In the past, teachers would use blackboards in classrooms and draw on them with chalk. This was common until the 1990s when classrooms replaced chalkboards with glossy whiteboards that could be written on with colored marker pens.
The first interactive whiteboards were designed in the 1990’s but they were originally intended for offices, rather than schools.
Using interactive whiteboards in the classroom grew in popularity in the early 2000’s and by 2004, 26% of British classrooms had one.
Now, the interactive whiteboard has become a staple in UK schools, present in over 90% of classrooms in Britain.
What are the benefits of using an interactive whiteboard in the classroom?
The interactive whiteboard is an extremely useful tool in the classroom, helping to support learning in a variety of ways.
The interactive element of the whiteboard allows students to be more involved in the lesson – and it’s more engaging for the class. Students can interact with the whiteboard by choosing the correct answers, playing games or writing out spelling words and example sentences.
The interactive whiteboard also presents information to children in a way which is easy-to-read and exciting, helping students to retain information and make better notes. The ability to include images and videos on the screen provides children with a visual aid to stimulate their learning.
One of the clear benefits of interactive whiteboards in the primary classroom is that group activities that involve the interaction of the whole class can be done electronically with presentations prepared in advance, meaning teachers spend less time writing on the board and students have more time to learn.
Another benefit of using the interactive whiteboard is that you can encourage children to work together and centro lessons around problem-solving. You can write or type questions onto the screen for children to answer and get them working in small groups or as a whole class to find the answers.
