It all began with the introduction of interactive white boards into classrooms many years ago. At a time when technology was limited to the laboratories in schools, interactive white boards were an innovative introduction in the education sector.

These interactive white boards offered teachers an opportunity to interact with their students much more and helped them relate to their curriculum in a more dynamic way. This methodology also provides access to a number of digital instructional resources that are relevant to the study material. With these interactive white boards, teachers were also able to extend instruction beyond the classroom by emailing and printing lessons.

This being the introductory period of technology into the classrooms, the tide of preference has shifted more towards the interactive flat panel these days. There are mainly two primary diving factors that have given impetus to the rising demand of the interactive flat panel in modern classrooms:

• Access to advanced technology: The interactive flat panel has the advantage of technological advances that can be seen today in most tablet devices. These panels come with magnified touch-screen capabilities as compared to the previously used interactive white boards, delivering a functionality that is very similar to that of a tablet. Students these days are well-conditioned to using touch screen technology, which has made the integration of interactive flat panels much easier. The quality of display has also increased manifolds with flat panels, as they do not require projectors to be able to work well. There is no longer a need to turn of the classroom lights to better see displayed images. Another advantage is that the image quality remains consistent and does not degrade over time.
• Long term costs: The operating costs play quite a major role in this shift to interactive flat panels. There are a number of advantages that the flat panels offer in this regard. There is no requirement for changing bulbs and projectors regularly, as is the case with interactive white boards, and the panels also use less electricity to function.

Other Benefits of Using Interactive Flat Panels

While the aforementioned criteria are the major driving force in the switch to interactive flat panels, there are several benefits that their use in the classroom offers. Some of the main benefits of installing interactive flat panels are:

• Better Engagement: BYOD (bring your own device) connectivity and simple screen sharing apps can help get more students engaged in the class. Apart from this, the flat panels offer a number of other avenues for learning that can easily be integrated into the curriculum. This can include game-based learning, instructive apps, etc.
• Cost and Time Saving: Apart from the aforementioned cost savings, there are other ways that can help teachers and students save a lot of time and money. For example, there is no more a need to print endless worksheets, projects, or submissions, as everything can be managed digitally.
• More Learning Styles: The curriculum and subject course structure can be customized to be able to accommodate different students and different learning styles. It offers more flexibility as internet access allows teachers and students to explore a particular topic in more depth.

One of the main concerns that schools have when it comes to installing interactive flat panels is the upfront cost. However, if you take into consideration the benefits offered, as well as the fact that flat panels cost less over time as compared to projectors and whiteboards, the upfront cost which you pay, ceases to be an issue in the long term.