Why Whiteboards?
Using whiteboards for active learning, collaboration and formative assessment: Individual student whiteboards are the 21st-century version of the chalk slates and are a proven instructional method of actively involving students in the learning process by making content meaningful and fostering collaboration. Activities supported by personal whiteboards help build critical thinking skills, problem solving and creative risk taking. Whiteboards are also helpful for facilitating individual student participation/accountability and can serve as a quick formative assessment to check for understanding. Additionally, they are low-tech, making them ideal to implement in almost any classroom setting. In our PC Learning, Engagement, and Discovery (LEAD) experimental classroom, individual whiteboards are one of the most used “technologies” and faculty report students are engaged and love using the whiteboards for activities. Learn more: Individual Whiteboards Stimulate Student Learning (Article) Testimonials "The whiteboards were a wonderful way to engage the students in my classroom. It required everyone in the class to participate and removed the barriers for students who are often shy to respond. It also allowed me to check comprehension of the class quickly and completely." ~ Kristi Deela, Dental Faculty "Having the students work the problems individually or in teams gives everyone the chance to participate. In the past when I put problems on the board for the class to work, some participate and others sit back and wait for others to answer the questions. Now with the whiteboards, everyone needs to participate and share answers with their partner or the team." ~ Doug Northway, Accounting Faculty "Implementing Whiteboard Technology in my college courses has helped add an extra dimension of learning and collaborating among my students. The students' use of the whiteboards ranged from working in pairs, to working in small groups, and even responding in the whole group setting, as well, and each time they used the boards, unique opportunities for coaching, collaborating, and learning were unlimited." ~ Mari Bailey, Reading Faculty |
PC Whiteboard Classroom Engagement Project
Spring 2020 Applications are being accepted now!
Project Description
The CTL is pleased to offer the Whiteboard Classroom Engagement Project. All PC faculty are encouraged to apply to use a mini (personal) whiteboard classroom set as an active learning strategy in the classroom. Selected faculty participants will be given professional development opportunities, including instructional strategies and methods, to use the whiteboards during the semester. Evaluations by faculty participants and optional student surveys will be conducted to assess the effectiveness of the teaching and learning strategy and project outcomes. The CTL has 14 sets to assign to selected faculty participants each semester. Each whiteboard classroom set contains:
Residential, adjunct, OYO and OSO faculty are welcome to apply. Project Goals 1. Provide an opportunity for increased student engagement and assessment. 2. Support diversity in instructional methods and learning styles. 3. Provide an opportunity for learner accountability, collaboration and problem-based learning. 4. Promote and encourage adoption of proven instructional strategies. Project Process A call for participants goes out during the scheduling period for each semester (April for Fall semester and November for Spring semester) to the campus community. All faculty (residential, adjunct, and OYO/OSO) interested in the project are welcome to apply. Participants must be teaching in the semester they want to use the whiteboards. Repeat participants are welcome, but new participants will receive priority. The application will be open per the published advertisement. Additional calls for applicants may be made based upon availability of the whiteboard sets. An application process and scoring matrix will be used by the CTL to determine the participants for each semester. Applications will be reviewed for the:
Selected participants will be notified of their status per the published advertisement. All applicants not accepted to the project will receive feedback on their application and will be welcome to apply for a future semester. Efforts in the selection process may be made to distribute the boards across disciplines. Project Requirements The whiteboard sets can be picked up during the week of accountability. A standard MCCCD Property Loan Agreement must be completed by the participant with required signatures to receive the set. Additional documentation for the care, maintenance and distribution/collection of boards will be included in the set. Training on the use of whiteboards as an instructional strategy will be offered to selected participants, either as a group or in one-on-one consultation. First-time participants must attend a session or one-on-one consultation before receiving the whiteboards. Instructor self-evaluations and optional class evaluations must be submitted to the CTL by the last day of finals. Whiteboards must be returned by the last day of finals. Whiteboard Borrowing Policies and User Responsibility Agreements Participants must:
Training Session Title: Individual Student Whiteboards for Classroom Engagement (Training dates will be set each semester and can be found on the CTL Workshop Calendar) Session Description: Individual student whiteboards are the 21st-century version of the chalk slates and are a proven instructional method of actively involving students in the learning process by making content meaningful and fostering collaboration. In this session participants will experience first-hand activities supported by personal whiteboards to help build critical thinking skills, problem solving and creative risk taking. Participants will also discuss how whiteboards can facilitate individual student participation/accountability and serve as a quick formative assessment to check for understanding. Join us to discover how this popular and low-tech option is ideal to implement in almost any classroom setting. PC Whiteboard Classroom Engagement Project participants are encouraged to attend this session. Resources Handout Presentation |