It is the first week of a new school year and I have come to Bishop Rawstorne C of E Language College in Croston, Lancashire to see how they use their interactive whiteboards. It is a little hard on the two teachers who come under the spotlight, but they both deliver a slick, well-organised lesson although they barely know their classes.

What strikes me as I watch is that, while the technology may be state of the art, their methodology revolves around tried and tested techniques. Clear, snappy presentation of new language is followed by diverse reinforcement activities, including choral repetition, pair work, guessing games and competitions. All four skills come into play, target language is the norm and the lessons incorporate audio, visual and kinesthetic elements to appeal to different learning styles.

So what does the whiteboard bring to their teaching that could not be achieved in other ways?

One major benefit is pace. There is no rummaging around for the next OHT, no fiddling about with tapes. The transition from one activity to the next is seamless and pupils do not get a chance to pause for breath. The whiteboard is like a bottomless drawer with a magic filing system. One wave of the wand and the resource you need leaps onto the screen.

Another advantage is its phenomenal versatility. Some of the activities I saw could probably have been replicated with conventional materials, albeit with less polish. Others most certainly could not. Want a map of France? One click and it is there. Time to move on? Another click and it has gone. In the same way you can call up PowerPoint presentations or use multimedia software and when you want to add something extra in class, you can write over the top.

A clock with a countdown facility is useful for games and you can visit websites or show live webcams. “It brings the reality of what’s happening in the foreign country right into the classroom,” says Loic Ropars, internationalmulticultural co-ordinator. “TF1 television has a camera on the Eiffel Tower, which is great for teaching weather. We are also planning a webcam meeting with a school in Chateaubriant later this term.”

To illustrate how easy it is to track down materials, Ropars goes into a folder of French resources and calls up a PowerPoint presentation on food. Under the heading “Que desirez-vous?” is the image of an apple and the words “je voudrais une pomme”.

“The pictures appear and disappear, which adds an element of surprise,” he says. “You can colour code different parts of speech, or highlight them as you teach with the electronic pen. Without altering the original, you can rub out letters and get the pupils to fill in the blanks.” Before he has finished his sentence, je voudrais has become je v_u_r_ _s.

Magic does not happen on its own, however, and the department is very strong on teamwork. Teachers watch each other in action, share ideas and all contribute to a growing bank of materials, which is stored on the school network. “It takes minutes to convert a resource from one language to another, or adapt it to suit different levels of ability. Imagine the time that saves,” he says. “It is also great for new teachers, who have access to all this material straight away.”

But what if they are not familiar with the new technology? According to assistant headteacher Dirk Matthews, this is frequently the case, yet when recruiting new staff he looks for pedagogical flair, not technical know-how. “Candidates are told they must be committed to learning what new technology can offer,” he says. “At the end of the day, it’s just a tool. It’s what you do with it that counts.”

The number of expensive gadgets lying under-used in classrooms across the country bears out his point. One reason this does not happen here is the department’s generous stock of equipment - four permanent whiteboards and a mobile unit. “With hindsight, I would have put one in every room when we first became a language college,” says Matthews. “If staff are going to get the best out of them, they need regular access.”

Headteacher Mark Grundy of Shireland Language College in Smethwick, West Midlands, would agree. He is planning a major boost to the school’s provision of whiteboards and made a start with maths last December. “Teaching has been transformed and GCSE results have shot up,” he says. “Whiteboards are not the only reason, but they played a key role. Used individually they are effective. Used collectively with the right training and the right pedagogy they are extremely powerful.”

It will soon be the turn of the modern languages department and teachers have begun to prepare a bank of resources as part of an online curriculum. In the meantime, linguist and assistant headteacher Lesley Hagger-Vaughan believes that their existing single whiteboard is a valuable asset and has gathered together a group of students to give me the consumer view.

First up is Luke Wilson, who is full of enthusiasm for the interactive activities from Unterwegs, which he tried out last year in Year 8. “It’s more fun because it’s active. Everyone wants to go up and have a go,” he says. He is evidently a satisfied customer, but why not sit him in front of a computer and let him get on with it? “You need different tools for different modes of working,” says Hagger-Vaughan. “Computers are good for individual practice. Electronic whiteboards are for whole-class teaching.”

Sam Pollard and Karina Manning, who have just left Year 9, used En Route, with an extra level of pupil involvement - every so often they took on the teacher’s role and directed their classmates as they unscrambled jumbled sentences or matched pictures with sound. With Year 10 the technology was exploited to enhance project work. Hamid Ahmad and Amandeep Bains talk me through the results of their efforts - a four-page PowerPoint presentation of an imaginary trip to Cologne.

“We worked in groups of four and did some research on the internet,” explains Amandeep. “Then we each wrote a page on a different theme - accommodation, local specialities, sight-seeing and nightlife - and added pictures. Some groups did a voice over but we chose to memorise it and present it orally. We have to produce a tape for our modular GCSE and it gave us good practice.”

The project was designed to encourage re-use of previously learned material, hone internet research skills, foster teamwork and boost confidence in speaking. But why use a whiteboard?

