How Interactive is your Whiteboard?

The first key point I took from the article was about the interactions that take place in our classrooms. The authors listed eight questions to ask yourself about how interactive your classroom is and the amount of thinking the students actually have to do. After I read this, I realized that about 80% of the classes I am involved in could do a much better job at requiring more in depth thought from the students. As the article mentioned, most of our classes involved little though, just memorization. The article stated that most student responses are less than 5 seconds and use less than three words.

The second key point I found was when the authors talked about the learning being meaningful to the students. The students must be engaged and be required to exchange their knowledge and thinking in order to benefit in deeper learning. The students as well as the teacher must realize they have control of their learning and be motivated to strive for what is best for themselves. Basically they need to put the effort into their own learning.

Thirdly, using the IWBs (as mentioned in the second point) is only as beneficial as how they are utilized. Teachers can use them to make fancy and colorful activities, but is that what is best for the students learning. The use of the IWB needs to captivate and facilitate in depth thinking of students. As the authors stated "Learning to use the tool effectively requires far more than mere technical training." Students must take what was taught or gained by use of the WB and make that learning permanent.

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Interactive tools do not always lead to interactive learning. As I mentioned above, I feel that it depends on the lesson and how the interactive tool is utilized to facilitate in depth thinking. The students need to be brought into the lesson and made to think more than just the obvious thoughts. The tool is only as good as the person using it, and the lessons need to be created to utilize the tool in the most effective manner.

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Interactive tools can be used to their best potential by the educators putting in the time to uderstand them and their abilities. If the teacher can learn how to use them inside and out, then the focus can be turned to using those features to the best of their ability for the lessons.
One way for teachers to utilize the tool would be to take a lesson or activity they already know is successful and enhance it by using the tool. This will hopefully make it even more interactive and benefit students' learning.
A second way would be to have students use the tool and experiment with what they like or the way they feel they learn best. As in the article, have the students incorporate their ideas or strategies and then review and respond to see which works best.
Lastly the tool needs to be utilized in ways that keep the students actively participating and engaged. As long as the student is paying attention and involved, they will take something away from the lesson. And as long as students are taking new information away from lessons, then I would say the tool is being effective. Also, by showing them you care and are trying to utilize things that will help them, I think they will respond and appreciate it even more.