Interactive Science: The White-Board way

The sciences tend to be filled with a large number of figures and tables as well as drawings and graphs. These graphics can often lose their effectiveness and value when printed in black and white or at a highly reduced size as most schools tend to do.

With the new wave of technology cane the recent implementation of the interactive white board, a technological spin off of the classic chalk board. This option combines the two most used media in schooling, the black board and the computer. It makes use of a projector which projects the images from a computer onto a board which is also linked to the same computer allowing changed to be made on the board which show on the computer as well. This very useful tool allows for good quality imaging to be showed as well as “interacted” with. A useful way of engaging with this technology for one would be the option of zooming in on large images, giving a bigger picture which is often not seen by many students. In doing this one can show a number of processes which interlink in a way learners can identify well with, reducing the compartmentalisation of certain subject matter. The reduction in compartmentalizing could significantly improve the understanding of these processes. A second and by no means less significant use for one of these boards is allowing for students to come up and make their own notes on the board which can be shown to the entire class and aid in everyone’s grasping of concepts.

There are a great many avenues to progress down regarding the use of these boards for a science teacher. Many uses for these boards are yet to be fully uncovered as it may find new use in the hands of innovative and hardworking teachers who do their best to make learning fun and effective.