By Tiana Kelly
Sitting at your desk with your pen and notebook with the lights off taking notes on a Holocaust victim from the projector as the teacher tries to tell the story from the victim’s point-of-view is what one calls tedious. Now being able to have a Holocaust victim tell students what happened word-for-word makes class more interesting.
U.S.World History teachers, Polly Williamson and Dan Pulskamp’s classes have a chance to blackboard people from other states to help teach them about different concepts throughout history. Blackboard is a program similar to oovoo or skype. It helps students communicate with a person who can be miles and hours away through the Internet. For example they have blackboarded history teachers from other states to see what they teach and experience their teaching style.
“I think the students enjoy it because it is similar to what they are use to,” Pulskamp said.
A few years ago eleventh graders were missing questions on Andrew Jackson so the classes contacted an organization about the president to help with teaching the information. Afterwards students did better on the SOL tests.
“It is a good program that students like to use because of the twenty-first century technology in school,” Williamson said.
Technology in school can often help students in the future when they go off to college or into the work force.
“It helps people be more diverse in the way they learn because it is a different way of learning,” junior Gabrielle Jean said
Even though students do like the idea of blackboarding a teacher in school, others would like for the teacher to be in the classroom so they could explain curriculum a little more for someone who does not understand the material. When doing a video conference it is more difficult to ask questions or ask for more information.
“I like for the teacher to be there with me teaching me the material one-on-one,” junior Leah Johnson said.