INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS


Research shows the impact of interactive technology in education. We look at how this has informed Promethean’s latest launch


that the technology is widely regarded as an essential teaching and learning tool. Add to this Becta research in 2009 revealing that 95 per cent of teachers believe that the use of technology is raising standards in schools and colleges and there is no question that IWBs have a huge role to play in the future of teaching and learning in our schools. However, with the advent of new ways of interacting with technology, IWBs need to evolve to remain an essential part of the 21st century classroom. Jim Wynn, chief education officer for


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classroom technology provider Promethean, explained: “Installed in around three quarters of UK classrooms, IWBs are already widely preferred as the natural medium to present interactive content to students, with research repeatedly providing evidence of their positive impact on student attainment, motivation and attendance in class.” Such evidence includes a recent study


conducted by leading educational researcher Dr Robert Marzano. The findings of theMarzano Impact 2 study reported an average increase of 16 percentile points in student achievement when teachers use interactive technologies. The study also found that using a complete


suite of complementary interactive tools, combined with teacher training, is most effective in delivering results. While the industry agrees that effective teacher training and professional development is vital, Dr Marzano’s research has, for the first time, drawn a direct and positive correlation between interactive classroom technologies, training and instructional practice. More than 5,000 students and 170 teachers


contributed to the study, which was carried out in the United States and examined the performance of two student groups over the academic years of 2008/09 and 2009/10. Both groups were taught the same


curriculum content, one via a suite of interactive technologies and resources, and one without. Results over these two years were consistent: student achievement was significantly higher when lessons were delivered using Promethean ActivClassroom technologies. The validity of Dr Marzano’s research


findings has been endorsed by leading education academic, Dr Gene Glass, who invented meta-analysis. He said: “One way of phrasing these findings is that a class employing the technology would gain 12 months’ achievement in a nine-month school year.” Following this research, Promethean has


redefined the interactive whiteboard – just like Apple redefined the tablet PC. The next generation of board, named the ActivBoard


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500 Pro, has multi-touch capability and will be showcased at BETT 2011. Operated simultaneously by both pen and


touch, it brings together popular, everyday technology experiences familiar to users of the iPhone, iPad and Windows 7 products. Designed to maximise the potential of


new and emerging multi-touch content and applications for education, the ActivBoard 500 Pro series provides a more intuitive way of performing tasks. Real-world hand gestures (tap, flick, swipe,


pinch, rotate) can be used to interact with content and media, while the ActivPen is provided for writing actions that require greater accuracy. This development means that rather than


teachers being offered a choice between pen or touch-operated systems, they can now choose a dual mode board and select the most intuitive input method according to the task in hand.


Mr Wynn continued: “Creating a


collaborative, immersive and inclusive digital experience, the ActivBoard 500 Pro series provides teachers with access to a true dual mode solution. The genuine multi-touch capability differentiates between pen and touch input, allowing the user to define actions or functions in the software or when manipulating content. “Expectations and usability of technology


have changed with developments in consumer electronics, and with it a new set of actions has emerged – the tap of a screen has replaced the click of a button. These digital behaviours are now automatic reactions and can be used to operate our new generation of interactive whiteboard.”


Further information


Promethean can be found at BETT 2011 on stand B30.


SecEd • 5to7 Educator


oday, 72 per cent of all UK school learning spaces are equipped with interactive whiteboards (IWBs), proving


Getting interactive


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