The Blackboard

Anup K Singh

The Old Blackboard

• It has been the oldest teaching aid• It visually represents a point that a teacher wishes to

makes• Later it also represents the views and thoughts of

students• Wide variations in the use of the blackboard by the

instructors• The visual richness of a blackboard can be increased by

the use of different colours of chalk• It can be supplemented by flip charts, screens and TVs

The Whiteboard

• Smaller than the blackboard• Easier to use• Good for syndicate and small class• Colour variation• Can be used as a screen• No chalk dust

The Smart board

• The modern version of the blackboard; looks more like a whiteboard

• The board is connected with a computer and projector; hence, it is intelligent

• The whiteboard acts as the computer monitor• It can have multiple pages. One can flip them• An experiment or an exercise can be

programmed

The Ideal Blackboard

• Big enough to contain the views and thoughts of the teacher and students without erasing them in a class

• Easy to use and erase• High visibility of text and visual from different places

in a classroom• Lighted from the top for superior visibility• Appropriately fixed to be used by people of different

heights• Can be supplemented by other visual aids

Planning for Blackboard Use• Using a wide sheet of paper to represent the blackboard• Writing down the learning outcomes of the session• Developing content and pedagogy to achieve the learning outcomes• Creating spaces on the paper sheet to represent the experiences from

the exercise (pedagogy), students’ views and the teacher’s points• Writing down possible experiences, students’ views and the teacher’s

contents• Leaving 20% space for unplanned activities• Planning the use of other visual aids• Visualising how the blackboard would look like at the end of the session• Matching the teaching strategy with blackboard plan

Using the Blackboard

• Stick to the blackboard plan as much as possible• Be fair and prompt in writing students’ views• Use full board; don’t clutter• Balance between the use of blackboard and

interaction with the students• Be legible and be visible to the last row • Use different chalk colours to differentiate spaces• Take a snap of your final blackboard from time to

time to reflect and review

Problems in Blackboard Use

• Lack of preparation for blackboard use• Sudden shift from blackboard use to LCD use• Ignoring students’ views on the blackboard• Poor balance between chalk and talk• Not facing the audience and sticking too

much with the blackboard• Bad chalk• Only text no visual