That may seem a little dramatic, but Robert Marzano just completed a research project analyzing the use of interactive whiteboards and student achievement. His findings are very positive. Here is the link to an article about this:
Marzano & Tech
Findings:
- The more tech was used in the classroom appropriately, the higher the percentile increase.
- “If an experienced teacher who’s been using technology for two or more years uses the board appropriately for 75 percent of the class time, and has enough training to be confident in his or her use of the technology, student achievement gains were highest”.
- Teachers must focus on content first not just the bells and whistles.
Content should be:
- Previewed: The teacher should introduce the content to the students.
- Chunked: The content should be delivered in small, digestible chunks of information.
- Scaffolded: Teachers should show one piece of information correlates to the others and build up to the point of the lesson.
- Paced: The teacher must make sure students can keep up but at the same time not get bored.
- Be interactive for students.
