KEN06138 Reflections on the interactive whiteboard phenomenon: a synthesis of research from the UK

It is unusual to focus educational research on a particular piece of equipment, but the interactive whiteboard (IWB) seems to have a pedagogical and cultural status which makes it different from other new pieces of ICT equipment. It particular, it has been enthusiastically adopted by nearly all the teachers who have one installed in their classrooms, and is sought after by most of the teachers who do not currently have access to one. A group of researchers has formed within BERA New Technologies SIG, covering several projects in the UK which have been funded to investigate, directly or indirectly, the impact of the IWB on teaching and learning. On behalf of the BERA group, this paper reviews recent research concerning the use of IWBs and: analyses the nature of the medium characterises the associated pedagogies synthesises some roles for the IWB discusses what we have found concerning the potential of the technology for supporting ‘engaging pedagogies’; It also considers the effects of national policy contexts on our work in the UK, raises issues for other countries and helps to generate questions concerning what we do not yet know.