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Interactive White Board Use in the Self-Contained Special Education Classroom

Bethany Stiefel

University of West Georgia

MEDT 8480

Introduction

The evaluation being conducted will focus on interactive white board (IWB) use in self-contained special education classes at Calhoun City Schools. Teachers and administrators alike will agree upon the importance of engaging students in technology-rich 21st century classrooms. As part of 21st century initiatives across the nation, interactive whiteboards have taken an increasingly prominent role in classrooms across America. Although many schools have taken the steps to get this technology and professional development to use it in place, very little research has been conducted on the effects of IWBs in special education classrooms. This evaluation will be used to gather data concerning the effective uses of IWBs in self-contained special education classrooms, teacher resources, and professional development needs. The client for this evaluation is Bob Orfield, special education director of Calhoun City Schools with stakeholders including special education teachers, students provided with special education services, and parents of such students.

In preparation for this evaluation, information was gathered from several articles concerning similar evaluations of the effects of interactive whiteboards in the classroom. In comparing these studies, I discovered that most of the results rendered interactive whiteboards useful tools in the classroom. The reasons behind the success in each of these studies, while somewhat varied from study to study, seemed to be very basic and based on common sense. Wall, Higgins, and Smith (2005) conclude that,

“interactive whiteboards can be effective tools for initiating and facilitating the learning process, especially where pupil participation and use of the board is utilized. The way in which information is presented, through color and movement in particular, is seen by the pupils to be motivating and reinforces concentration and attention.”

In Engagement with Electronic Screen Media among Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders, the results stated that all types of electronic screen media (ESM) proved to help hold students’ attention, but viewing oneself on the screen rendered greater gaze time and potentially greater chance of information retention (2009). Armstrong, Barnes, Sutherland, and associates discovered that teachers implementing IWB technology into their instruction will require ongoing training and support for their selection of appropriate instructional software (2005). They also stated that support would need to be in place for teachers to deepen and enhance their lesson reflections to provide students with the most beneficial learning experiences. In the study concerning the use of interactive whiteboards for literacy in primary schools in England, Shenton and Pagett concluded that interactive whiteboards were used in various ways, according to teachers’ technical expertise and experience (2007). Two studies were conducted to determine the effective uses of IWB technology among students with disabilities in a small group arrangement. The first study determined using IWBs was effective in teaching letter sounds, and students acquired some letter sounds targeted for other students and incidental information (letter names) presented in the instructive feedback statements for their own and other group members’ target stimuli (Campbell & Mechling, 2009). The second study established that “the large screen [was effective] for delivering target information and learning of other students’ information by making images more visible and increasing attention to the task,” (Mechling, Gast, & Krupa, 2007). In The Features of Interactive Whiteboards and Their Influence on Learning, the authors decided that IWBs have an “important influence on teaching and learning” and “can provide potential and structure for action in the classroom,” (Kennewell & Beauchamp, 2007).

Based on the results found in each study, I have solid ground on which to conduct my own study.Not only did each study find IWBs to be effective for instruction in some way or another, but the collection also proved IWBs to be effective in general education classrooms as well as special education settings. Since the findings in these articles support the use of IWBs in multiple educational settings, I should be able to easily pinpoint the effective uses of interactive whiteboards for students with moderate intellectual disabilities in my school system. Being able to determine if the teachers in my school system have had adequate training, how often IWBs are used, the purposes for the use, examples of how IWBs make instruction more effective, how often students use IWBs, and how teachers collaborate with others for resources and effective instructional uses will enable me to show data to support effectiveness of using IWBs. With this information, I will also be able to make specific recommendations of how the system can improve the IWB use for students with disabilities.

Purpose

The purpose of this evaluation is to examine the implementation and usage of interactive white boards (IWB) in self-contained special education classrooms. The evaluation will be formative and the data collected will be used to improve the usage of interactive white boards in the self-contained special education classroom to better meet the needs of the students.

