The Interactive Whiteboards in Greek Schools
Abstract
This article describes the findings of a qualitative study investigating teacher trainers’ and teachers’ perceptions on the integration of interactive whiteboards (IWBs) in Greek schools, using online and written questionnaires. Basic matters being examined concern usefulness and the effectiveness of interactive whiteboards in teaching, the interactive whiteboard training programs, and the main obstacles for successful interactive whiteboards integration in Greek schools. The results show that teacher trainers believe that the use of interactive whiteboards could have positive implications in the learning process but they are not strong positive for their implementation such as teachers with IWB training and teachers without IWB training are. School infrastructure, technical support, lack of teacher training and high cost of interactive whiteboards appear as main barriers according to teachers’ perspective. Teacher trainers’ satisfaction and teachers’ satisfaction from IWB training programs don’t reach a high level. These findings are important for the design of professional development of teachers and the successful integration of interactive whiteboards in Greek schools. Further research might include the investigation of the impact of IWBs integration on pupils learning effect, the investigation of appropriate practices for teachers to link technology and pedagogy, and the exploration of the most effective training methods in the pedagogical use of IWBs.