An interactive whiteboard is a smartboard that is either a standalone interactive screen or an interactive display board that projects the contents of the computer with the help of a projector. These whiteboards are gaining popularity in many countries and are found in diverse settings, including educational institutions and coaching centers.
An interactive whiteboard was developed by Palo Alto Research Centre (PARC), a division of Xerox, around the year 1990 for office use. This board was used during round-table conferences and meetings. However, after research and development, changes were made to the board. This board was then used in various educational institutions and still continues to aid learning.
The interactive whiteboard is educational technology. Educational technology uses various resources to aid in the teaching and learning process. Various EdTech companies invest in research and development to develop new educational technology.
Teachers can use this interactive whiteboard as a traditional whiteboard and save the written content for later viewing. They can also send the image and contents of the board directly to students through emails and other online content sharing platforms. Various educational videos can also be shown. Education via new technology provides a better learning experience. The students can also use the whiteboard in sharing ideas during brainstorming sessions. However, not many educational institutions can afford interactive whiteboards as they are expensive.
The concept of interactive whiteboards have gained a lot of importance over the years. Owing to the several features that it houses, it helps teachers create an interactive classroom for its students. However, before we learn more about interactive whiteboards, we first need to understand what is interactive whiteboard.
An interactive whiteboard can be best defined as a touch screen computer that can be used independently to perform different tasks and operations. It can be easily connected to different accessories like a touchpad which will make it easier for it to control computers from a projector.
To define further, regarding what is interactive whiteboard in simple terms, it is essentially a digital device.Through the use of this device it becomes easier to manipulate the project files present and showcase it on the surface of the board. whatever is present on the computer screen of the user will be displayed directly on the board.
As a result the use of interactive whiteboard in the classroom has become a necessity because it supports teachers to create engaging content.
Features of Interactive Whiteboard
It is true that when talking about what is Interactive whiteboard, it is nothing but a modern replacement of sorts to a normal whiteboard.Through the use of this medium it will become easier for educators to alter the information present in the board as well as ensure that it can be transferred to the next slide.
It also makes it easy for the Teachers to write like any other white board and instantly turn the handwritten notes into text, to be stored, and used later. The ease of usage, with this board that can be clicked and moved, copied and analyzed makes Interactive whiteboard in the classroom an essential tool.
Considering all of these factors, the given section and outline of the important features associated with this technology has been provided.
1) The Content Factor
It is important to note that the whiteboard has been designed in such a way so that it can support the running of different files and programs. It has the ability to support applications that are designed for a computer such as demonstrating presentations, Surfing the internet, etc.
The presence of these features allowed for improving classroom engagement. It makes it easy for the Teachers to demonstrate dimensional diagrams and graphical representation, from different angles. This improves the student’s ability to understand content easily.
2) Spotlight
An important feature associated with this technology is that of spotlight. Through the help of this feature it becomes possible for the teacher to highlight a specific area in the text presented on the whiteboard.In this way the teacher can easily divert the tension of the students by dragging the spotlight to Areas where he wants the students to focus.
3) Screen Shade
The screen shade is another important feature that is present on the whiteboard. Using this feature makes it possible for teachers to hide information from the students that is useful especially during question and answer sessions.
Considering the fact that most teachers today utilizers conducting pop quizzes in the classroom, this feature enables them to efficiently conduct quizzes.
4) Magnifier
As the name suggests, the objective of this feature is to magnify images and zoom into them when needed. In this way, teachers can easily provide detailed information to the students and improve their learning abilities.
Hence, each of these features highlights the benefits of having interactive whiteboard in the classroom.
Uses of Interactive Whiteboard
Taking into consideration the several features that interactive whiteboards provide, the following section outlines the variety of uses it has for academic sectors.
1) Better Engagement
The use of this whiteboard makes it easy for the Teachers to use different images and videos thereby adding a sense of interactiveness and the classroom. As a result students become more engaged and readily participate in classroom activities.
2) Accommodate Different Learning Styles
One of the most important uses associated with the Interactive whiteboard is that it allows for accommodating different learning styles. This means teachers can easily take into consideration what kind of learning styles can suit the needs of the students and make changes accordingly. The whiteboard provides a seamless interface that makes it possible to manage this requirement.
3) Easy to use
This whiteboard is easy to use which makes it all the more important. Through the help of the touchpad it is possible to select any file and folder and display to the classroom without any hindrance.
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