Evaluation Questions

In order to provide meaningful information to the stakeholders of this evaluation, the following questions will be addressed:

  • How often are IWB used in self-contained special education classrooms?
  • What purpose do IWB serve in self-contained special education classrooms?
  • Are special education teachers provided adequate training for IWB use?
  • How much do self-contained special education students use IWBs?
  • What are some examples of how IWBs make instruction more effective?
  • Do teachers collaborate with others for resources and effective instructional uses?

Methods

Participants

The participants will include self-contained special education teachers at Calhoun City Schools. The system currently supports five self-contained special education classrooms: two at the primary school, one at the elementary school, one at the middle school, and one at the high school.

Design and Procedures

The evaluation procedures consist of the following methods:

  • Observations will be collected from each classroom. The observation will be completed by the use of a checklist created by the evaluator. The checklist will enable the researcher to determine how and for what purpose IWBs are being used in self-contained special education classes.
  • An electronic survey will be provided to the participants to be completed after observations have been made. The survey will consist of a combination of open-ended and closed questions.

Instruments

Materials needed to complete this evaluation were created by the evaluator: Instruments include:

  • Observation Checklist- This instrument will provide the evaluator a list of areas to look for during the observation of each classroom.
  • Teacher Survey- The survey will provide teachers with a list a comprehensive questions that will enable them to evaluate how much time they spend using IWBs for instruction, how much time students spend using the IWB, the types of activities they use most on the IWB, their comfort levels, and professional development needs.

Data Analysis

Surveys

The survey will be created and charted using GoogleDocs. Teachers will be provided a link to the survey with the intention for it to be completed on the computer so results can be directly sent to the evaluator upon completion. Each question on the survey will be analyzed to determine response patterns among participants. Those questions answered using a rating scale will be averaged to determine the average answer among participants. Grade level taught will be taken into consideration when determining relevance of rating scale answers. Open-ended questions will be grouped based on similarities.

Observations

The observation checklist will be used to determine whether interactive white boards are being used in classrooms and the activities that students are engaged in during IWB use. The data collected during the observations will be put into a table to determine common uses. The observations will provide the evaluator with first-hand data as opposed to second-hand responses.

Conclusion

The results of this evaluation will be compiled in a report that will be made available to the client and supervising professor. The report will be available on or before April 11, 2011.

References

Armstrong, V., Barnes, S., Sutherland, R., Curran, S., Mills, S., Thompson, I. (2005). Collaborative research methodology for investigating teaching and learning: the use of interactive whiteboard technology. Educational Review, 57, 457-469.

Campbell, M. L., Mechling, L. C. (2009). Small group computer-assisted instruction with SMART board technology: an investigation of observational and incidental learning of nontarget information. Remedial and Special Education, 30 (1), 47-57.

Kennewell, S., & Beauchamp, G. (2007).The features of interactive whiteboards and their influence on learning.Learning, Media and Technology, 32, 227-241.

Mechling, L. C., Gast, D. L., & Krupa, K. (2007). Impact of smart board technology: an investigation of sight word reading and observational learning.Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 37, 1869-1882.

Mineo, B. A., Ziegler, W., Gill, S., Salkin, D. (2009).Engagement with electronic screen media among students with autism spectrum disorders.Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 39, 172-187.

Shenton, A., & Pagett, L. (2007). From "bored" to screen: The use of the interactive whiteboard for literacy in six primary classrooms in england.Literacy, 41, 129-136.

Wall, K., Higgins, S., & Smith, H. (2005). "The visual helps me understand the complicated things": pupil views of teaching and learning with interactive whiteboards.British Journal of Educational Technology, 36, 851-867.

