Image from Wikimedia Commons

According to Education Week, “Traditional chalkboards that have been teachers’ primary tool for more than two centuries are quickly being erased from classrooms.”

And, we all know what’s replacing them: internet-connected, interactive whiteboards. Proponents argue that they help teachers present material in a more engaging fashion, and sharpen students’ high-tech skills. Kent County, Maryland, high-school math teacher Lonnise Gilley told Education Week that whiteboards help her present material that’s not just visual, but verbal, auditory and interactive. “You can present (material) in a way you cannot do with a chalkboard or overhead.”

They are quite expensive, however. A single unit can cost up to $5,000. Kent County schools have spent $500,000 on whiteboards, including the cost of rigorous teacher training. But, not all districts invest in training, critics say, and too many teachers either don’t know how to use the interactive elements or refuse to do so.

One recent study, sponsored by manufacturer Promethean, found that the boards boost student motivation and participation, the paper said. It determined, though, that the instructors who got the most out of them were those who displayed the “characteristics of good teachers in general.” Robert J. Marzano, head of Marzano Research Laboratory, which conducted the study, told Education Week that top teachers don’t need whiteboards to do their job well, but that whiteboards can help the best teachers become even better.

Filed under: K-12 Education News

Tags: Research on Learning, Teaching Aids, Technology for Learning