Electronic whiteboards

Yorky

The school which a friends child attends are raising funds to purchase four electronic whiteboards at a cost of €4000 each for the senior classes to use. My friend has reservations about the value of these when one or more of the teachers they are for are not computer literate and there are other priorities such as upgrading the computer suite which is about eight years old.

What's wrong with the old black/white board and textbook method of teaching?

Does anyone have any views / advice on this?

Nevyn

One was installed in my son's classroom.
I think it is a wonderfull assest to the class and it will be a lot easier to keep the children's
focus and attention on the topics using the functions on it.
Kids these days are used to a higher level of interactivity.

aster99

I've never seen one operating but have heard they are brilliant!!

muckety

They are popular at the moment, I've heard of several schools installing them - a favourite for parent's associations to run fund raisers for. However, they are simply another teaching tool, not a magic solution - a good teacher and a blackboard (or non-electronic whiteboard) should be sufficient!

LilyC

The whiteboards are brilliant. They istalled them in my sons school last year and all the teachers went on a training course to use them. The internet is programed into them so any questions the kids need answered for a project can be put up and saves a lot of time than the teacher writing the info for them. Also if they are doing music for instance they can have the tune played and on repeat. Really should be in all schools and not left to parents to need to fundraise for them.

dolliemix

Teacher here. Whiteboards are definitely the way to go. The children love them. Our children do not know a time when there was no internet. Technology is the future and our students should be taught accordingly. When I got the whiteboard first - the kids were showing me what to do. We can use the internet for everything. Learning can become fun.

The blackboard still has it's advantages but to be honest children have a different attention span than when I was in school. They live in media obsessed society. They are bombarded with variety, colour, images and originality......we as educators (and that includes parents who can help to fundraise) need to keep up with them in order to hold their interest.

cheezyfeet

Personally I have major issues with elec. whiteboards, firstly from an ergonomic point of view. Kids already spend way too much time in front of screens of various sorts without adding to it in school as well. I believe that primary aged children should be writing on real paper with real pens and reading real books, instead of relying so much on the whiteboards.

Also, i find the cost of them to be completely insulting. There are many examples on YouTube and other places where any IT savvy parent could knock one up for as little as a couple of hundred euros, yet companies who produce these boards are making fat profits. That really gets my back up.

Rant over.

dolliemix

cheezyfeet wrote: »

Personally I have major issues with elec. whiteboards, firstly from an ergonomic point of view. Kids already spend way too much time in front of screens of various sorts without adding to it in school as well. I believe that primary aged children should be writing on real paper with real pens and reading real books, instead of relying so much on the whiteboards.

Also, i find the cost of them to be completely insulting. There are many examples on YouTube and other places where any IT savvy parent could knock one up for as little as a couple of hundred euros, yet companies who produce these boards are making fat profits. That really gets my back up.

Rant over.

The teacher uses the whiteboard! The children still use real pens, real paper and real books!!! There is no question of that

The Whiteboard is used as an additional educational resource. It is stimulating and above all else can be extremely beneficial in encouraging the child's creative side........especially children who have special needs.

We know, that blackboard - book- copy type learning does not work for all children

cheezyfeet

Well, some of the literature produced by companies who produce whiteboards talks about the children using a "pen" to work on the whiteboard that mimics a real pen, allows them to "turn pages" like a real book, etc.

I think many schools use whiteboards as tools for children to do some of their work and store it for later use, so children are using the whiteboards too.

I'm really just concerned that every school in the country seems to be jumping on this particular bandwagon without recourse to proper studies of the health and safety ramifications for kids. Like I said before, kids spend enough time in front of screens. Are there any guidelines out there for how much of the school day whiteboards should be used for? Cos if there are, I haven't seen any.

KateF

dolliemix wrote: »

Teacher here. Whiteboards are definitely the way to go. The children love them. Our children do not know a time when there was no internet. Technology is the future and our students should be taught accordingly. When I got the whiteboard first - the kids were showing me what to do. We can use the internet for everything. Learning can become fun.

