Smart Boards . . . Good? or Evil?

No, I really don't think that Smart Boards are evil. A hot debate in EDU580 is whether Smart Boards are productive or not, and I think I'm really kind of in the middle about the debate. I have seen Smart Boards be really engaging and productive with students, and then I have seen it used as just a projection screen, with no real educational value attached to it. I was not able to attend class last week when everyone played around with the Smart Board. I was trying to pull a musical together for dress rehearsal, so I missed out on the activity. However, I went down to the library one day (where there are two Smart Boards), and asked my librarian to give me quick run through of what I can do with the Smart Board. She was very kind to me and showed me the basics. She showed me how to create and use different shapes. She showed me how to write on the Smart Board (be sure to put the pen back!), how to move things around, how to move on to the next screen or slide, etc. It was just the basics, but a good tutorial nonetheless. I'm planning on going back down sometime just to play around with it and see what I can do.

Now, I did enjoy my time with the Smart Board. It got me excited about the things I could do in the math classroom, especially with geometry. I kept thinking that I could make the class interactive, with students coming up to the board to label angles and sides and use theorems and equations. My mind was racing with excitement! Then I started thinking, "Could I do all of those things without the Smart Board?" The answer is definitely yes. Students can come up to the white board just as easily as the Smart Board to write information down. I can draw pictures on a white board, and I can use those pictures to teach geometry topics. But I will say that the Smart Board sure does make things easier. Ultimately, I am pro-Smart Board. It got me excited about teaching, and I think it will get students excited about learning . . . if used correctly. I have seen teachers use a Smart Board as a simple projection screen, and that makes it very boring and much less effective. But if the Smart Board is used as an interactive, engaging classroom tool, I think that possibilities are endless. I can't wait to start learning more and more about the Smart Board.