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**Introduction**
__//Question://__ How can interactive whiteboards help to decrease the academic gap in literacy of struggling students? __//Connection://__ The question about how effective interactive whiteboards are at instructing struggling students has been on my mind since I observed one of my supervisor teachers use it in her second-grade classroom. I observed the literacy block a few times a week and the interactive whiteboard was used the majority of the time when leading whole-group discussion. Since most classrooms are getting interactive whiteboards and teachers have to go through training on how to work the system, I know that I will have to use one in my classroom one day. I want to research to see how they can help decrease the literacy gap of struggling and advanced students.

**Best Practices**
//Training and preparation// Interactive whiteboards can be a great tool in the classroom, but only when the teacher has had proper and adequate training of the software. Teachers also have to be prepared to use the technology; teachers that only want to follow the traditional model of education will most likely not want to use the interactive whiteboards.

//What interactive whiteboards can do// One of the best things about interactive whiteboards (IWBs) is that they are very collaborate. Not only can information be stored and shared, but students can work together to edit projects and interact with games and other activities that promote literacy skills. Other things that students can practice with on IWBs include:
 * manipulating text and images
 * writing and saving notes for planning (teachers) or projects (students)
 * showing students' presentations
 * multimedia-videos, animations, podcasts, digital stories, etc
 * fostering whole-group instruction

//Literacy Lesson Plans// Not only do interactive whiteboards allows teachers to share lesson plan, but there are also software programs that help to teach phonemic awareness, phonics, sight words, vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency, all of which are important components in literacy instruction and predictions of future reading success. Research has been shown that all of these skills are enhanced when teachers use IWBs.

//SMART Board// The SMART board interactive whiteboard is one of the most popular and wide-spread interactive whiteboard around. Just like other boards, the SMART board allows teachers to add videos, games, and other multimedia elements into lessons! It also allows visual and kinesthetic learners move objects and text to help make connections.

//Achievement// Interactive whiteboards can help with engagment, motivation, and bring technology into the classroom. According to research, “answers to open-ended questions indicated that students were more involved, attentive, and motivated when lessons were offered using the board rather than using other teaching methods,” (SMART technologies Inc, 2006, p.7). Overall, IWBs can help lower achieving students become more motivated, which in return will help academic performance.

**Additional Resources**
Brown-Wyatt, V.. Perceptions of the use of Interactive Whiteboards in Teaching Literacy to Elementary School Students. Ed. D. dissertation, Northcentral University, United States--Arizona. Retrieved from April 2, 2012, from Dissertations & Theses: Full Text. (Publication No. AAT 3480848).

Interactive Whiteboards and Learning: Improving student learning outcomes and streamlining lesson planning. (2006). //SMART technologies Inc//. Retrieved from []

 Kent, P., & Holdway, M. (n.d.). Interactive whiteboards, productive pedagogies and literacy teaching | Literacy Learning: The Middle Years | Find Articles. //Find Articles | News Articles, Magazine Back Issues & Reference Articles on All Topics//. Retrieved April 25, 2012, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_694  Reading Games. (n.d.). //Elementary Reading and Math Software//. Retrieved April 25, 2012, from http://www.learningtoday.com/corporate/reading-games.asp

SMART Board Interactive Whiteboard Best Practices Shine at NYC School | Scholastic.com. (n.d.). //Scholastic | Children's Books and Book Club | Scholastic.com//. Retrieved April 25, 2012, from http://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3750414

**Annotations**
Cuthell, J. P. (2005) Seeing the meaning. The impact of interactive whiteboards on teaching and learning Proceedings of WCCE 05 Stellenbosch South Africa.
 * The author claims that interactive whiteboards help to support and extend teachers' capabilities. Both teachers and students roles in instruction are transformed to a more interactive participant; interactive boards make more student-centered classrooms, instead of teacher-centered.
 * Even though this study took place in the UK, it still can be applied to schools in the US. The boards were able to reach all types of students-so children that have different learning styles and abilities can be successful with this technology. Also, the boards help students feel "empowered"; they have the ability to interact with the software to make real-world connections.

Fortuna, C. (2007). //Look! Johnny and Janey can read: Enhancing the literate lives of teens through SMART Board interactive whiteboard technology.// New England: Rhode Island College.
 * This article was a "teacher-researcher study [that] examines how SMART Board interactive whiteboarding technology enhances students' reading, knowing, viewing, speaking, and learning." The author claims that using the interactive whiteboard provided a new way for the students participating in the case study to view the world; they could also collaborate with the technology to incorporate it into work.
 * This helps me because it illustrated how beneficial interactive whiteboards affect literacy. They provided teachers with "numerous options to deliver the curriculum." The SMART Board helped students gain access to sources that increased their background knowledge, which is essential for academic success and engagement.

Smith, H., Higgins, S., Wall, K. and Miller, J. (2005), Interactive whiteboards: boon or bandwagon? A critical review of the literature. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 21: 91–101. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2729.2005.00117.x
 * The authors base the majority of their research off of the views of teachers and students. The authors claims that there is "insufficient evidence to identify the actual impact of such technologies upon learning either in terms of classroom interaction or upon attainment and achievement." There are benefits to using IWB in teaching, such as flexibility and efficiency, and that it is a tool to support student learning.
 * IWB can be beneficial to student learning; they can motivate and engage students, which is a great resource for struggling students. The multi-media component of IWB is can also impact the learning of struggling students in literacy.

Wall, K., Higgins, S. and Smith, H. (2005), ‘The visual helps me understand the complicated things’: pupil views of teaching and learning with interactive whiteboards. British Journal of Educational Technology, 36: 851–867. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8535.2005.00508.x
 * This is a research article on students' views on IWB and how they can effect learning. Using different software and how the information is displayed helps to support teaching and learning.
 * IWB can academically improve students' performance; the author says that, "t  he pupils describe how different elements of software and hardware can motivate, aid concentration, and keep their attention." Although the article made claim that IWBs can enhance student learning, it never addressed literacy, specifically. This would be an useful article if studying math achievement because students were making statements about how the math games and manipulative helped them improve their mathematical understanding.