The blackboard still has it's advantages but to be honest children have a different attention span than when I was in school. They live in media obsessed society. They are bombarded with variety, colour, images and originality......we as educators (and that includes parents who can help to fundraise) need to keep up with them in order to hold their interest.

I agree with you 100% Dolliemix.
They are fantastic. I'm training in the UK and they are in most schools. The children love them, and they can be used in every curricular area.
It keeps the children interested. And I would love one in my classroom when I return home!

dolliemix

To cheezyfeet

What health and safety ramifications?

Maybe, if as you suggest, all the children are using whiteboards at the same time in the same classroom....there would be safety problems because there wouldn't be enough room!!!!:D


To be honest, the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages, if there are any.


Have you spoken to the teachers who use them?....Any complaints?

Why would you disagree with professionals who monitor students progress and have years of experience?

Have you spoken to the children who have one in the classroom?.....Any complaints?

Surely they know!

No offense but there are much bigger issues in education to be complaining about - at least 1000 teachers will not be returning to schools next September; Pupil - Teacher ratio to increase; special needs students will lose the extra help they have been getting; disadvantaged schools are to lose finance for extra curricular activities....and the list goes on.

I can assure you , as a teacher, if the school your child is attending is aiming to provide the students with a whiteboard, it is a good thing.

cheezyfeet

Can I ask you, Dolliemix, as a teacher (and any other teachers out there), what proportion of the day do you use whiteboards? Is it just 15 mins here and there, or is it for one particular lesson, or is it pretty much on all day?

My concerns are primarily about children staring at yet another screen all day, and there don't seem to have been any studies about this.

KateF

cheezyfeet wrote: »

Can I ask you, Dolliemix, as a teacher (and any other teachers out there), what proportion of the day do you use whiteboards? Is it just 15 mins here and there, or is it for one particular lesson, or is it pretty much on all day?

My concerns are primarily about children staring at yet another screen all day, and there don't seem to have been any studies about this.

Hi,
Well the children don't sit there and watch the teacher navigating around a computer screen all day if thats what you are worried about.
They are used for certain parts of lessons...they are simply not suitable to all lessons, but they give lessons a new and interesting slant that the children can relate to. So it might be used for an introduction to a lesson, or the activity part as a whole class effort. So maybe, if you added all the time in a week, it would be 4-5 hours? It depends, because you are not going to use them the same amount each day.
I think perhaps if you saw them being used you would understand

dolliemix

cheezyfeet wrote: »

Well, some of the literature produced by companies who produce whiteboards talks about the children using a "pen" to work on the whiteboard that mimics a real pen, allows them to "turn pages" like a real book, etc.

I think many schools use whiteboards as tools for children to do some of their work and store it for later use, so children are using the whiteboards too.

I'm really just concerned that every school in the country seems to be jumping on this particular bandwagon without recourse to proper studies of the health and safety ramifications for kids. Like I said before, kids spend enough time in front of screens. Are there any guidelines out there for how much of the school day whiteboards should be used for? Cos if there are, I haven't seen any.

cheezyfeet wrote: »

Can I ask you, Dolliemix, as a teacher (and any other teachers out there), what proportion of the day do you use whiteboards? Is it just 15 mins here and there, or is it for one particular lesson, or is it pretty much on all day?

My concerns are primarily about children staring at yet another screen all day, and there don't seem to have been any studies about this.

To be honest I have answered a lot of your questions already. Maybe I'm reading into this wrong, but you seem more intent in arguing with me about something that you have no hands on experience of. Every other poster has confirmed my views on electronic boards.....I won't be responding to you anymore if you are just here to discredit the experience my students and I have had.

Perhaps if you are so concerned about the amount of time children are spending infront of a screen ......you should be questioning the value of what the children are looking at when at home, under parental supervision.

I cant give you actual figures, like KateF says, it varies from day to day and week to week. Teaching doesn't work that way!! While a lot of planning is involved - the whiteboard allows for spontaneity and access to up to the minute topics. Whatever the child needs in order to learn, we will, as much as possible, provide that for them. The whiteboard has been a very effective tool in this regard.

