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USING HARDWARE TOOLS TO FURTHER 21ST CENTURY LEARNING DOCUMENT CAMERAS

Document cameras have a variety of uses. While many teachers use document cameras as a means of demonstrating processes and showing teacher-generated examples, document cameras also enable students to share the results of their creativity. Students can use them as a means of displaying projects created without using technology, as a means of recording animations, or as a way of capturing content for use in other digital tools.

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Need some ideas to get started? Check out these websites for listings of document camera ideas.

50 Ideas for Using Document Cameras in the Classroom 11 Ways to Use a Document Camera

INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS

Interactive whiteboards are special whiteboards designed to be connected to a computer and enable teachers to create content-rich, interactive instruction. Of course, the interactive whiteboards are only as interactive as teachers choose to make them. While they do serve as excellent presentation tools for the teacher, the ultimate goal is to get students interacting (hence "interactive" whiteboards) with the board. Lessons can be created that encourage students to come to the board and participate in the activity. It is only through this interactivity that the boards become effective.

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There is no sense in reinventing the wheel. Check out the SMART Exchange for ready-made lessons that you can use in your classroom--many without much modification!

SMART Exchange

PERSONAL RESPONSE SYSTEMS

Personal response systems, also known as clickers, are an excellent means of determining student understanding of course content. Such systems can also be used to poll the class for opinions on topics or to allow for instructional decision making. Various software vendors provide varying degrees of interactivity with their clicker programs, but all enable the teacher to quickly view the responses of classes (and individuals) to specific questions posed to the class. This allows the teacher to quickly go back and reteach poorly understood or misunderstood concepts immediately, thus supporting instruction.

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Besides the myriad of ideas presented in the video, the University of Michigan provides additional means of incorporating clickers into the classroom. Visit the link below for more information and ideas.

University of Michigan CRLT's Teaching with Clickers