A few weeks ago, Julie tweeted the following: “timeline tool, schmimeline tool. chalk ftw.” This post led to a conversation among a few of us, ending with Siva Vaidhyanathan requesting a ProfHacker “entry on chalk and boards.” Siva, this one’s for you! (Don’t let it ever be said that we don’t take requests here!)
Here at ProfHacker, we have frequently espoused the wonder of whiteboards. George’s first wish for his ideal classroom is whiteboards, and lots of ‘em. Amy lists a small whiteboard among her favorite academic tools. Jason likes them so much that he likes to turn his iPad into a whiteboard at times. In a post from last year, one of my top pieces of advice for new teachers was to make sure they had their own whiteboard markers with them at all times.
While there are many advantages to the whiteboard — such as no dust, if one is allergic — I had my love of chalk rekindled during the last academic year. While my graduate institution had nothing but whiteboards in its classrooms, the school where I found myself adjuncting (effectively, I hope) only had chalkboards in the rooms that I was assigned. At first, I found this inconvenient. I didn’t have access to the full range of colors that I had grown used to having. Since I’m a bit of klutz, I would occasionally fumble the eraser and end up with a chalk mark down my shirt or pants.
But I quickly discovered that chalk had a number of benefits. In the first place, it was a lot cheaper to carry my own supply than dry erase markers. A year’s supply cost under $3. While whiteboard pen aren’t all that expensive, I would have spent 2-3 times as much, and believe me when I say that I would have missed that $6 last year.
Second, my year’s supply of chalk kept working the whole year long. Just try that with dry erase markers, which always seem to become more and more dry throughout the year. In the past, I inevitably end up with one color that I can count on working and three that limp along and that my students have to keep reminding me that they can’t see from the back of the classroom.
If one problem with dry erase markers is how easily they quit working, another one is how difficult they can be to erase. I’ve had whiteboards in the past where I’ve learned that I can’t use a particular color if I ever want it to come off, and others where I have to work at the board harder than my parents’ silver before Thanksgiving dinner. A chalkboard might generate dust (I’m lucky to not have allergies), but you can get yourself a clean slate (rimshot) before each of your classes without too much difficulty. Being able to leave the board clean for whoever uses the classroom next also helps me
The fourth reason that I like teaching with chalk is that it explodes. Seriously. Every once in a while, I’ve found it effective to underscore a point by throwing a piece of chalk at the board and having it shatter into 10x pieces. Students don’t forget these classes. As I’ve already mentioned, chalk is cheap enough that I can get away with this. I’m not above tossing the odd dry erase marker around, but the results aren’t nearly as effective. Or satisfying.
I’m not the only person here who likes chalkboards. Apart from (the recently retired) Julie, Erin’s reported on her efforts to paint a chalkboard wall to help her plan and keep track of the “Big Picture.” And in our poll about what tech tools our readers were most excited to bring into the classroom, erictho mentioned colored chalk for language teaching.
Do you love teaching with chalk and a chalkboard? Why?
[Lead image by Flickr user Francis Bourgoin / Creative Commons licensed]
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36 Responses to Four Reasons I Love Teaching with Chalk
mmwwaahh - October 22, 2010 at 1:12 pm
I’m a chalk-er too. I resent the time spent messing around with caps — and of course one *must* mess around with caps if the marker has a chance of living a full life.
eetempleton - October 22, 2010 at 1:21 pm
Chalkies unite!
matt_l - October 22, 2010 at 1:44 pm
I love chalk. When I get it on my shirt, pants, or hands, it washes out, unlike the dry erase markers. I’ve lost a couple of shirts to dry erase markers, or ended up with ink smugged on my hands, fore arm. (too much wild gesticulating during lecture)
But I think the dry erase boards seem to clean up well and are more legible from the back of the room than our chalkboards. (We’ve got both in our building).
