Interactive Whiteboard

An interactive whiteboard (IWB), is a large interactive display that connects to a computer and projector. A projector projects the computer's desktop onto the board's surface where users control the computer using a pen, finger, stylus, or other device. The board is typically mounted to a wall or floor stand. They are used in a variety of settings, including classrooms at all levels of education, incorporate board rooms and work groups, in training rooms for professional sports coaching, in broadcasting studios and others.

There are some uses for interactive whiteboards may include:

• Running software that is loaded onto the connected PC, such as a web browsers orproprietary software used in the classroom.
• Capturing and saving notes written on a whiteboard to the connected PC
• Capturing notes written on a graphics tablet connected to the whiteboard
• Controlling the PC from the white board using click and drag, markup which annotates a program or presentation
• Using OCR software to translate cursive writing on a graphics tablet into text
• Using an Audience Response System so that presenters can poll a classroom audience or conduct quizzes, capturing feedback onto the whiteboard

In some classrooms, interactive whiteboards have replaced traditional whiteboards or flipcharts, or video/media systems such as a DVD player and TV combination. Even where traditional boards are used, the IWB often supplements them by connecting to a school network digital video distribution system. In other cases, IWBs interact with online shared annotation and drawing environments such as interactive vector based graphical websites. Brief instructional blocks can be recorded for review by students — they will see the exact presentation that occurred in the classroom with the teacher's audio input. This can help transform learning and instruction.