I feel you have a very low - opinion of teachers and their professional outlook. You seem to know better than us......it's insulting to say the least.

Nevyn

It's not a screen like tv or a lcd or a crt monitor, tbh it's a glorified over head projector
with a heap of interfaces.

markens2

Like a poster above I'm training in England at the moment and most classrooms have them. They are a huge asset and so helpful.
They can be over used though. I know of teachers who can't do it without them.

I would strongly recommend them however as they open up a whole new world of interactivity.

Hillel

dolliemix wrote: »

To be honest I have answered a lot of your questions already. Maybe I'm reading into this wrong, but you seem more intent in arguing with me about something that you have no hands on experience of. Every other poster has confirmed my views on electronic boards.....I won't be responding to you anymore if you are just here to discredit the experience my students and I have had.

Perhaps if you are so concerned about the amount of time children are spending infront of a screen ......you should be questioning the value of what the children are looking at when at home, under parental supervision.

I cant give you actual figures, like KateF says, it varies from day to day and week to week. Teaching doesn't work that way!! While a lot of planning is involved - the whiteboard allows for spontaneity and access to up to the minute topics. Whatever the child needs in order to learn, we will, as much as possible, provide that for them. The whiteboard has been a very effective tool in this regard.

I feel you have a very low - opinion of teachers and their professional outlook. You seem to know better than us......it's insulting to say the least.

Dolliemix,

I am puzzled by your unqualified endorsement of this technology.
I wouldn't have rated it as a "must have" - particularly with so many other areas crying out for attention.
....and yes, I do know what I am talking about.
I have used Chalk, Whiteboards, OHP's, Flip Charts, pretty much every approach available.

I have used Electronic Whiteboards in Industry, for over 10 years, for every age group from 16yrs to 50+.
Bottom line we always gravitate towards "normal" White Boards, Flip Charts and Powerpoint Presentations using an OHP.
The only time we tend to use electronic White Boards is where we have a multi-site workshop, using videoconferencing.
(With electronic whiteboards, users on both sites can "share" the same whiteboard.)

I have never taught youngsters under 16. (Most of my teaching work was at 3rd level.)
What are the advantages of electronic whiteboards over cheaper technologies?
Are these sufficient to warrant the cost?
What subjects do you use it for?
Do you use special software?

You mention that "the whiteboard allows for spontaneity and access to up to the minute topics".
Surely a PC connected to an OHP would give the same result at substantially lower cost?

thetyreman

Is it true that these can be purchased for 2000/2500 euro now.
and is there much of a yearly cost in upgradeing/serviceing and such.

star-bright

Interactive Whiteboards are amazing. They provide huge advantages in the classroom. Anyone who has used one will tell you that and most importantly the children lucky enough to have them love them.
People worried about them clearly have little or no experience of teaching children. They are not used like a computer all day, you can write on them like an old whiteboard with the interactive pen and then save important things.
I will admit I had reservations about them to begin with but once I had the opportunity to use one with a class I saw first hand as a teacher how good they are.
As for health and safety I would be much more worried about classes that still have blackboards (and there are some!), breathing in chalk dust all day not good!

Hillel

thetyreman wrote: »

is there much of a yearly cost in upgradeing/serviceing and such.

That depends on the supplier and on the IT Skills available within the School. There is no need for servicing, if the installation is done properly in the first place. It is particularly important that the OHP is connected to a secure anchor point. Installers often skimp on this, leading to ongoing problems.
Bulbs in the OHP will fail, but these can be bought on-line at a fraction of the cost of getting your supplier/fitter to do the working. Fitting the replacement bulb is straightforward.
The whiteboard driver and software can be updated by the manufacturer, from time to time. Basic IT skills, only, are required to update the software, in house.
I couldn't find reliability figures for Smart boards in a heavy use setting, such as a school. However, some suppliers are quoting a 5 year warranty.

star-bright wrote: »

Interactive Whiteboards are amazing. They provide huge advantages in the classroom. Anyone who has used one will tell you that and most importantly the children lucky enough to have them love them.

