Last week I started a series of blogs on the common tools available via technology enabled learning. I talked about chat rooms last time and how to use them to engage learners and keep them motivated.
This time I want to give some attention to interactive whiteboards.
[*While typing this in, I made a typographical error on the word ‘whiteboard’. When I looked at the alternative suggested, the word was ‘skateboard’. Now, I’d really like to see an interactive skateboard but I digress…]
L&D professionals are really used to using flipcharts. They give us freedom and we love them. We can use them for a huge variety of purposes – to post questions up for later, to capture words of wisdom from our participants and so on. We turn round and there they are in all their white pristine splendour.
So it’s a bit of a loss to a trainer who is delivering virtual training not to have that facility (or that crutch depending on how you look at it).
BUT we’re modern and we can adapt.
And the interactive whiteboard can help with the dependency issue.
It isn’t available with every platform so if you think it’s useful, you’ll need to research the best platform to meet your needs. It, as with all bits of technology, requires practice; you need to know how to use it and how your participants can use it before you use it! So set aside time for dummy runs with colleagues before you use it for real.
The whiteboard is one of the most collaborative tools in a classroom, and especially useful for visual learners. It allows for instant visual communication and invites everyone to participate. Kinaesthetic learners also appreciate the ability to interact physically with the tool itself, because it helps to keep their attention focused.
Here are some key points for involving leaners:
- All learners can respond at the same time and build up a ‘picture’ of their thoughts/ideas on a particular subject. You can see all the group responses so it can be the start of a useful discussion.
- Whiteboards usually have a combination of annotation tools, like a pencil, rubber, text, colour, lines, arrows etc. Explain clearly what they have to do to activate the tool and check that they have understood.
- Tell them to type their responses or encourage them to draw pictures if they want to stimulate creativity.
- If only a few of your learners are writing ideas on whiteboard, encourage the reluctant ones. Perhaps you could ask them to comment on the ideas or to interpret the pictures.
Maybe you already use interactive whiteboards? If you do then tell us the pros and cons to encourage those who haven’t dipped their toe in the water yet.
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