Teachers' Perceptions of Interactive Boards for Teaching and Learning in Public and Private High Schools in the Arab Education System in Israel

Abstract

Interactive boards are becoming an integral part of the educational scene in schools in the western countries and are not considered just an additional aid to teaching. In Israel too, interactive boards are becoming gradually part of the educational scene, so evaluation is needed for various aspects of teachers' teaching and students' learning with these new tools. One such important aspect is teachers' perceptions of the interactive board as a tool for teaching and learning. This research intended to examine the difference between teachersâ?? perceptions of four aspects of the interactive boards: pedagogic, didactic, technical-pedagogic, and technical-didactic aspects. We examined teachers' perceptions of these aspects in public and private schools. In addition, we examined the difference between the perceptions of those who use the computer for teaching and those who do not. Further, we examined the reasons that prevent teachers from using the interactive boards in public schools as compared to private schools. The data was collected through a questionnaire which examines teachersâ?? perceptions of four aspects of using the interactive boards. The participants were 217 high school teachers (157 public high school teachers and 60 private high school teachers). The research findings show that there exist significant differences between teachersâ?? perceptions of the interactive board for teaching and learning regarding (1) type of school, and (2) use of computers for teaching goals. No significant difference was found between reasons that prevent teachers from using the interactive boards in public and private school except one reason: the shortage of interactive board in every classroom. We discuss the findings and draw appropriate conclusions. It was also interesting to examine the reasons that prevent teachers from using the interactive boards, and whether there is difference in these reasons in public schools as compared to private schools.