But what are those "huge" advantages? Why do the children lucky enough to have them love them? Could the same effect be gained with existing and/or less costly approaches.

I would be interested to hear from any teacher who has used a whiteboard as a central part of their teaching pedagogy, once the novelty of the "new toy" has worn off.

The same money would buy a number of replacement PC's for a school which could be used to give pupils direct, hands on , experience. Why is this not better use of scarce resources?

It is also worth emphasising, as other contributors have noted, that less expensive technologies are now becoming available. These give a similar experience, at a fraction of the cost.

dolliemix

Hillel wrote: »

Dolliemix,

I am puzzled by your unqualified endorsement of this technology.
I wouldn't have rated it as a "must have" - particularly with so many other areas crying out for attention.
....and yes, I do know what I am talking about.
I have used Chalk, Whiteboards, OHP's, Flip Charts, pretty much every approach available.

I have used Electronic Whiteboards in Industry, for over 10 years, for every age group from 16yrs to 50+.
Bottom line we always gravitate towards "normal" White Boards, Flip Charts and Powerpoint Presentations using an OHP.
The only time we tend to use electronic White Boards is where we have a multi-site workshop, using videoconferencing.
(With electronic whiteboards, users on both sites can "share" the same whiteboard.)

I have never taught youngsters under 16. (Most of my teaching work was at 3rd level.)
What are the advantages of electronic whiteboards over cheaper technologies?
Are these sufficient to warrant the cost?
What subjects do you use it for?
Do you use special software?

You mention that "the whiteboard allows for spontaneity and access to up to the minute topics".
Surely a PC connected to an OHP would give the same result at substantially lower cost?

unqualified endorsement????

I use it almost everyday in the classroom and as I have explained already TWICE it is hugely beneficial. This is a fact!!!!

I never said it was a 'must have'. It's an extremely useful addition to the classroom :mad:

Good for you with all your experience of different boards! I am simply saying that in my classroom the addition of the whiteboard has helped immensely.

Why would you have a problem with me saying that????

Hillel

dolliemix wrote: »

unqualified endorsement???? I use it almost everyday in the classroom and as I have explained already TWICE it is hugely beneficial. This is a fact!!!! I never said it was a 'must have'. It's an extremely useful addition to the classroom :mad: Good for you with all your experience of different boards! I am simply saying that in my classroom the addition of the whiteboard has helped immensely. Why would you have a problem with me saying that????

I am deeply interested in education, particularly the use of technology to promote learning. Electronic whiteboards are just one of many tools in this area.
That they have some value I do not question. However, I do question:
1. Whether they should be a priority for parents fundraising, given the multiple constraints in the educational system.
2. Whether they should be introduced willy, nilly, without any real understanding of how best they can be used or the Health and Safety concerns.
3. Whether the current generation of whiteboards are a good investment when far cheaper, more cost effective, alternatives are starting to appear.
4. Whether whiteboards have any long-term place in the classroom, given ongoing work on using technology to support learning.
5. If they do have a place, how they can be introduced as a shared resource, accessible to, and shared by, all the teachers in a school.
(They are simply too expensive to be restricted to one teacher, who uses it for 4-5 hours a week.)


Let’s go through the thread a little:

dolliemix wrote: »

Teacher here. Whiteboards are definitely the way to go. The children love them.

I can understand this, children love any new gadget. (This is one of the reasons that technology can be an effective educational support tool.)

cheezyfeet wrote: »

i find the cost of them to be completely insulting. There are many examples on YouTube and other places where any IT savvy parent could knock one up for as little as a couple of hundred euros, yet companies who produce these boards are making fat profits. That really gets my back up. Rant over.

I absolutely agree with you.

dolliemix wrote: »

Technology is the future and our students should be taught accordingly. When I got the whiteboard first - the kids were showing me what to do. We can use the internet for everything. Learning can become fun.

