Mini-Workshops

The following mini-workshops will be held in the CGPS North Building, room B226 (Curriculum Development Lab). Please email, call, or see John St.Clair to reserve a seat.

Is chalk a pedagogical tool?

Surely chalk is dead!

Chalk is dirty, dry, and dreadful.

According to ErgoInDemand it was in 1801 that “James Pillans, Headmaster of the Old High School of Edinburgh, Scotland, is widely credited for inventing the blackboard and colored chalk which he used to teach geography.” Certainly this was a technological innovation at the time. But surely, the time for using chalk in a classroom is long past.

Can chalk be used in a pedagogically sound fashion?

Again, according to ErgoInDemand, chalk continues to enjoy some advantages over the omnipresent “dry-erase” whiteboard. Boards are now available in varying sizes and can be permanentlty mounted or installed on mobile platforms. And, yes, even the hand held “slates” of long ago. Young students benefit from the tactile feedback that chalk offers, not present in dry-erase markers on slick whoteboards. Dust-free chalk is available in many bright colors. Chalk is less expensive and cleans on hands, clothes, or board with soap and water rather than chemicals.

But really, who uses chalk anymore?