“It was easier for the class to follow because they could read what we were saying,” says Amandeep. “After we had finished they looked at it more closely and graded us for communication and quality of language using the AQA mark scheme. We also saved resources - printing four pages for each group would have taken lots of paper, even with one copy between two.”

Ropars had made a similar point when he told me: “It spells the end of endless photocopies and piles of paper.” Perhaps it also spells the end of those cardboard boxes full of homemade worksheets that gather dust on the shelves of many modern languages offices. Now there’s a thought.

Alison Thomas is a former languages teacher and a freelance writer

YEAR 7 AND THE PENCIL CASE

To encourage maximum participation, Loic Ropars divides the class into two teams and awards points for every contribution.

He establishes the theme of the lesson by holding up his own pencil case and asking the question “Qu’est-ce qu’il y a dans ma trousse?” Then he calls up a page from www.bonjour.org.uk containing pictures of writing equipment. They are almost totally hidden, however, apart from a tiny circle which reveals one corner of one object. What might it be?

One pupil suggests “un stylo”. “Bonne idee, mais non. Un point.”

As the circle expands a fraction, another proposes “un pencil”. “Bonne idee. Un point. Toute la classe, comment dit-on pencil en francais?”

The third suggestion is “un biro”. “Aaah . . . deux points. Comment dit-on biro? Bic? Bac? Boc?”

The first reply is wrong - “eu eu” (Like the sound of a quiz programme buzzer). The second is correct - “deux points!” - and this is the cue for choral repetition - “bic! bic! bic!” - accompanied by a prodding motion of one index finger into the palm of the other hand.

The lesson continues in this way until all 11 objects are identified and pronounced, each with an accompanying action, some of which are the pupils’

own suggestions. Ropars now reveals the whole page and as he points to each utensil, its name appears above. The class repeats them in turn, then does the same again without the written cue.

For the following cycle he speeds up the action, then makes life harder still by rubbing out one item. Next time round two are missing, then four, until finally the class goes through the whole collection with no visual stimulus at all.

Time now to bring back the pictures and number them 1 to 11 with the electronic pen. Following a demonstration with a volunteer, pupils work in pairs. One traces a number on his or her partner’s back, who then turns to the board and names the relevant item.

Next comes a listening activity. A voice from the website names each object and the class responds by miming the actions rehearsed earlier. This gives Ropars an instant snapshot of who is on track and who is still hesitant.

He switches to a CD-Rom and runs a competition between volunteers from the teams. The whiteboard’s countdown facility appears at the top of the screen and the winner is the person who can identify a succession of pictures most quickly.

Pupils now write down the vocabulary, but the pace is still hot. One by one the words appear and the first person to finish each time (hand up, “j’ai fini”) receives a point.

A voluntary homework, worth three credit points, will send pupils to the Bonjour web site, encouraging them to explore resources available online.

Finally two more games and the winning team leaves the room after chorusing “on a gagne”. The losers have to utter a password (any of the new words learned) before departing one by one.

CHOOSING A WHITEBOARD

Mobile or fixed: The flexibility of a mobile unit may appeal, but the reality of fetching it, connecting up the cabling and synchronising the board will restrict its use.

Size: The larger the board, the more it costs, but visibility is important for whole-class teaching.

Cost: Prices keep changing but expect to pay from around pound;1,250 to pound;1,600 for a 60-inch to 70-inch wall-mounted board. Stands cost an extra pound;250 to pound;300. Check out what software is included in the package, the terms of the warranty and provision for training and support.

Other equipment: A computer, a connection to the school network, a projector

Running costs: Replacement projector bulbs are expensive.

Replacement pens and batteries - prices vary according to make.

Fixed whiteboards - some of the options:

* Promethean ACTIVboard: Durable, low reflection surface. ACTIVpen stylus, no batteries required. Software is vastly superior to the competition and extensive curriculum materials are available.

www.promethean.co.uk

* TDS ACTIVboard: Durable, low reflection surface. ACTIVpen stylus, no batteries required. Basic BOARDmate software tools.

www.tds-whiteboards.comwhiteboards.html

* Hitachi Starboard: Durable, low reflection surface. Battery-operated pens require frequent recharging. Annotation software. Curriculum software is under development.

www.hitachisoft-eu.com

* Smartboard: Touch-sensitive membrane over hard plastic backboard. Less robust, but can be activated by a finger, which eliminates the problem of lost pens or flat batteries. Software drivers, handwriting recognition and an on-screen notes facility.

www.smartboard.co.uk

* InterWrite Meeting Board

High resolution images. Battery-operated pens. Annotation software. Can be combined with the portable Interwrite MeetingPad for extra interactivity.

http:www.accurate.plc.ukeducation

* Mimio: Much smaller and less versatile, but considerably cheaper at around pound;350.

www.mimio.com

More information:

www.becta.org.ukteachingpedagogytechnologieswhiteboards.html www.bournemouth-schools.org.ukcomparing_boards.htm