I’ve been ‘lurking’ on Twitter again. I have watched, read, and listened to educators bash the Smartboard, and I really can’t figure out why! I read and comprehend the argument about the money issue. Money spent on Smartboards for each classroom could buy many more things in so many more classrooms.
More equipment in students hands? Who could disagree with that? Not I, but to say that the Smartboard (interchangeable in this post with interactive whiteboards) is a waste, useless, or just a dry erase board with a computer makes me uncomfortable.
When I get uncomfortable, I understand that my thinking is being challenged. So, it is up to me to reexamine my comfort zone, my knowledge base, my practices in the classroom and see how I measure up.
Well, to start with, I decided to watch how the Smartboard was being used on a daily basis. Here goes…
8:30 – Our lunch count is up on the Smartboard, children walk in, mark their lunch choice, which also records their attendance. They stand in two lines, boys and girls, taking turns, assisting others, if needed. Pretty cool. I could do it on paper, but I will tell you, it will not be independent, interactive, smooth, or cooperative. Documents are saved on the server for access by lunch and office personnel.
8:50 – Our in-house news show run by 2nd graders, Good Morning, M. Elementary, goes on air. We receive it through the dvd player hooked up to our Smartboard. Yes, it’s acting like a big TV, but we don’t have a big TV, so we need it. It is not interactive at that time, but it displays text for our nation’s pledge and our school pledge – providing our young readers with valuable ‘eyes on text’ time. Our group is on the rug watching and listening.
9:00 – I present the first and second of four whole group literacy lessons, by use of the smart notebook software. It is an excellent way to keep everything I need in a digital folder. In these first two lessons of about 6-8 minutes each, high-frequency words are introduced with game-style options, brief embedded videos supporting our focus skills are viewed, word study opportunities are available for students to manipulate onset and rime, phonemes, etc, and visual organizers for showing our thinking as we read and comprehend are on the board for all to see. Sometimes interactive, and always introduced in short snippets, these lessons are meeting the needs and the attention spans of these early-emergent readers. Before the Smartboard, I had to write all lessons on large tablet paper, costing me a bundle, only to throw them away after displaying for a period of time, year after year.
10:00 – Smartboard is taking a much needed break while we are in art, music, P.E., or library.
10:45 – Our Science and Social Studies curriculum is built by teachers, based on our state’s Standards of Learning. We have no text books, so every resource I find or create can be stored in Smart notebook software. Discovery streaming videos can be linked, lesson plans attached, interactive activities created for each standard. Best of all we can put these notebook files on the server or in dropbox and share with our grade level team. We collaborate and strengthen our lessons by working together. Much of our content curriculum is being shared through text sets and exploration, but the media portions are powerful on our Smartboard.
11:15 – Calendar time on the Smartboard. Again, built on Smart notebook software, this contains much of the math I will teach this year! Lessons in place value, counting, skip counting, and other calendar math skills are available in one big digital folder. Songs about the seasons, months, and days are embedded and linked to enlarged colorful texts. These are much more accessible to each child than they would be on a big book stand. “Eyes on text” opportunities while we are singing: priceless! Some interactive (children touching, writing, etc) – all of it engaging.
11:30 – Our ‘official’ math lesson is found in our on-line textbook. In the lower grades, we have consumable math books. Modeling is a huge part of the introductory lesson, and to have the group on the rug for walking through the steps of the lesson is very valuable. Have I taught it without a Smartboard? Yes, for 20+ years… trust me, children are much more engaged when looking at the Smartboard sized page, rather than me holding up a sample math book pointing at problem #2. Not interactive on board, but children are writing on their own pages. Then it’s off to a comfy place in the room to try the ‘show what you know’ page, aka independent practice.
Smartboard off while we go to lunch.
12:30 – Writing Workshop – Sometimes the Smartboard is used for >5 minutes to model a writing concept for their journals. Occasionally I will scan a student’s work and use it as the model for things going well, what to do next, etc. Yes, I could do that on an overhead projector, but I don’t have one anymore… because you couldn’t embed video and songs in it’s software package, and the markers kept drying up year after year.
1:00 – The last two of the four literacy whole group lessons are presented in this hour… see above at 9:00.
2:00 – Our Smartboard finally gets a little rest, as we go outside for recess, snack, and pack up. Good old-fashioned teacher will read a story now. No Smartboard needed, but plenty of interaction, engagement, and no bored students.
3:15 – Quiet room, teacher reflecting upon day. Were students actively engaged learners? The answer is yes. Is it because of Smartboards? Well, truthfully, upon consideration, (mind you, I don’t like to brag) but it was because of me. My careful planning is guided by Regie Routman’s voice in my head… why are you doing what you are doing? I also hear a dear mentor of mine, Dr. Bruce Criswell saying that even bad text books in good teachers’ hands can be good textbooks. He imparted a sense of confidence in my professionalism to make good choices for my students with whatever I have available.
I guess that what I’m saying is, don’t hate the Smartboards… maybe what is needed is better support for those lucky enough to have excellent technology equipment in their hands. I’m one of the lucky ones. We have 1:1 iPod touches, an iPad, and an interactive Smartboard – but best of all, the training to use it wisely. I have our administrators and our technology department to thank for that.
We don’t have: an overhead projector, stacks of giant writing pads, tape player, cd player, pull-down screen, big TV, film projector, slide projector, and administrators telling me that what I am doing is not worth the paper that I used to do it on. Thank goodness.
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App Review | Tagged: App Review, math | 
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Posted by wojtera