Appendix A

Checklist for Classroom Observations

Date______

Grade Level______

Subject______

Skill Being Taught______

------

_____ IWB is being used during the observation

______IWB is NOT being used during the observation

------IWB Use------

______Teacher is interacting with the IWB

______Students are interacting with the IWB

______As a presentation board for documents or forms

______For video

______For flip chart

______For website

______For dry erase

Appendix B

Surveys for Self-Contained Special Education Teachers at Calhoun City Schools

Grade Level______

  1. How often do you use interactive white boards as a part of your instruction?
  1. 0-30 minutes each day
  2. 30-60 minutes each day
  3. 60-90 minutes each day
  4. 90+ minutes each day
  1. How much time do students spend using the interactive white board in a typical school day?
  1. 0-30 minutes each day
  2. 30-60 minutes each day
  3. 60-90 minutes each day
  4. 90+ minutes each day
  1. What types of activities do you engage in most using the interactive white board? Rate from 1 to 7. 1 being most frequent- 7 being least frequent.

_____ Dry-erase

_____ Presentation of documents

_____ Video

_____ Review games

_____ Teacher-led interactive websites

_____ Student-led interactive websites

_____ Other______

  1. How comfortable are you in using your interactive white board?
  1. Very comfortable
  2. Comfortable
  3. Not as comfortable as I would like
  4. Not comfortable at all
  1. Do you feel like you received adequate training for using your interactive white board?
  1. Yes
  2. No
  1. Do you feel like you would benefit from additional professional development? Check all that apply.

____Yes:

____ Interactive web resources

____ Basic skills

____ Using and making flipcharts

____ Other:______

____No

  1. Do you feel like using interactive white boards makes instruction more effective?

____Yes, provide examples: ______

____No

  1. Do you collaborate with other teachers for resources and effective instructional uses for interactive white boards?

____Yes, provide examples: ______

____No

Additional Comments
______

Data Collection Organization Matrix

Questions / Related Results / Levels (Mega, Macro, Micro) / Required Data/ Measurable Indicators / Data Source / Data Collection Tools/ Procedures / Data Collected By (Date) / Primary Responsibility
Have special education teachers with IWBs been provided with adequate training? / Students are able to gain a better understanding of academic standards and functional life skills by engaging in productive and motivating activities involving interactive white boards.
/ Macro / Data will be gathered by evaluator through surveys / Teachers / Surveys / 3/11/11 / Creating and providing surveys
How often are IWBs used in self-contained special education classrooms? / Students served with Special Education services are a part of a positive, productive, 21st century learning environment due to the use of interactive white board technology. Students become functional, active citizens in 21st century society.
/ Mega / Data will be gathered by evaluator through surveys and observations / Teachers and observations / Surveys and observations / 3/11/11 / Creating and providing surveys
Completing observation checklist
For what purpose are IWBs being used? / Students are able to gain a better understanding of academic standards and functional life skills by engaging in productive and motivating activities involving interactive white boards.
Students are able to use interactive white boards to learn and review skills being practiced. Students are able to participate in student-centered, technology rich instructional activities. / Macro
Micro / Data will be gathered by evaluator through surveys and observations / Teachers and observations / Surveys and observations / 3/11/11 / Creating and providing surveys
Completing observation checklist
What are some examples of how IWBs make instruction more effective? / Students are able to use interactive white boards to learn and review skills being practiced. Students are able to participate in student-centered, technology rich instructional activities. / Micro / Data will be gathered by evaluator through surveys / Teachers / Surveys / 3/11/11 / Creating and providing surveys
Analyzing and communicating data
How much time do students use IWBs? / Students served with Special Education services are a part of a positive, productive, 21st century learning environment due to the use of interactive white board technology. Students become functional, active citizens in 21st century society. / Mega / Data will be gathered by evaluator through surveys / Teachers / Surveys / 3/11/11 / Creating and providing surveys
How do teachers collaborate with others for resources and effective instructional uses? / Students served with Special Education services are a part of a positive, productive, 21st century learning environment due to the use of interactive white board technology. Students become functional, active citizens in 21st century society. / Mega / Data will be gathered by evaluator through surveys / Teachers / Surveys / 3/11/11 / Creating and providing surveys
Analyzing and communicating data