I agree with you on both the importance of technology and the Internet. It would appear to be driving entirely new pedagogies - and even a move towards self learning with older pupils. However, electronic whiteboards are necessary for none of this. I would argue that personal computers for pupils, even where these must be shared, are far more valuable. They give pupils direct hands on experience and can also give moderated access to the Internet.

dolliemix wrote: »

The teacher uses the whiteboard! The children still use real pens, real paper and real books!!! There is no question of that

That paradigm, i.e. that “children still use real pens, real paper and real books” raises a red flag, of itself. What then the advantage of introducing the technology. (it is, at best, marginal.) New learning approaches require PC’s, tablets, whatever, that can be used by the pupils themselves, with the teacher providing a supporting role. That leads to my earlier premise – that scarce resources, in this case from fundraising by parents, would be better employed buying additional computers for the school which would give hands-on experience of IT to the children.
(Money will also be required for buying educational software and training teachers training in its use.)

cheezyfeet wrote: »

I'm really just concerned that every school in the country seems to be jumping on this particular bandwagon without recourse to proper studies of the health and safety ramifications for kids. Like I said before, kids spend enough time in front of screens. Are there any guidelines out there for how much of the school day whiteboards should be used for? Cos if there are, I haven't seen any.

dolliemix wrote: »

To cheezyfeet What health and safety ramifications? Maybe, if as you suggest, all the children are using whiteboards at the same time in the same classroom....there would be safety problems because there wouldn't be enough room!!!!:D

You are asking an extremely pertinent question, cheezyfeet. It would appear that this technology is being deployed in educational settings before the H&S ramifications, let alone the H&S guidelines, are known. It would concern me greatly that any educator, let alone someone actively promoting the approach, is unaware of this. The following link confirms that I am not alone in having concerns: http://blog.totalinjury.com/archives/general-electronic-whiteboards-may-harm-students-and-teachers.html That reference covers one area of concern, only. There are others. I won’t comment further as I am not an expert in this area.

cheezyfeet wrote: »

Can I ask you, Dolliemix, as a teacher (and any other teachers out there), what proportion of the day do you use whiteboards? Is it just 15 mins here and there, or is it for one particular lesson, or is it pretty much on all day? My concerns are primarily about children staring at yet another screen all day, and there don't seem to have been any studies about this.

dolliemix wrote: »

Maybe I'm reading into this wrong, but you seem more intent in arguing with me about something that you have no hands on experience of. Every other poster has confirmed my views on electronic boards.....I won't be responding to you anymore if you are just here to discredit the experience my students and I have had.

Dollimix, cheezyfeet raised a legitimate query and did NOT deserve this reply. Neither has “every other poster” confirmed your view. Even if they had, the sample involved is not statistically significant.

dolliemix wrote: »

The whiteboard has been a very effective tool in this regard. I feel you have a very low - opinion of teachers and their professional outlook. You seem to know better than us......it's insulting to say the least.

Not only am I puzzled by your unqualified endorsement of this technology, I am appalled by the tone and condensing attitude in some of your responses. From where do you claim professional expertise in this area? By your own admission “When I got the whiteboard first - the kids were showing me what to do.” I can only hope that you are still a young member of the profession and that you will mature as you gain further experience!

star-bright

Stop saying dolliemix is unqualified she has already said that she is! Just because she doen't agree with your opinions. I'll admit that I am only almost qualified but I hear every day in college of the advantages of interactive whiteboards in a range of subject areas.

byhookorbycrook

I'd like more computers in classes above whiteboards,yes whiteboards can be a wonderful learning tool, but with money so tight they would be down the list for me.

thehamo

Its hard to get into the benifits of the white board without going in to learning styles of different pupils and all sorts of theory but here is my two cents as to why they are an amazing resource for primary teaching.

as the name suggests, they are interactive white boards. It is not anyway similar to having an OHP and simply showing a presentation to the kids.

Pupils have the opportunity to come up to the board and actively engage with it. There are so many web sites and educational resources out there that are geared towards the white boards and have some wonderful activities that simply could not be done by traditional methods.

