The interactive whiteboard in my classroom

We’re not the first school in our diocese to get Interactive Whiteboards, but being one of a small number to be getting multiples installed into classrooms at this point, we’re getting a few phone calls from our colleagues. This is what has prompted me to put this together – so I can easily share what we’ve learnt with others.

Question 1: What do I need?

A basic IWB set up in a classroom (in my opinion) needs the following:

  • An interactive whiteboard (no surprise there)
  • A data projector
  • A computer
  • Sound amplification of some kind

You can see we’ve included all four of those components in the picture above.

Question 2: Which board should I buy, and who should I buy it from?

That could well depend on what best suits your school. Who to buy from could well depend on what you buy, as some brands are only available from a single supplier. We invited three vendors to demonstrate their product to staff, resulting in our choice of the Promethean Activboard from Commander Australia. The feedback from colleagues suggested they were most impressed by:

  • Quality and apparent durability of the product
  • The features provided with the software (each board comes with its own software, and it’s more important to evaluate this than the actual board)
  • The knowledge and commitment of Commander’s educational support staff who demonstrated the board and who’ve since provided training
  • Price

Also, unlike some of the other brands we looked at, teachers could imagine themselves using the Activboard more than some of the other products; but a different school may want to choose a different board for different reasons. Both our product and supplier also came recommended by other schools, especially St. Bernadette’s at Castle Hill, who’ve really led the diocese in IWBs and have been our biggest source of learning and advice.

If you’re looking for a list of products and suppliers, check out the list at IWBNet. There are also other vendors, including Kookaburra (Interwrite), East Coast Audio Visual (Teamboard) and Electroboard (SMARTBoard).

Question 3: Which projector should I buy, and from whom?

Each supplier who quoted for us could provide the whole package if we wanted it: board, projector, installation, the works. We decided to see if we could get better deals from other suppliers, and eventually went with Direct National and the BenQ MP721c Data Projector.

I cannot stress enough how important a consideration the projector is as part of the package. A poor image will reduce the effectiveness of what is an expensive package. Read our Technoblog posts (one, and two) about what we considered before choosing a projector.

Question 4: Where did you get the other bits and pieces from?

Sound can be provided and installed by your board supplier/installer, or you can arrange your own. We had contacts through whom we could get inexpensive DVD home theatre systems. They provide sound amplification for the computer attached to the board, but also provide your classroom with a DVD player attached to the projector, making your purchase more of a multimedia centre, or as Mal Lee from IWBNet would describe it, a “digital hub”.

As for computers, Catholic Education, Diocese of Parramatta has preferred suppliers for both PC and Apple computers whom we purchase from.

Question 5: Who did you get to install your boards?

Firstly, I would follow the advice I received from others and have the boards installed by some who knows what they’re doing. You do want them installed properly and safely.

We had our first board installed by a company recommended to us by the supplier. When we bought our first set of 8 for classrooms, however, we turned to our electrician, Coastelec Pty Ltd (email coastlec at bigpond dot net dot au). Mark’s work was excellent and well priced, and we’ll have him complete any future installations.

Question 6: How much does it all cost?

That will depend on each case. Naturally, you will be able to save some money on a per room basis if you’re buying multiple units at once, as you may be able to negotiate some volume discounts. I wouldn’t set aside anything less than $5000 per room (excluding computer). Some boards and/or installations will need more.

Question 7: Where can I learn some more?

Feel free to contact us at St. Michael’s if you want to learn more about our experience. We’re also more than happy for you to pay us a visit and see the start we’re making. Below are a couple of others links as well: