Initiatives+to+Address+Needs



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The goal here is for students to achieve a higher level of academic success while they interact with the teacher and a Smart Board (Interactive White Board). I will develop a team that consists of 2 classroom teachers, 1 reading specialist, 1 math specialist, and at least 1 administrator. Between us we will decide on a leader. The leader should be able to motivate and engage the entire team into successfully developing a plan that will support the need for implementing Smart Boards into our school. We will research the hardware and software needed, as well as grants and different forms of funding, we will also propose a schedule for professional development, and cover maintenance procedures as well evaluation and modification strategies. It is important for my team and I to consider all information (supportive and non-supportive data) when addressing the needs of our technology initiative. We need to be able to understand and explain the data that does not support our initiative. Understanding the non-supportive data will help us to adjust and respond to that data thus being able to build a stronger case for our proposal.
 * Overview: **

Smart Boards are making lessons more exciting and engaging, increasing student alertness and retention. Think about your students they are used to living in a multimedia environment. They do their homework with the television on or radio playing as they send text messages at the same time. Can you put these same students into a classroom with a blackboard and an overhead projector and expect to hold their attention?

A Smart Board is a tool used for creating and sharing information. When hooked up to a computer, the white board becomes a live computer desktop.  Users can present, alter and save information. The teacher or student can use their finger right on the board as a mouse, controlling any computer application. Picking up one of the Smart pens switches into writing mode. Notes can be written in digital ink directly over images, documents, or web pages. The notes and pages written on can be saved to a file. This is a great way to catch up students who were absent on a particular day.

First of all, the most important benefit of a smart board is that it is user friendly. Anyone can use it without extensive training. I was trained on its basic use in about a six-hour time frame. This technology is also a great way teachers can expose students to all the different learning styles. For example, tactile learners can benefit from touching and marking at the board, audio learners can hear the class discussion, and visual learners can see what is taking place as it develops at the board. (Bell, 2002) According to Dr. Mary Ann Bell, research indicates that students respond to displays where color is employed. The interactive white board is a colorful tool where marking can be customized both in the pen and in the highlighter features to display a number of different colors. The width of lines can also be adjusted to add flexible-marking choices as well. Interactive white boards may be beneficial to students with special needs. For example, the large fonts and bright colors might be helpful for both visually impaired students and those who have trouble staying on task, while students who respond well to kinesthetic learning will benefit from touching the board. Learners show increased motivation and enjoy the interaction this technology offers. I feel that it almost seems to make the subject matter come to life. Students can create projects such as graphs in Excel, concept maps, power points, etc. that they can share with each other or with parents on back to school night or during conferences. Because the students are able to interact with the board they will be more willing to participate in classroom discussions and lessons. Teachers have the flexibility and the scope for imaginative lesson planning by using the numerous amounts of resources available on the web and in the notebook software provided with the board. As well teachers can use the board for distance learning, and students who were absent can view the saved lessons with recorded notes.
 * Advantages: **

__**Case Studies: **__ The Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind in St Augustine, wanted to improve learning outcomes by standardizing on an interactive whiteboard that would benefit all students. By using the Smart Interactive Whiteboard teachers were able to keep their hands free to use sign language. Students with some visual impairment can see computer images during lessons and teachers say students are more focused on lessons and motivated to learn. ("Smartboards.com (education solutions)," 2007)

Jennings school district is an at-risk district located in a low-income area of St Louis, Missouri. Seventy-seven percent of Jennings students qualify for free and reduced-fee lunch programs, and many students come to the district two or three years behind their grade level. The staff wanted to close the achievement gap. To achieve this goal the district needed to find a way to provide their students with access to technology that would help them implement an inquiry-based approach to education. Administrators created a plan to reallocate funds and purchased technology such as SMART Board interactive whiteboards. They also provided teachers with technology training and put the technology in core classrooms to ensure all students were exposed to this new teaching style. The results show that Jennings students have raised their test scores, but that's not all. Attendance levels and motivation levels are way up, and behavior problems are way down. Since putting technology in the hands of properly trained staff, Jennings has also noticed that teachers were rejuvenated and excited to teach. ("Smartboards.com (education solutions)," 2007)

Interactive whiteboards are more expensive than comparable traditional whiteboards or projector screens. While this may not pose a problem for large corporations wanting to use these tools in their meeting rooms, it makes them difficult for some schools and nonprofit organizations to obtain. (Newman, 2010) Some feel that someone mistakenly using a regular marker to write on the board can easily damage the surface of a Smart board. Also, the board has a fixed height and the top may be too high to reach or the bottom may be too low to be visible. Some teachers feel that they get so wrapped up in the technical components they overlook classroom discipline. They feel they are unable to monitor students to see who is paying attention and who is not. The Smart board may be hard to write on; your body can cast a shadow or make unwanted marks when the pen feature is in use. There are teachers who are not so technically inclined, and when difficulties occur they become frustrated as they spend class time troubleshooting the problem, thus taking away from the learning environment.
 * Disadvantages: **

While the Smart board may be more expensive it has access to more resources than a traditional white board. For example students can sort shapes into different attributes just by moving them with their finger, they can view web pages and navigate from one to another just by touching the screen, and the information that is written on the pages can be saved for later use. Apply for grants. To protect the board from damage it is important to stress to the students that it is not a real white board. Show them and explain to them how it works. Ask students to let anyone who comes into the room and is not familiar with the Smart board; know they cannot use regular markers on it. When I am not going to be in the room, I leave a note on my board that says; "Please Do Not Use the Smart Board: It is not a white board! Thank You." As far as the fixed height you will want to arrange your room so everyone has a clear view of the entire board. If it is too tall then you can get a wide sturdy stool that can be easily moved under the board when not needed. If someone is having classroom management issues while using the Smart board, then they should consider reteaching their expectations to the students, set rules and consequences and be sure to enforce them. When writing on the Smart board you just need to adjust to a style or stance that works for you. To prevent spending instructional time trouble shooting technical problems a teacher should have a back up plan. Teachers should be excited about teaching; they must take the steps needed to do whatever they can to be a successful teacher. That means attending in-services, training workshops, and even college courses. Technology is our future and teachers most of all need to know how to use it!
 * Supportive Suggestions: **

So we must ask ourselves if the benefits of using Smart boards outweigh the disadvantages? Yes I believe they do. Is an interactive white board more than a toy or gimmick? Bell states, "The answer is a resounding yes! With proper planning, preparation, and training, it is a powerful instructional tool, which can be adapted for use with a wide range of subjects and ages." (Bell, 2002) This will enable teachers to help students obtain high academic achievement, and this is our goal.
 * Conclusion: **

Addressing Standards Technology Plan and Research Report