I remember being in gr. 9 when our social studies teacher brought this weird thing to class that she stuck on the board. Then she took a very fat pen and pressed it all over the board. In about five minutes she turned an ordinary white board into a massive touch screen.
This also happened in gr. 11 when our maths teacher did this to demonstrate graphs extremely accurately.
So how will I, a biology teacher, be able to use a IWB?
Two thing immediately pop up. Firstly, I would love to have real pictures or great sketches up on the board an be able to label them then and there. And if it is in anyway possible, be able to view it in 3D to give the learners a better idea of anatomy and structure of organs. Secondly, at the and of a section, how cool would it be to make a big mind map on the work we did in class? The learners can all contribute with different colors and information. Afterwards, we can save it as an document for everyone to access.
It is really nice to have technology to your disposal, but two things always bother me when I have to blog about tech in class.
Technology can never excuse a teacher from being prepared and having a thorough understanding of the subject and keeping up with developments in the field. And what about schools, especially in SA, that cannot afford tech like this? Thus, we need to be independent of tech, but innovative, effective and thankful when we actually have it.
Happy teaching :)
