Comments on: Completely meaningless TEFL research results Part One

By: Alex Case

Alex Case — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:53:26 +0000

This really was supposed to be about meaningless research rather than IWBs. This is why I don’t miss giving workshops, keeping TEFL teachers on topic is like herding cats…

By: Philip Kerr

Philip Kerr — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:53:58 +0000

I don’t think anyone could seriously doubt the potential of IWBs, but it’s hard to avoid feeling negative about them because of the way they are sold in ELT contexts (most often as a way of ‘delivering’ a coursebook). Here’s the blurb from a presentation I went to at a conference 10 days ago.
‘Interactive Whiteboards have the power to transform any classroom into a dynamic learning environment, introducing a whole new level of interactivity to it. This session aims to present how teachers can combine English Language teaching with the latest technology to energize their lesson and motivate learners [...]. Activities from XXX Publishing’s brand new Interactive Whiteboard software will be demonstrated.’
A more accurate blurb would have been:
‘Interactive Whiteboards have the power to disguise crap teaching and crap materials, and you can have one for free if you you buy enough copies of our books. This session will use lots of jargon (which I don’t understand, and you don’t need to either), but at the end of it, you too can blather about learning styles and learner differences, and sound vaguely knowledgeable.’

By: Sandy

Sandy — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:37:27 +0000

Well, I bet Henry Ford had similar problems – “you’ll never replace the horse and buggy, mate!” Hmm…

And that bloke that invented the disposable Bic – did they tell him he was wasting his time, what with plenty of cheap pencils around?

Actually I do like the big choice of colours and widths the IAWB markers provide, so I guess it’s a clear step forward. Or an expensive sideways one, maybe…

By: Alex Case

Alex Case — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:41:31 +0000

“So, is there nothing useful that can be said about IWBs? Not at all”

Is this where the confusion comes from? It doesn’t say “nothing at all”, it means that I strongly disagree with the statement that there is nothing useful that can be said about IWBs, as I really thought the rest of that paragraph made clear.

However, “IWBs do/ do not increase learning” are both totally useless statements- to start with, when compared to what?

By: Interactive Whiteboard: Friend or Foe? « ELT and WEB connections

Interactive Whiteboard: Friend or Foe? « ELT and WEB connections — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:05:25 +0000

[...] Interactive Whiteboard: Friend or Foe? Jump to Comments The title of this post comes from a very nice and inspiring presentation by Gareth Davies, on IWBs and the potential benefits of its use in the classroom. As a “tech” fan myself, I’d answer the question with a FRIEND in capital letters. I truly understand the IWBs are certainly not the solution to all our teaching needs, and you souldn’t overuse it, but I can’t agree at all that there’s nothing useful to say about them. [...]

By: Eduardo Trindade

Eduardo Trindade — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 03:29:26 +0000

Dear Alex,
I agree that measuring increased learning is something almost impossible. But that is not the same of saying there’s nothing useful to say about IWBs. Sorry, but I totally disagree with this point of view.
There are several ways you can use an Interactive White Board effectively depending on the softwares you use.
Best,
Eduardo Trindade
http://www.eduardotrindade.com.br

By: Sputnik

Sputnik — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:57:46 +0000

Seriously, this is like eating cake in front of a Weight-Watchers group. We’ve only just got whiteboards here after using blackboards and chalk. I can now draw stick-men with more accuracy and all my students have demonstrated a noticeable appreciation of the present perfect as a result. Plus, I no longer look like I work in a flour mill.

By: Alex Case

Alex Case — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:01:22 +0000

Hi Adam

That could save the teacher a lot of time (although the sending on could take as long as it would have taken the teacher to copy it down at the end of the lesson perhaps??), and classroom copying down time, and it is also a good example of something that could be tested- two classes of students, one copy things down onto their notepads, one has everything emailed to them, test which class learnt more of that language. Could be a useful piece of research and far away from the untestable “IWBs help learning” generalisation I hear and read far too much of.

Tony

My point precisely! A lot of people seem to be agreeing me with a disagreeing tone recently, I am becoming even more incoherent as the years of blogging go by??

By: tonywatt

tonywatt — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:29:44 +0000

indeed, but those suggested case studies sound like very valid research. Qualitative research need not be as ‘scientific’ or ‘generalisable’ as quantitative research but it can be just as useful, if not moreso, esp. in education. more research please!
Tony / @cuppa_coffee

By: Adam

Adam — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:18:20 +0000

The real question is: What’s the difference between an IWB and a normal whiteboard and marker pen? One usually overlooked difference is that the marker pen gets rubbed off and all those great learning opportunities are gone forever, often before the students have had a chance to assimilate it. One huge but underused example of how an IWB can be more effective is the ability to save what’s on it so it can be recycled in a later class for review, or sent to the students electronically so they can review that part of the lesson at home. Now that can lead to increased learning, surely.