A lot of people will remember their school days involving wooden desks, ink wells and a single chalkboard at the front of the class. The most advanced form of technology in the classroom then may have been an overhead projector or slide projector but in today's classrooms the scene will be completely different and something many parents or adults will find totally foreign to their own school days.
In the modern classroom you are now more technology related items than ever before, they may be something as simple as a classroom computer for doing research and computer work on or it could be some of the more innovative technology such as interactive whiteboards or student response systems. Whichever way you look at it many classrooms and entire schools are now incredibly well kitted out with tech products that are complimentary to the learning process.
Interactive whiteboards were one of the first products to appear in classrooms and are now becoming almost standard in the UK; they operate by using a touch sensitive whiteboard in tandem with a projector. The image that is shown on the whiteboard can be manipulated via touching the whiteboard with a specialist pen; this is because some whiteboards are unable to be written on with markers like regular whiteboards.
But the effect is much better as your handwriting can be saved when storing research or discussion points for later sessions or browsing the internet and showing videos and presentations to a class. As well as interactive whiteboards there are other technological advances being used in the classroom such as student response systems (SRS).
These involve handheld buzzer like devices that can provide answers or responses to queries and problems the teacher has set, entry level versions have a multiple choice option but more advanced models allow the student to type alphanumerical responses for more detailed answers and responses. This is a good tool for students who may be too shy to answer out loud and can help build confidence to hopefully get to the point where they can answer out loud with confidence.
A lot of this modern equipment has helped with almost all subjects on the curriculum from science to geography, maths to languages and has helped to find new and engaging ways in which children as well as adults learn about new subjects and develop in their studies.