We are living in such a media and technological based society today, it is important that children are subject to such technologies. Attentions and attitudes of the children have changed. Any child you talk to now about a subject will tell you what they learned about it on the internet. Imagine being able to transfer and supplement this enthusiasm for technological learning in the classroom. For an active learner, or even the kinesthetic learner, being able to write a sentence and change it into different fonts, coulours etc, to be able to move items around a large white board by touching it, has them simply engrossed in a lesson where as previously they would have just strayed off. Im not saying that they should take over traditional methods, however, they blow open a whole new world of possibilities in teaching and learning that can simply only be a good thing.

IN terms of the argument of a computer room, time for these rooms are limited for the classes. They do not get the full potential by having 1 half our session every week. Using a white board can be directly related to anything that is being learned in the classroom, at any time.

In terms of health and safety, I can see absolutely no problems. There is no different between looking at a picture hung on a white board and a picture projected onto a white board.

Anyway, I know its a long piece but I just wanted to give my tuppence worth, and I will finish by saying that these white boards are the future.

Hillel

thehamo wrote: »

In terms of health and safety, I can see absolutely no problems.

The most serious concern relates to the risk of damage to sight where, due to limitations with the installation, children using the whiteboard are able to look directly into the OHP beam. This is less of an issue with OHP's on their own, as these tend to be used primarily by teachers. Nevertheless the UK guidlines for all OHP installations, see link 2 below, state:

Employers should establish work procedures for teachers/lecturers and pupils/students and give instruction on their adoption so that:

Staring directly into the projector beam is avoided at all times.
Standing facing into the beam is minimised.
Users, especially pupils and students, should try to keep their backs to the beam as much as possible.
In this regard, the use of a stick or laser pointer to avoid the need for the user to enter the beam is recommended.
Pupils and students are adequately supervised when they are asked to point out something on the screen.
Employers should also try to ensure that projectors are located out of the sight line from the screen to the audience; this ensures that, when presenters look at the audience, they do not also have to stare at the projector lamp. The best way to achieve this is by ceiling-mounting rather than floor or table-mounting the projector.
The above guidance needs to be updated for interactive whiteboards - hence my earlier comment re H&S guidelines not keeping up with the technology.
Note the reference re use of a stick or laser pointer. This cannot be done in an interactive whiteboard setting, it would defeat the whole purpose of having it.
In my informed opinion, "ultra-short throw" projectors should be mandatory for school installations. These used to be substantially more expensive than the standard models fitted in many schools, but may now be cheaper.
I will not comment further on safety, as my knowledge in this area relates to industrial use, only.
I refer you to:

http://www.hse.gov.uk/radiation/nonionising/whiteboards.htm
http://schools.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=re&catcode=ss_res_env_02&rid=12898
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/6253410.stm
http://www.rapidonline.com/latestnews.aspx?id=19036339&category=Education&tier1=Educational+Products&title=MP+calls+for+replacement+of+educational+products

thehamo wrote: »

There is no different between looking at a picture hung on a white board and a picture projected onto a white board.

With most whiteboard/ohp combinations reduced ambient light is required. Where interactive whiteboards are used for limited periods,only, this should not be a problem. In cases where they are being used for extended periods, this may not be healthy. I am aware of no studies in this area.

dolliemix

Hillel

all your research is impressive, but if I were to spend my time doing all that research etc we'd never have had the opportunity to use a whiteboard in the classroom.

There is nothing wrong with the kids seeing me learn how to use the whiteboard with their help.

If anything it makes it more fun for them, it arouses their attention more. Its interactive learning where the children are responsible for their own learning as much as I am! That is always a good thing. I am an expert in my subject but not IT nor would I claim to be.

I have been teaching for ten years and I am qualified.

When I was training to teach I didn't even have an email address.

I know from ten years experience that the whiteboard has been a wonderful addition in my classroom. The children love it, their parents have told me that the kids love it. The inspectors when they came to visit loved them.

I dare to try new things in the classroom, dare to do things differently....it's what teachers do....it doesn't always work but it beats going in everyday with the - open your homework - lets read on in the book - answer questions 1 - 8 for homework etc etc.

If I sound condescending it's because I know what I'm talking about!!! I'm talking from experience. A million reports from the Department of Education or the HSE don't necessarily represent an everyday classroom on a practical level - any teacher will tell you that!

