Blog #3- Whiteboards & SRS

Whiteboards and Student Response Systems (SRS) can be incorporated into any classroom, but how can I incorporate these tools into specific lessons in my classroom. Art is hands on, however the part that students are uninterested in is art history, criticism and aesthetics. I wanted to focus in on those aspects and get students more involved and be able to interact with the discussions and presentations on artists, techniques and works of art.

The Whiteboard

PowerPoint Presentations & Computer Program Demonstrations - The Whiteboard allows you to move up to the front and be interactive with the device you are presenting with. Instead of controlling a PowerPoint presentation or Photoshop from the computer you can touch the screen, draw on top, or zoom in to a particular area of your presentation. I can be up at the front of the room and guide the students along by touching the screen and “becoming the mouse”. When using Photoshop, we can use the whiteboard for a review of the tools by having the students come up the board and show the class how to use the tools and to review the step of the computer project that we have already completed. I believe the whiteboard will engage and intrigue the students because they can actually use it and touch it, which involves them in the lesson.

Student Response Systems (SRS)

Art Critics - I would use the student response systems for critiques to help elicit discussion from students. The students would be art critics and I would create a PowerPoint presentation with some artwork and questions based on artists or techniques we are learning about. This lesson will help student learn to talk about art using the steps to art criticism (description, analyze, interpret, judgment).

Interactive Lectures-I usually talk about the artist or technique being used before we start any project. Since I already use PowerPoint to deliver my presentation, I would use the student response systems to get my students more involved and check for understanding.

Review Game- At the beginning of class each day we go over a question of the day. This question relates to what we are doing in class that day or reviews terms or techniques we already used. The students copy this question down in their sketchbook and are able to use them to do a crossword puzzle. The crossword puzzle is a way for them to recognize and review the terms we talked about during the quarter. The student response systems can be used in a review game with the crossword puzzle before the final exam at the end of the quarter

Using the SRS devices will allow the students to have an opinion and make them feel they are part of the lesson. These devices will also help them ask questions or will help the teacher understand what he/she my have to review based on the responses of the students.

Any new technology tools that you can use in your classroom is way to engage your students and help them focus in on what you are talking about. For example, the students in my classroom have never seen a document reader (ELMO) before and when I use it in my classroom my students were intrigued. I used the Elmo in my classroom for the first time about a month ago for a demonstration and I actually have seen more students paying attention and focusing during demonstrations, compared to when I have done a group demonstration with everyone gathered around the table. Just by incorporating technology tools in your lessons it will get your students attention in what you are doing by how you deliver it. I believe, consistently using new technologies in your classroom will get the students excited to not only use the tools but they will understand what you want them to learn. Students need to be re-trained from passive learners to active learners and you will see that light bulb go on more often.