Comments on: Transformative Technology? Really?

By: Sandra Nosik

Sandra Nosik — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:17:51 +0000

Even using a bluetooth tablet ($250 or less), a projector (required for the Smartboard as well), and a blank wall, you can do the same thing as the Smart board except have the mobility of being anywhere in the classroom and letting students do demonstrations for the class from their desks. Still easy and at least a tenth of the cost of Smartboard with more versatility of movement. My husband uses this and no longer teaches from the front of the classroom with his back to the students, but anywhere he in the room that he wants to be.

By: Aaron Fowles

Aaron Fowles — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:50:21 +0000

Look, I’m not advocating expensive IWBs. I use a Wiimote Whiteboard and it works like a charm. If I want to work out a problem with my students, it is MUCH easier to do it at the board. If I want my students do do a review activity of some sort, it’s easier at the board. Transferring power is as simple as handing over a pen.

There is nothing you can do with an IWB that you can’t do on the computer (except drawing, maybe), but being able to stand and get students involved is pretty amazing. Just today I had a whole class practice ANALOGIES on the IWB and they actually liked it! I left the room for a minute and when I came back they were still rocking and rolling. Take that, laptop and projector!

I would never, ever pay 3k for an IWB, though. That’s bloody ridiculous and I think that’s where the opposition to these things stems from. Pedagogically, they are good. That video didn’t SHOW their good sides, but I guarantee you they are there.

By: Lisa Nieslen

Lisa Nieslen — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:40:00 +0000

The IWB does not create a more visually appealing lesson. The laptop and projector do. You can save $2000 by six netbooks and instruct more effectively if you ditch the IWB.

By: Lisa Nieslen

Lisa Nieslen — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:38:00 +0000

Steve, they are not using the Smart Board to look up stuff. They are using the computer. The Smart Board is not a necessary $2000 dollar extra purchase to do that. For looking up stuff they can use the smartphone in their pocket or a netbook.

By: Lisa Nieslen

Lisa Nieslen — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:34:52 +0000

Aaron an you say an IWB enables a teacher to not be chained to their desk, but I challenge that and say to you and IWB FORCES a teacher to be chained to the whiteboard and being the sage on the stage. I would much rather a teacher didn’t use an IWB and instead use a laptop and project where they can 1) maintain eye contact with their students 2) more easily transfer power from teacher to student 3) be able to authentically demonstrate interaction on a computer and keyboard.

Somehow IWB companies have gotten folks to think they are necessary to achieve the same things you can achieve more effectively and affordably with just a projector.

By: Lisa Nieslen

Lisa Nieslen — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:25:57 +0000

My issue with your suggestion is that we don’t need an IWB to do any of this. It can be done for much less money, much more easily, and much more effectively without an IWB. A netbook, projector and free screencasting app like Screentoatr or ScreenJelly does the trick much more effectively and every student can have access to those tools anywhere they can find a netbook, laptop or computer. They don’t need to have an IWB to do any of this.

By: mrsdurff

mrsdurff — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 02:44:02 +0000

So basically this whiteboard is packaged as a glorified worksheet. It’s a transformed worksheet, i get it!
This video misses engaging learners in learning through use of technology. Raising hands in unison from rows of clean desks with a teacher in front is NOT engaging.

By: Keith Nemlich

Keith Nemlich — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 03:13:03 +0000

Having recently visited a classroom with 4 SMART boards being used only by students, this ad does little to emphasize the “transformational” potential of the device. In fact, it looked like the old “sage on the stage” model….with a fancy addition.

By: margo newtown

margo newtown — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 09:43:59 +0000

Unless I am missing something, I didn’t interpret “easy” as meaning make things easy for me as a teacher. I interpreted it as the technology needs to be “simple” enough and reliable so that teachers will use it. I agree the SmartBoard is a glorified chalkboard or whiteboard, but it does create a more visually appealing lesson and when used properly, does provide a forum for engaging students. The hundreds of interactive SmartBoard lessons are engaging and we are constantly striving to find lessons that do keep students interested. So the “ease” of using the SmartBoard is enticing to teachers and students and the interactive lessons exciting for students. I believe it can be used as a tool to enhance learning – not replace it.

By: Elizabeth Crispino

Elizabeth Crispino — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 13:26:36 +0000

If we agree that the video was meant to reach not the innovators but those teachers who WANT everything to be “easy” — easy technology, easy classes, easy instruction, easy job, another key question is this: How do we either change that mindset or move those teachers out of our classrooms? Nothing that’s truly worth learning is “easy.”

By: stevendkrause.com » “Easy” isn’t “useful” (and it might be just kind of “dumb”)

Thu, 11 Feb 2010 13:03:30 +0000

[...] Will Richardson’s blog and his entry “Transformative Technology? Really?” about a video from a company (maybe the company? I don’t know) that makes “smart [...]

By: Steve Krause

Steve Krause — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 11:55:58 +0000

But at least its easy!

One of the things that’s kind of interesting to me about this is these smart boards can actually be kind of interesting. They have them at my kid’s school (none in my building at the university though), and there they use them to look stuff up on the internet, to do some collaborative projects, etc.; what I’ve seen is the students playing around with them as much as the teachers.

So maybe it isn’t the tool but the company promoting it and/or the teachers demonstrating it.

This reminded me of this article (which also includes a video!) from CHE: “Class Produces Parody of ‘The Office’ to Highlight Challenges of Teaching With Technology.” Very funny stuff!

By: Retweeting and the power of comments – Thanks Will Richardson and Karen Rubin | Johnny Stryker

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:40:25 +0000

[...] on one of his blog posts called “Transformative Technology? Really?” – http://weblogg-ed.com/2010/transformative-technology-really/. Will’s blog post focused on a Smart Technologies promotional video which I had written [...]

By: Becky Grube

Becky Grube — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 03:05:18 +0000

The students look like little robots as they all raise their hands. The teacher looks like someone who is programmed, too.

The whole thing looks like an advertisement for something that will work well (as demonstrated) in a traditional classroom of the past 100 years where neither students nor teachers need to nor want to think. Yikes!

What a great example of taking a piece of technology and “fitting” it into a setting of “the way we were”–kids sitting in rows, listening to a teacher talk, and regurgitating responses to rote questions.

Are we actually living in the 21st century here? Very frightening!

I don’t think you were missing anything!

By: MiamiFlute

MiamiFlute — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 02:50:32 +0000

It’s not about the technology, or the SMARTBOARD, or the whatever. It is about teacher-directed vs. student-directed education. I didn’t see any student-to-student learning in the video (although, I admit I did fast forward a bit after the 5th “easy”). Until teachers accept not being the center of attention for 6.5 hours each day, I doubt that any leap of technological genius will change education.