Blog Post 5: Smartboard Spending and Creative Videos

For the first part of this assignment, we read the following articles arguing against the purchase of Smartboards for every classroom:

Why Smartboards are a Dumb Initiative By Michael Staton

Why I Hate Interactive Whiteboards By Bill Ferriter

I agree with Mr. Staton when he says, “Smartboards don’t change the model that’s broken.” There are so many things wrong with the education system today, including misusing funds by buying expensive technology tools and then not giving teachers the skills to use them effectively. I agree with Mr. Ferriter that, “these high-priced contraptions are sad examples of the careless decision-making and waste that are crippling some of our schools and systems” in the sense that the careless decision is not to follow up with professional development for teachers. Both argue buying Smartboards is a waste of money because you can use a computer and a projector with the same results, and that is mostly true. However creative use of a Smartboard can be much more effective than a computer and projector. If you wanted to project a picture of an eye on a regular whiteboard and have students go up and label it, the projection would make viewing the words more difficult and the lesson would quickly become disengaging for the students. I can see them rolling their eyes now.

Many teachers do not know how to use a Smartboard creatively. However, if they are given some training and work collaboratively to come up with great ideas for using them they can be a very successful teaching tool. Teachers who want to do the traditional lecture and not embrace technology may need some convincing, but it is possible. The problem is that schools notoriously jump on the latest bandwagon and do not give teachers the help they need to make the effort successful. Or, they do not listen to teachers when they explain what is desperately needed, and many times it is not a Smartboard. This Smartboard debate is just a symptom of the problem that has been part of the education system for a long time—policy makers and administrators often do not listen to the people who are working in the classroom and give them what they need to help their students. In many cases, spending the money on another teaching slot to alleviate overcrowded classrooms might be more effective.

I was more than surprised when I read Mr. Ferriter actually gave his Smartboard away! I cannot imagine what he was thinking. If he cannot think of an awesome way to use the board in his classroom, then he is not trying hard enough and obviously does not even want to try. He said, “They do little more than reinforce a teacher-centric model of learning.” I do not understand why his students were not up at the Smartboard instead of him and why an expensive tool that was already paid for was not used for cooperative learning activities. While I agree the administrators buying them are often just trying to look good in the eyes of their Board of Education or keep up with the Joneses (the school down the street), but he seems to have an especially bad attitude about the technology itself even more so than the issue at hand: the educational system is failing miserably to make good decisions about almost everything. The more important debate is we need to offer equal educational opportunities to all the students in the United States of America. And that is what people should really be talking about. It is nice that he has enough computers in his classroom to not need a Smartboard, though. Not many public school teachers can say that.

I actually had a difficult time finding an article supporting spending education funds on Smartboards. There are many questioning whether or not they are a good way to spend money in schools. There are also many arguing Smartboards are a waste of money that could be spent in better ways. I did finally find the following:

Teacher Feature...Why Use an Interactive Whiteboard?
 A Baker’s Dozen Reasons! By Dr. Mary Ann Bell

Dr. Bell loves Smartboards. A couple of her reasons are; they are excellent for demonstrations, they are colorful and studies show students learn better when color is used, they are great for distance learning, interactive learning, and brainstorming, and all ages respond well to them. The parts of her argument for Smartboards that counter the above contentions best are that Smartboards interface easily with other peripherals, they are perfect for students with limited motor skills (including small children), they are excellent for one computer classrooms, and they are excellent for the constructivist teacher. The last one makes an excellent point against Mr. Ferriter’s argument that Smartboards promote teacher-centered learning. I would have to agree with Dr. Bell. Smartboards are fabulous tools in the right classrooms.

I do not necessarily disagree with the above arguments against Smartboard spending completely; I just know they can be used in wonderful ways. They are excellent for visualizing and group brainstorming. They are also easier to manipulate then trying to reach for your computer mouse all the time. A classroom I taught in had a ceiling mounted projector and it was a real pain to go back over to the computer and mess around with the mouse. The kids could have been sneaking out of the classroom while I was occupied with it! Perhaps Smartboards are not the best way to spend educational funds, but they are not the worst way, either.

For a summary of what a constructivist teacher does, go to:
Constructivist Teachers

The second part of the assignment was to watch the following videos:

The Chipper Series and EDM for Dummies

They were a lot of fun, but I had trouble with the first one. When I clicked the link it would not open, so I deleted all the numbers after “strange” and pulled up Dr. Strange’s entire gallery, where I was able to find the video. It is creative and fun. The EDM for Dummies video is so funny! I know I’ve felt that way at 2am once or twice so far! However, I am so excited when I see my finished products. I know I will use this knowledge when I am teaching. Technology is frustrating sometimes, but worth it. I really would like to make some videos, but I cannot think of ways to be creative like these. I am not sure anyone would want to see what I do. I really want to think of ways to use videos for Collaborative Education, but I have not figured out how to do it yet.