Source: http://arthurfarisedm310.blogspot.com/2010/04/comment-for-teachers-part-3.html
Interactive Whiteboards in the Language Classroom
This week, we had a special in class meeting with the topic The Interactive Whiteboard. For that reason, we met in a classroom where a so called Activeboard was installed and where we had the possibility to interact with it and try handle with its several functions. The reason to do that is the increasing number of Whiteboards, which replace the traditional blackboard more and more – by trend, the interactive Whiteboard will be the only kind of board in the future classrooms, which makes it absolutely necessary to get familiar with it and to be able to see and use the possibilities which lay into this development.
Source: http://torstenbunde.blogspot.com/2008/11/whiteboard-mentalitt.html
An
interactive Whiteboard can be defined as an electronic wall chart, which
is
combined with a computer and a projector. It is more like an oversized
computer
screen and enables the teacher to create virtual wallpapers. He is able
to
create them during the class in cooperation with his students or also
before
class and bring them to class and work with it easily. It is also
possible to save wallpapers that are developed during class so not any
panel will be lost and the whiteboard does not have to look like this
after a while.
According to the used technique, there are three ways
to classify interactive Whiteboards: electromagnetic, trigonometric and
analog-resistive boards. During our session, we were working with an analog
resistive board, which works like an oversized touch screen. You can either
interact with it by using the traditional keyboard or by using the three
whiteboard-specific pens or just by using your hands.
The use of the interactive Whiteboards offers a great number of advantages for the teacher:
· With the Whiteboard there is no need to deal with other electronic equipment.
· By using the Whiteboard, teachers have the possibility to connect several types of media
and therefore they can improve the clearness of their lessons.
· The combination of different material.
· The combination of pictures, tones, colours and texts supports all forms of learning
models.
· The teacher can create a data pool which he can rely on and which he can use easily.
· The use of the Whiteboard and the different media are very motivating for the pupils.
Just a few to mention. But there are also disadvantages like
· The high costs for electricity or the interactive Whiteboard itself,
· A Whiteboard has to be booted up before it can be used,
· The possibly restricted readability of the wallpapers according to shadows or sunlight,
· The relative long time it takes to improve the teachers´ media skills,
· The different kinds of Whiteboards which means differences in the software and therefore problems with the compatibility of wallpapers.
It should be clear to everybody that the advantages the interactive Whiteboard offers are of quite more important than the disadvantages it contains.
I remember a school I once was at during my Praktikum where in four classrooms the blackboards were replaced by whiteboards during the summer holidays. The problem which occurred pretty quickly was that the teachers, which had to hold their classes in these rooms, had no idea how to work with these new boards because the further training how to use it was at least three weeks after the term began. This event showed to me the importance of being able to handle work with new media and therefore, to improve my media skills.
For that reason, I decided to accept the offer of my course instructor to participate in an online course about the correct use of interactive Whiteboards. I want to be able to use all features and to benefit from the possibilities for me and my way of teaching the interactive Whiteboards offers.
The use of the interactive Whiteboards offers a great number of advantages for the teacher:
· With the Whiteboard there is no need to deal with other electronic equipment.
· By using the Whiteboard, teachers have the possibility to connect several types of media
and therefore they can improve the clearness of their lessons.
· The combination of different material.
· The combination of pictures, tones, colours and texts supports all forms of learning
models.
· The teacher can create a data pool which he can rely on and which he can use easily.
· The use of the Whiteboard and the different media are very motivating for the pupils.
Just a few to mention. But there are also disadvantages like
· The high costs for electricity or the interactive Whiteboard itself,
· A Whiteboard has to be booted up before it can be used,
· The possibly restricted readability of the wallpapers according to shadows or sunlight,
· The relative long time it takes to improve the teachers´ media skills,
· The different kinds of Whiteboards which means differences in the software and therefore problems with the compatibility of wallpapers.
It should be clear to everybody that the advantages the interactive Whiteboard offers are of quite more important than the disadvantages it contains.
I remember a school I once was at during my Praktikum where in four classrooms the blackboards were replaced by whiteboards during the summer holidays. The problem which occurred pretty quickly was that the teachers, which had to hold their classes in these rooms, had no idea how to work with these new boards because the further training how to use it was at least three weeks after the term began. This event showed to me the importance of being able to handle work with new media and therefore, to improve my media skills.
For that reason, I decided to accept the offer of my course instructor to participate in an online course about the correct use of interactive Whiteboards. I want to be able to use all features and to benefit from the possibilities for me and my way of teaching the interactive Whiteboards offers.
