Am I missing something?

[Tim Unger]

I sit on the B.O.E. for a small parochial school and have been trying to research Smartboards. Our school purchased one last year and I see no diference between that and a computer with a projector. It took every cent of the P.T.O. to purchase and now the B.O.E. is wanting to purchace another. We have an extreemly outdated computer room and it is either a Smartboard or Computer Lab update. With out statistics I am opposed to Smartboards until our Comp. Lab is correctly updated. Am I missing something that makes this Smartboard a better investment than our Computer Lab when it would cost all of our money and only service the 8th grade class room?

[Christi Squires]

You better believe you are missing something. 

I have been teaching first grade in a small rural school district for the past 29 years.  I am just completing my third year of teaching with a SMARTBoard and I can’t imagine teaching without it again. My students love interacting with the board. They pick up concepts so much faster when I use the SMARTBoard.   For example I just taught them how to add 2 digit numbers using regrouping in a week and a half.  They now think it is easy.   

Please do your school a favor, take the time to go to a classroom where the teacher knows how to use the SMARTBoard correctly.  You will see why it is important to get interactive whiteboards into the classroom.

[Tracey Carlson]

Having had to revert to a standard projector earlier this year due to need for work on the smartboard projector, I missed the smartboard tremendously. The interactvity and features of notebook software really changed the way I teach and I felt tied up not being able to use the board or for the students to use it. The mouse and keyboard felt restrictive and students could not draw, write easily and felt frustrated. If the teacher with the board is using the board only as a projector would be used, then send them to be inspired by people who use the interactivity properly in their teaching or give another teacher the opportunity. Every student getting the hands on opportunity of individual computers is also important so good luck with your choice. I, for one, still don't have facebook,twitter or the like and have a relatively simple mobile phone and hate texting. 

[Matt Granger]

No wonder you don't get it! You're old fashioned;-) Come on members, chime in on this.

One thing I'll say is that the Notebook software that comes with the board is what really drives SMART Board use. You can't get that with just the projector. Notebook is what the lessons are created in, though the board allows the students and/or teacher to interact with any program you have running. Check out the SMART Exchange for lessons that others have made and shared. That will give you some idea of what is possible. You can preview the lessons by clicking on the thumbnail. You won't get the full experience of what's possible since the preview won't let you interact, but it's a start. You can also click the button to view in Notebook Express, the online version of Notebook. I'm not sure if you have to be a member for that or not.

Speaking of projectors, SMART now has an interactive projector which doesn't require a board. That may be another option. You get the license for Notebook with that, so it is a "SMART Board", but on any surface. Again, Notebook is the real power behind the board.

Here is a link to some research as well. However, you do have a valid point about needing to upgrade the lab. But let me ask a question, because I've seen too many upgrades that don't really change anything: Are there things that teachers want to do in the lab that the current computers can't do?

I have a couple of outdated computers in my room as school, but they can handle everything I ask of them. I keep them around because they still do the job required of them. When we do get new computers in the building, many teachers get rid of the "old ones" and replace them with the new ones. But they don't do anything different with the new ones that the "old ones" weren't already doing, albeit a few ticks slower. I usually collect the "old ones" and put them in my room. I've collected enough to have a 2:1 ratio of computers to students IN MY CLASSROOM! I have 12 up and running in my room, most of them are the "old ones." That is another thing to consider before upgrading because they are old.

Hope that helps and gets the conversation started. Come on people. Help him out here.

[Tim Unger]

Thank you very much. I am rather new to the social networking revolution...LOL...Infact I still don't have a camera phone and just joined facebook two weeks ago!

[Matt Granger]

I sent this out through twitter. That usually brings in some responses.