Government and partners

The DCSF Primary Schools Whiteboard Expansion project

The Department for children, shools and familties (DCSF) Primary Schools Whiteboard Expansion project (PSWE) provided substantial funding to 21 local authorities in 2003-04 to support the acquisition and use of interactive whiteboards in primary schools.

The implementation and impacts of the project were evaluated by a team at Manchester Metropolitan University, led by Professor Bridget Somekh.

The research was carried out between September 2004 and December 2006 and involved the collection and analysis of a large body of quantitative and qualitative data, including surveys of teachers and headteachers, visits to schools and local authorities, and teachers' log of the interactive whiteboard use. The impact findings are based on an analysis of two substantial datasets:

• 4,116 pupils in Key Stage 2, in 172 classes, in 97 primary schools, in 20 local authorities in England.
• 3,156 pupils in Key Stage 1, in 160 classes, in 96 primary schools, in 20 local authorities in England.
  

The analysis took into account pupils' gender, term of birth, eligibility for free school meals and Special Educational Needs status.

This study measured the effects of exposure to teaching with the interactive whiteboard for longer than previous studies (a mean of 16.2 months at Key Stage 2 and 13.4 months at Key Stage 3), giving an unprecedented picture of the impact of the technology over time.

Key findings

In certain subjects, the more experience the teacher has of using the interactive whiteboard, the greater the likelihood of positive attainment gains for pupils:

• In Key Stage 2 maths, average and high attaining boys and girls who had been taught extensively with the interactive whiteboard made the equivalent of an extra 2.5 to 5 months' progress over the course of two years. There was less effect on progress for boys and girls of low prior attainment.
• In Key Stage 2 science, all pupils except high attaining girls made greater progress with more exposure to the IWB, with low attaining boys making as much as 7.5 months' additional progress.
• In Key Stage 2 English, the presence of an interactive whiteboard does not appear to have a significant effect on attainment, though further investigation with larger data sets is required.
• In Key Stage 2 writing, boys with low prior attainment made 2.5 months of additional progress.
  

At Key Stage 1, there are indications of attainment gains once teachers have embedded use of the interactive whiteboard in their practice. In particular:

• In Key Stage 1 maths, high attaining girls made gains of 4.75 months, enabling them to catch up with high attaining boys.
• In Key Stage 1 science, there appears to be improved progress for girls of all attainment levels, and for average and high attaining boys.
• In Key Stage 1 English, average and high attaining pupils benefit from increased exposure to interactive whiteboards. However, there is little effect on progress for low attaining boys and girls.
  

For more details on the findings of the evaluation, please download the Executive summary in Word (73KB) or PDF (62KB) or download the Full report in Word (2.1MB) or PDF (1MB).

Bookmark with