Unit 8: New Ways To Learn - Looking Back

      A smart board is an interactive whiteboard. It can be connected to one or more laptops, PCs, tablets, or other electronic devices. Smart boards are extremely useful in a classroom because they can engage students, provide interactive opportunities that a traditional whiteboard, blackboard or flip chart can't, and can also develop students' computer skills along with their English skills.       Smart boards also have touch-screen technology so you do not actually need a computer to access the basic functionality. You can write on a smart board with special pens which are usually provided with the board, and anything written on the board can be saved for future reference, or printed out. It is great, for example, if you are doing a brainstorming session or a mind map with your classmates and you want to keep a record of it.       If you don't want  to draw with the pens, you can use a keyboard and type onto a programme such as            Word, and have it appear on the screen for everyone to see. This is great if you are doing an exercise with your class and you want everyone to be able to see the answers during the checking stage. You can also run PowerPoint presentations on an interactive whiteboard. These can sometimes be great for grammar or vocabulary presentations and the advantage of them is that students can make contributions.       If you have the Internet access, you can access websites and put them onto a white board. This is great in an English classroom if you have online quizzes or games you want to use. Students can actually come up to the board and select their answers. This involves them directly in the board work, which they usually love. You can also run video clips or sound files from the Internet, or some which are saved on your computer.       In short, a smart board can make the lessons more varied, and can give students a more active role in the lesson.