Interactive white(board) elephants

A case of change mismanagement

Abstract

The introduction of interactive whiteboards (IWBs) in secondary schools around Australia is currently being heavily promoted for the purposes of transforming the delivery of education through innovation and technology (Gillard, 2010). In such a climate, the evaluation of case studies exploring the effectiveness of the implementation of new technologies for the purposes of teaching and learning can help guide others contemplating or embarking on this process. While much of the literature reports positive outcomes in the adoption of IWBs in the secondary classroom, this paper provides a balance by exploring a case of change mismanagement which has led to the existence of electronic white elephants. The paper also explores the potential of modified force field analysis (FFA) as a decision- making and evaluation instrument for the process of technological change within educational contexts.