TBH your concerns for health and safety completely disregard common sense that both students and teachers use on a daily basis

Do you honestly think that we stare at the beam of the projector???Or allow the children to do so?

If I sound condescending it's because I'm quite annoyed that you would suggest for one minute that I do not put the needs of my students first (and that includes health and safety)

I would argue that your manner is condescending, to intimate that teachers, are heading into their classrooms unaware of what they are doing.

As for cost, thats not my concern, the management of the school provided me with the whiteboard, they decide what happens with the budget. It doesn't make a difference to me which type of electronic board is used!

Two years ago I was asked by management would I be happy to try it out, I agreed. Simple as that. I didn't for a second, think, well now, maybe we should wait four or five years and see what the HSE and DES find out about them first. They would probably pay a team of people hundreds of thousands to produce a White Paper on it, that nobody has time to read anyway! That money could have gone into providing schools with a couple of thousand computers , interactive boards etc

I, also am aware, of course, that interactive boards are not a priority, but I was responding to a thread, where the OP felt they might have been a waste of money.

You've obviously been reading a lot on this subject which is commendable - but have you visited a classroom where the teacher is using an interactive board?

I am actually amused at the drama of this thread.



I wont be responding to this thread anymore. I haven't done the same research as you have, admittedly, but there are different ways of learning things in life - reading about it or hands - on trial and error experience!

I haven't done anything wrong so please dont try to suggest that I have

Hillel

dolliemix wrote: »

TBH your concerns for health and safety ...

They are not my concerns - they have been raised by competent authorities.

dolliemix wrote: »

TBH your concerns ...completely disregard common sense that both students and teachers use on a daily basis

Common sense is not a substitute for appropriate expertise and/or guidelines when dealing with Health & Safety.
As for relying on students common sense ?????

dolliemix wrote: »

Do you honestly think that we stare at the beam of the projector???Or allow the children to do so?

Firstly, it is all to easy to stare into a beam unless an appropriate projector is supplied and then installed correctly.
Secondly, there is a concern that a users (student or teacher) peripheral retina could be damaged even when they are not actually staring directly into the beam.

dolliemix wrote: »

If I sound condescending it's because I'm quite annoyed that you would suggest for one minute that I do not put the needs of my students first (and that includes health and safety)

It would appear that you get annoyed very easily. (Its a theme running through your responses.) I hope you can control this tendency in the classroom.

dolliemix wrote: »

I would argue that your manner is condescending, to intimate that teachers, are heading into their classrooms unaware of what they are doing.

This is not about "teachers", or teaching expertise. It is about using technology to support teaching, an area where you do not have professional qualifications and your experience is still limited. You took it upon yourself to dismiss a legitimate Health & Safety concern. You do NOT have the qualifications or necessary backround to make that call.

dolliemix wrote: »

As for cost, thats not my concern, the management of the school provided me with the whiteboard, they decide what happens with the budget.

Lets not forget that the original query, see below, was in relation to cost....

Yorky wrote: »

The school which a friends child attends are raising funds to purchase four electronic whiteboards at a cost of €4000 each for the senior classes to use. My friend has reservations about the value of these ........

dolliemix wrote: »

You've obviously been reading a lot on this subject which is commendable - but have you visited a classroom where the teacher is using an interactive board?

Yes.

dolliemix wrote: »

I haven't done the same research as you have.

Nor should you have to, I have a professional interest in this area. The substantive issue is that you should have received health and safety training before you were allowed use the technology. The School BOM also had a duty of care to ensure that you understood that training and were able to apply it. They should also have ensured that an appropriate policy re use of electronic whiteboards was in place, and followed. (That policy should also address concerns re ergonomics, raised earlier on this thread.) Had that happened, I'm sure that your earlier responses on this thread would have been more measured.

dolliemix wrote: »

I am actually amused at the drama of this thread.

I suggest that you reconsider that response. There is nothing amusing about potential damage to your students health. I would also remind you that, when teaching, you have a duty of care to the students in your charge.