The whiteboard One of the most oft used, easy to acquire and to execute is the usage of the new, multi-functional didactical means is the use of an interactive whiteboard. It is new-generation equipment using wireless technologies. It is characterized by the high quality image and very functional software. As a result of it is considered to offer a breakthrough in use of informative technologies in teaching in many European counties (Nocny, 2006). The whiteboard is not only a device used to present information in form of text, graphics, sound or animation. This is done by a computer connected to a multimedia projector. Its most important advantage is its interactive software adjusted to efficient communication between a computer and its applications and persons using it. It allows them to freely enter, manage, process and present data in a clear and effective way. One has to understand the fact that the widespread introduction of the interactive whiteboard in the given set that define the necessary equipment for a given classroom is just a matter of time. Clearly, the whiteboard itself has strong associations with the major costs in terms of fiscal issues. In most countries of the world the role of education would be the definition of the factors it is supposed to be a facilitator for development. This however is not something that is easily understood let alone easily accepted. The issue would therefore be simply with respect to the fact that there would have to be prior justifications provided for the use of the interactive whiteboards as an essential school classroom tool kit. This would automatically take time and effort. One has to understand here that the board itself has found application in some of the schools of Western Europe. The number of schools in Poland with the interactive whiteboard is still small, but constantly increasing. It is important for methodological centres and universities that train teachers to see a need to introduce into their training programs also issues related to use of the interactive whiteboard. Actions of that type will help to increase the effectiveness of that device and to avoid unnecessary methodological mistakes that can result in decrease in effectiveness of a lesson. Scope and potential of the interactive whiteboard With respect to the functionality of the interactive whiteboard one would need to understand the fact that the ultimate success of the mechanism would be dependant on the same that factor that tends to define the success of almost every other initiative that takes place within the school: the quality of teaching and learning. Without quality teaching and learning, based around a solid understanding of sound pedagogical principles, interactive whiteboards would become just another piece of hardware in the classroom. The idea therefore is that unless teachers understand how to leverage interactive technology for the creation of better learning opportunities for their students then the concept would be another one in long list of wasted ideas. The function of the interactive whiteboard should be to stimulate student thinking, encourage deeper and more robust discussions, provoke thoughtful ideas and make abstract concepts easier to grasp. Researchers have demonstrated the fact that the value that the interactive whiteboard could bring to the classroom could range from being completely transformational to being barely worth the trouble, depending on the attitude and the propensity of the teacher to utilize it correctly (Taylor and Francis, 2008). For the teacher, the idea behind the use of the interactive whiteboard stems from the basic fact that the mechanism allows the teacher a sense of flexibility making it opportune for the teacher to ensure that the students on a singular as well as the collective class basis work with the teacher, enabling her to make correct assessments of student progress (Edwards, Hartnell and Martin 2002). One has to understand the fact that interactive whiteboards have attraction qualities both for all student types: Intrinsically motivated students- They are motivated to be participate in class through the whiteboard in front the class given the fact that the board provides an opportunity as a medium through which they are able to showcase individual achievement Extrinsically motivated students-They find attraction in the fact that there is the differentiation that is provided by the technology ensuring that students get motivated, and learning as an experience is more enjoyable. The interactive whiteboard is hooked up to a projector and a computer, which enables the machine to project the desktop image of the computer on to a screen. Through light sensors the machine then detects movement on the projection and reacts interactively much like an actual computer would. The idea therefore is that the function of the mechanism is completely image based which would signify in the long run that language barriers, especially in a class full of non-English speaking students would find the system useful making the job of the teacher a lot easier. Duty of the teacher In order to ensure that there is the correct utilization of the interactive whiteboard, it is the duty of teacher to ensure that there is the presence of enough room around the mechanism, especially the front-projection of the interactive whiteboards so that an easy access to the screen could be ensured and one is able to prevent the projector beam from being blocked. Second, the teacher would also need to ensure that the whiteboard is positioned in a manner so that it is at a height where students could reach the screen without any trouble. One of the better options available is the use of the height-adjusting mechanism so that one is able to quickly lower or raise the screen as and when required. Finally one could consider the use of a -mounted projector if possible to reduce the chance of the projector being moved or bumped. The secret to ensuring that the interactive whiteboard is able to perform the functions that it is required to, the first prerequisite would be to make sure that all the teachers understand the principles of good quality teaching, built around a student centered, constructivist model of learning. Second is the provision of enough resources and training to enable all staff to embrace the powerful possibilities that the use of the technology could bring to them, helping them with necessary skills to effectively embed the mechanism into the daily course of the teaching practice. Barriers to the use of interactive whiteboards With respect to technology, there is an innate tendency within teachers to fall into one of three basic categories. There are the early adopters who jump on board with new technologies, making them the easy people to work with, especially given the fact that they tend to see potential of adopting technology right away. The larger group however is made of the second and the third subset-the ones that are interested but wary or even skeptical. The problem with this group is that while they are interested, being teachers makes them cautious and someone telling them that a technological tool would make their job easier is not really accepted. These teachers also tend to have issues with how quickly they could pick the technology up, viewing it as a threat and not as an aid. The third group would see the tool as an obstacle and resist its use at every stage (Betcher and Lee, 2009. The second set of barriers, comes from a general lack of infrastructural facilities, which do not allow for technological tools such as the whiteboard. The final barrier could even be the present system of education itself-given especially the fact that teaching is viewed as a one-way and not an interactive process. Conclusion: In conclusion one could reiterate the fact that the interactive whiteboard has found integration and to a larger extent a degree of incorporation with the learning environments over the past ten years. One has seen an increasing flow of information where the research into its uses and its advantages are concerned. Most of this research tends to emanate from the developed countries like United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. one could gauge from evidences of research available that the dominant trend to emerge is the fact that the interactive whiteboard has a positive impact on the levels of student motivation, engagement. The mechanism has the uncanny ability to include a diversity of teaching and learning methodologies, which includes the even more complicated subset of the special-needs students. It also has the ability to enhance student retention and review processes. References: Edwards, Julie-Ann, M. Hartnell and R. Martin. “Interactive Whiteboards: Some Lessons for the Classroom.” Micromath (Summer 2002): 30-33. Johnson, C. L., and Maddux, C. D., (2003). Technology in Education: A Twenty-Year Retrospective. Routledge. Pp13-16 Taylor and Francis 2008: School effectiveness and improvement, pub. An international Journal of Research Vol. 21 The Education Technology Guide. (2006). Interactive whiteboards in the classrooms. Issue 6. Retrieved September 11, 2010, < http://www.a1computing.com.au/documents/InteractiveWhiteboardsintheModernClassroom.pdf> Betcher, C., Lee, M., (2009). The Interactive Whiteboard Revolution: Teaching with IWBs. Routledge Canvendish. Pp35-40 Read More