IWB Nordic

1. Implementation
Physical placement of an IWB
Overview

2. The order of implementation
2 sides of the problem
1. The order of implementation throughout the
school (Implementation strategy)
2. Where in each given room the IWB should be
placed

3. The order of implementation
1. The order of implementation
Advantages and disadvantages of the various
strategies
We touch 5 variations…

4. The order of implementation
The variations
• One given grade level
• Exclusively for given subjects
• For the school library
• For the teachers common room
• A limited number of mobile IWB’s

5. The order of implementation
One given grade level
• The school initially invests in IWB’s for one given grade level
– In-service training of teachers is manageable
– Teachers in the individual classrooms and in grade level teams
are able to cooperate around use of the IWB in teaching
– The pedagogical changes that take place occur simultaneously
in all the subjects of a given grade level
– Pupils get used to the pedagogical use of the IWB
– The IWB becomes a natural element of teaching and learning
– This strategy has a very high success rate and thus facilitates the
expansion of the implementation of IWB’s in the rest of the
school

6. The order of implementation
Exclusively for given subjects
• The school initially invests in IWB’s for classes
used exclusively for given subjects – i.e.
science, biology etc.
– In-service training of teachers is manageable
– Subject specific teams can cooperate around the
pedagogical use of the IWB

7. The order of implementation
For the school library
• The school initially invests in IWB’s for the
school library
– School libraries have a key function to introduce
new teaching methods
– All pupils and teachers make use of the library

8. The order of implementation
For the teachers common room
• The school initially invests in IWB’s for the
teachers common room
– All teachers have the possibility to try out the IWB
at their leisure.
– The disadvantage is that whilst teachers might try
out doing a variety of things with the IWB they
don’t get to use it pedagogically and thus miss out
on this crucial use of the IWB

9. The order of implementation
A limited number of mobile IWB’s
• The school initially invests in a limited number of mobile
IWB’s
– More teachers than there are boards can use the IWB
– IWB can be used in any classrooms and any subject/grade
where it is deemed opportune
• Disadvantages:
– Any spontaneous use of the IWB in teaching is rendered void
– All use of IWB’s need to be planned and booked in advance
– Moving the IWB requires a lot of space, both in classrooms and
passages
– A lot of time is used to move, start up and recalibrate of the IWB

10. Physical placement
Physical placement of IWB’s in
classrooms
• There is a real lack of published scientific
material on this subject
• A significant part of the following is based on
experience garnered from previous work
The following issues have presented themselves
as crucial for consideration

11. Physical placement
Where - overview
• Light and space considerations
• Height with regard to pupils
• Varying positions of IWB’s in classrooms
– Advantages and disadvantages of the various
placements
• Should the IWB be the only type of board in a
classroom or should a traditional
blackboard/whiteboard be retained next to it?

12. Physical placement
Light and space considerations
• Strong direct sunlight or electrical lighting
causes the display on the IWB screen to be
hazy
• It should be possible to darken the room
partially or completely
• There needs to be easy access to the IWB not
only for the teacher but also for pupils
• Avoid windows or light sources behind the
IWB

13. Physical placement
Height with regard to pupils
• The IWB should be placed at a reachable height
for the pupils that will be using the classroom
• Place the IWB at a height (including the bottom
part) that makes it visible for all students
• A possibility is to attach the IWB in a flexible
arrangement that allows for it to be moved to
different heights without the need to recalibrate
• Place the IWB so that it is directly in front of the
pupils in their normal seating arrangement, i.e.
preventing the need for students to have turn in
order to follow activity on the IWB

14. Physical placement - Varying positions
Varying positions in classrooms
• Centrally or in front of pupils is:
– Good for teacher driven (front end) teaching or
revision
– Good for student presentations
– During group work sessions the group working with
the whiteboard will dominate the session due to the
fact that everyone can follow what they are doing.
– An inherent danger of teachers using the IWB only as
an electronic version of a blackboard ignoring the
interactivity exists

15. Physical placement - Varying positions
Placed on a side or back wall
• Extremely advantageous as a student tool
when working in groups
• Less useful for student presentations as well
as teacher driven education or revision

16. Physical placement - Varying positions
Moveable/mobile
- yet restricted to a given classroom
• Makes available all the advantages mentioned
above but
• Requires a lot of space in the classroom
• Requires an extraordinarily stable fitting to the
mobile stand

17. Physical placement
IWB the only type of board in a
classroom?
• IWB as the only type of board:
– Forces the teachers to use the IWB
– May cause aversion to the IWB
– A permanent notice board for the classroom is
sacrificed

18. Physical placement
A traditional blackboard/whiteboard next to
the IWB
• The teacher has the option not to use the IWB
at all
• The possibility of a permanent noticeboard is
retained
– Placing a traditional board for use as a notice
board in a non-central place in a classroom has
been used with success at many schools