Many times teachers obtain resources and have not had exposure to their applications. This approach minimizes the potential benefits of the application and typically creates a frustrated teacher who avoids the resource and possibly others like it in the future. This is not a new scenario and certainly not specific to the influx of technology in the classrooms. However, computers, the Internet, software, and the host of other technology peripherals have exacerbated a system where teachers are inundated with new and potentially useful tools. Suddenly teachers have computers in their classrooms and others even have access to the World Wide Web; however, very few instructors are provided training on how to incorporate technology into their daily teaching. Occasionally, teachers are trained on basic word processing and spreadsheet applications, but authentic integration into specific content areas is still lacking.

If we look into the future and identify resources that have a high probability of being used, we can "get a jump on" our own professional development and our own instructional design strategies so that we're ready for the resources when they arrive.  "Play is a vital ingredient to learning" (Kaplan, 2000). Let’s play now so that we can exploit the benefits that the new tools offer us soon after they are available in our schools. Currently, there are numerous possibilities for teachers to use effective technology in their lessons, but which ones are feasible, which are cost-prohibitive, and which ones simply do not work must be determined on a case-by-case basis. One resource that can currently be used on a small scale is an Internet communication vehicle called a whiteboard. We encourage early adopters to venture out and review the potential of this device, so they can take advantage of this technology when it is widely available.

An electronic whiteboard is an online tool that allows teachers and students (and even parents/guardians or administrators) to communicate synchronously via text, graphics and/or other visually descriptive means. It allows participants to use drawing and/or annotation tools to develop collaborative images or to annotate documents that can be viewed by all participants simultaneously. A whiteboard is defined for these purposes as a large two-dimensional space in which users can post objects for all users to see. This definition has some specific implications; for example, the word "users." The idea is that multiple users who can post and/or see objects displayed can access whiteboards. Also, there are many makes and models of whiteboards, such as Microsoft Netmeeting, Groupboard.com, Wintronixinc.com, Teachers-shoponlin.com and one embedded in Blackboard.com. It is not the intention of the authors to discuss the advantages of the products of these companies, but to inform the readers that whiteboards are available from a variety of vendors.

One experience I had using a whiteboard was to design a lesson for future teachers so they could experience the power and usefulness of this tool. Since meaningful two-way communication about academically oriented problems was the goal, I asked a university colleague to assist in designing a lesson for students to explore in pairs. During the design, we enunciated the objectives to one another and then positioned ourselves at computers next to each other in order to troubleshoot potential problems with our whiteboard activity. Using as little verbal communication as possible, we implemented a "dry-run" of the lesson and made the necessary modifications so it would properly demonstrate the desired lesson.  The modifications were extensive; in fact, the rehearsal was extremely useful in that it made us realize what it would take for students to have a successful and meaningful first whiteboard experience. Effective, focused written communication skills are essential and much more vital than the minimal technical skills required to operate the whiteboard system. So with our logistical data, we redesigned the exercise so that the future teachers would be able to navigate through the activity.

Data was collected from an actual mathematics methods online classroom exercise, which involved one-on-one tutoring session using the whiteboard (http://www.unf.edu/~tbratina/mae6336/lesson/ftce.htm). By consulting this data, the future teachers will become familiar with one more method of instruction that hopefully will be available to all in a few years. The academic content for the lesson was based on the Competencies and Skills Required for Teacher Certification in Florida. The problems came from the Study Guide for the Florida Teacher Certification Examination for Mathematics 6-12 published by the Florida Department of Education. A sample graphic from an actual test item produced on the whiteboard is presented in Figure 1. Each methods student met one-on-one with the instructor. Meeting times were prearranged based on appointment times given to the instructor by each individual in the class.

Depending on the features of the whiteboard being used, transcripts can be kept. Below are excerpts from a transcript of a "dry-run" session between the two authors (the diagram in Figure 1 above was drawn during this session. The questioning relates to the drawing).

Below is another written transcript from an actual whiteboard experience in the teacher training course. Drawings were not preserved, because the whiteboard being used did not have the electronic capability of saving drawings. The discussion relates to a multiple-choice item in the study guide for the mathematics certification examination. The stem of the item is presented in Figure 2. The reader will notice that, although the item was presented using a multiple-choice format, the instructor asked a number of probing questions about lengths of sides of different triangles. Only when the instructor had established that the student grasped the patterns for 3-4-5 right triangles, did she address the question the student posed at the onset of the session.

Archive for Secondary Math Methods MAE6336_036 on Mar 1, 2001

Some students will occasionally find themselves off-task in the whiteboard, just as students will occasionally find themselves off-task in the classroom. Regardless of the environment, students can become distracted from the objective of a lesson or tutorial. The remedy for this challenge will be the same whether online or off-line—well-planned, organized, worthwhile lessons.

At present, whiteboards are not widely used in the classroom, and are only beginning to be used in some distance learning courses. Likewise, it was not long ago when classrooms did not contain overheads, video tape recorders, and a host of other tools that are now relatively commonplace. While it is unclear whether the whiteboard will become the next globally accepted educational tool, many believe that it provides a valuable component to promote student engagement in learning. We anticipate that the whiteboard will be one of the many tools that teachers and students will use more intensively in the future, both as a supplement to traditional courses and in the expanding field of distance education.

Like other technologies, however, using a whiteboard does not guarantee effective learning.  These tools are intended to promote two-way communication as a springboard for discussions in which students justify the procedures they used to arrive at their answers, listen critically to the arguments of others, and refute them or offer other reasoning strategies. They also can receive assistance in areas where their understanding is weak.  But the technology may also be used in ways that have nothing to do with such goals. So the effective use of technology involves many teacher decisions and direct forms of teacher involvement (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 1999). In other words, technology does not replace the teacher: "The teacher plays several important roles in a technology-rich classroom, making decisions that affect students’ learning in important ways…The teacher must decide if, when, and how technology will be used" (NCTM, 2000, p.26). Before you have your own students use a tool, you’ll want to practice using it yourself. Why should we restrict ourselves to structuring creative children’s lessons that center around playfulness? How about playing while we’re creating those lessons! We hope you will "play with purpose" on a whiteboard in order to enhance your own professional development, and so that you will be prepared to incorporate this technology into your teaching when the tool becomes available on a larger scale.

Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R.  (Eds.). (1999). How people learn:  brain, mind, experience, and school.  Washington DC:  National Academy Press.

Gallagher, T. (2000). Florida teacher certification examination for mathematics 6-12 (3rd ed.). Tallahassee: Florida Department of Education.

Kaplan, J. S. (2000). Are we teaching our children to play? Florida educational leadership 1(1), 33-35.