Smarter technology leads to more interactive lectures

The integration of technology into classrooms becomes increasingly prevalent as both students and teachers seek more efficient and useful methods for a successful learning experience. Document cameras, which magnify copies of paper on projector screens, are becoming a staple in math classes, and two years ago all classrooms were equipped with their own Toshiba projectors.

One of the most innovative technologies on campus resides in AP Statistics and Algebra 2 Honors teacher Seema Patel’s room. Thanks to a grant from the school site council of about $5,000, Patel received a high-tech white board, or SMART Board.

“The SMART Board allows me to have access to all of my files, my Powerpoint slides, my Word documents, everything that I have on my computer, I can get it from my SMART Board,” Patel said.

Attached to one of her whiteboards in front of the classroom, the SMART Board is an interactive screen with four colored markers and an eraser that work electronically on the Board’s screen, making changes to the documents on Patel’s computer, which are projected on the board’s screen.

The SMART Board has the capability to save any text on demand, whether drawn by the board’s markers or even a finger, making the images readily available to be exported elsewhere.

“Everything I do on my computer I do on the SMART Board itself,” Patel said. “One of the reasons I actually like it is that whatever notes I put on that document I can save to my website so kids can have the notes I did in that class for that day.”

Unlike document cameras, which require the teacher to lecture from his or her desk while writing on a projected paper or from a hand-held tablet connected by a power cord, a SMART Board has the least amount of constraint.

“I like to just do it on the board or look around so I can see the expressions,” Patel said. “I am in front of my classroom being interactive with my students instead of having my back to them.”

The SMART Board also provides the opportunity for versatile teaching methods.

“The document camera had me sitting in one spot and I like to be up and about.” Patel said. “I can use my SMART Board in the middle because mine is slide-able and move it to the side when I don’t want to use it and use my whiteboard in addition to it.”

When asked about their experience with the SMART Board, students agreed that it is their favorite form of educational technology.

“I really like it because it’s entertaining,” sophomore William Brown said. “It’s cool, and a good way to learn because it doesn’t waste fumy markers.”

Brown said that Patel uses the board to do notes, warm-ups and homework questions, and that the saved notes, while a convenient learning tool, do not detract from students’ in class participation.

“Online you have to download [the notes].” Brown said. “It’s easier to do them in class.”

Sophomore Kayla Berlinberg agreed that the board helps save supplies and also mentioned that the user interface makes error correction a smooth process.

For Patel, SMART Board utilization is a matter of preference. She said that each teacher has his or her own bias towards certain technologies, but that the general use is becoming more commonplace.

“It’s getting in that direction where people are not wanting to rewrite things on boards because they came up with the document and want to be able to reuse it so they can refer back to it,” she said.