It Makes Teachers Touchy

As a teacher who wrote several grants and worked for five years to convince my administration to let me get a Smartboard in my classroom, I completely understand why these teachers went above and beyond to get these interactive resources for their schools. For teachers who really want to try to reach students - the instructional opportunities a whiteboard offers cannot be minimized. When will the powers that be realize how impactful this technology can be for kids - and what a difference it can make in supplementing more traditional forms of instructional materials?

I understand the good deed of these fellow educators with wanting to raise money for educational purposes but their actions with involving the children where a bit over the edge. They are teaching them that it???s okay for them to play with their teachers in a negative way that might back fire and giving them the idea of maybe not following directions in the future or causing the children to be disrespectful. Do they know how many teachers may struggle with getting students to follow directions but like I said their hearts were in the right place with raising money for their school.

Whoa, is this "English" education? Uh, the little freaks are well to do, and their folks sure could afford to supply their little darlings with the necessities of higher education. Let them eat chalk!

Does this artiicle have citations? Wondering where the data re: "the U.K.???70 percent of all primary and secondary classrooms have interactive whiteboards, compared with just 16 percent in the United States???students in those classrooms made the equivalent of five months' additional progress in math" is from.

I received one of these "magical" boards, but I have received one hour training so far. Recently I was asked if I'm using the SmartBoard. I'm reluctant to use it because it carries a $3,000 fee for damage should anyone vandalize it. I don't find the SmartBoard smart for teachers. Once again, we expect miraclous results from technology. The cord between board and computer is too short. The makers of the SmartBoard should have a separate power cord that I can buy at any store instead of a specially designed one, and I should not have to depend on a proxima. Why not hook everything to a laptop instead of a proxima with a 200 dollar bulb. When I stand in front of it, the students see my shadow on their learning board, and getting technilogical assistance is like asking for the super to come to my class. Another miracle, I guess. The swindling of schools continues!

I think parents need to look at themselves in the mirror and recognize THEIR responsibilities in ensuring their children are educated properly. All of these great and wonderful teaching aids, tools, field trips to historic sites etc... won't do us any good if parents do not (or cannot) discipline their children. Parents should atleast be verify homework is being done correctly, and maybe proofread written papers. If you can't do some basic tasks like that you probably should reconsider having children at all.

My daughter is a new teacher in NYC. She has a whiteboard in her room, but she does not know how to use it! She is at PS 157 in the S. Bronx. Can Peter Kornicker (or anyone else) teach her how to use this valuable tool!

My daughter is a new teacher in NYC. She has a whiteboard in her room but she does not know how to use it! She is at PS 157 in the South Bronx. I'd like to ask Peter Kornicker (or anyone else) to help her learn to use this successful tool.

As a public high school teacher, the current state of our public institutions reflect our values as a society, from my point of view. We are bailing out these failing institutions with taxpayer dollars while the state of our public school system continues to decline. I ask American voters to consider the following comparison of our institutions: private sector financial powerhouses vs. our public school system.

Good teachers are being laid off and class sizes are growing. No child left behind is a law that requires improvements without the promised funding to implement these improvements. And our schools are listed as "failing schools" because of unrealistic goals from unfunded mandates by the federal government. What is left in our public schools is often a stressed out skeleton staff that does not have the ability to properly educate our students.

Meanwhile, corporate lobbyists effectively secured deregulation and what they consider "optimal" conditions for their financial success (deregulation). And a few well-connected people have lined their pockets with enormous amounts of other peoples' money.

This sort of short-term gain at the expense of long-term growth way of thinking has infected our entire way of running our society. Enough is enough.

Unfortunately middle and lower class young people (the MAJORITY) of our future do not have the money or the resources to hire corporate lobbyists. Their teachers and their schools have very limited resources. Where are the organized efforts to actually support the reform and progress to advance our public schools into the 21st century and educate and prepare our future?

In every other developed and developing country we compare our students' progress with, there is a clear and dedicated effort to improve, fund, and prioritize education. In America, we are starving our schools while bailing out reckless fat cats who've thrived on greed. Is this the American Way? Or have we lost our way?

Imagine where we might be in ten years if only a FRACTION of the billions our federal government has spent on the Iraq war and corporate bailouts were actually INVESTED in making our public schools the most advanced in the world. THAT IS INVESTMENT. We will be "paid back" in our BEST capital resource: Highly Educated American Workers.

Let this be a lesson. Hopefully (as we say in class) we will learn from our mistakes and use our lessons to improve, grow, and succeed - hasn't that been the American Way?

For anyone to say that interactive white boards are not necessary for the classrooms must not teach with one. I teach with one throughout the day and after asking a questions where the students get to come up to the board and use it every single hand in the room goes up! It is an amazing tool and every classroom should have one. I definitely agree with the part that students with an interactive board progress more than students without one. My math students made high growth on the end of the year assessment.

For anyone to say that they don't think interactive white boards are necessary for schools must not use one! I teach with one all day and everytime I ask a questions where the students get to come up and use the board EVERY SINGLE hand in the class is raised to answer the questions! I strongly agree with the part that students with interactive boards in the classroom show more progress than students without one. I have seen HIGH GROWTH on end of the year testing each year I have had a board in the classrooom.