Yea Chalk!
derekbruff - October 22, 2010 at 1:54 pm
I get all that you’re saying, but, as my high school art teacher would say, it’s the “line quality” that appeals most to me. Whiteboards are practical, sure, but the results just aren’t as aesthetically appealing to me as what I see on chalkboards.
briancroxall - October 22, 2010 at 3:11 pm
@derekbruff I find that the quality of the line depends very much on the quality of the chalk itself and on the board. Some are too slippery. Some are too gritty. Others fall into the Goldilocks realm and are just right.
briancroxall - October 22, 2010 at 3:16 pm
@matt_l: I think you might be right on the legibility of white boards. They tend to not have as much glare on them as certain chalkboards get. Having both in one room is really ideal, in my opinion.
profadrock - October 22, 2010 at 3:52 pm
Great, though I wasn’t hooked until point #4! I’ve actually ruined a few dry-erase markers slamming the tips into the board for emphasis!!!
BTW, Try some different brands…some erase very poorly; others erase perfectly!
ruthannjohnson - October 22, 2010 at 4:27 pm
I like the color saturation and sharpness of markers (although I’m sure I’m going to get high one of these days from opening a new one!). I also like the fact that they don’t dry out my hands like chalk does. I DON’T like the negative sustainability of markers, though. How much trash do they generate? How much does that trash break down over time? How much energy is used in their manufacture? The environmentally responsible part of me would choose chalk in a minute!
philosophy - October 22, 2010 at 5:49 pm
What about chalk v. big computer screens you can write on with a stylus or your finger, both when the web or a document is displayed, or on a blank screen. When giving a short quiz, I like to show the questions onscreen, then after students hand in the quiz scroll through the questions and discuss them.
But I do sometimes prefer the chalkboard at the back of the room, because it’s a lot bigger than the 5-6 foot screen. It a smallish room and I can trot from one end to the other and students get a bit of exercise from pivoting their desks!
jwjulius - October 22, 2010 at 5:52 pm
I’m surprised nobody has mentioned the downside of chalk dust with all the electronics that inhabit most classrooms now.
lkcoleman - October 22, 2010 at 6:48 pm
Chalk for fuzzy lines (created with the side of a half piece of chalk). I teach a lot of concepts with fuzzy boundaries. Can’t do that with a dry-erase marker.
22228715 - October 22, 2010 at 8:00 pm
I fear chalk. If a dry erase marker fails, it just silently fails. It’s like opening your mouth and nothing comes out.
But when chalking goes bad… spine-tingling screeches, gritty gasps, wan faint whimpers, breakage with fingernail casualties. It’s like opening your mouth and out comes microphone feedback or a pubescent voice break or a hissing noise or laryngitis rasping in spurts. And the aftermath makes my skin crawl – ragged bone-dry cuticles, brittle nails, yellowed hands that no amount of lotion can remedy for days.
Shudder.
When the chalk is perfect, and the board is perfect, it’s like butter. But the alternatives are not worth the risk.
azfaculty - October 23, 2010 at 1:26 am
I teach in two classrooms that have old nasty chalkboards and a mediated computer/projector.
Legibility on the chalkboards even from the middle of the room is very very bad. I didn’t know how bad until I sat in the middle of the room with students recently while students were giving presentations. I couldn’t read the chalkboards AT ALL.
Rather than use the chalkboards — where the writing is minimally legible, I now get to the class early, get the computer and projector powered up, and write powerpoints on the fly precisely as I would use a chalkboard or whiteboard if the classroom had either one.
I shall be happy to throw the chalk against the wall or board. Give me a whiteboard (and yes, lots of them) and a computer with projector any day.
rjhskyhawk - October 25, 2010 at 6:23 am
I mix it up – I’ll use markers if I need color … otherwise I REALLY prefer chalk – I also use the technology (Matlab or Powerpoint with computer/projector) to do animated demonstrations –
I do think that choice is very much a function of class size and venue – This semester I’m teaching two classes in fairly modern/ small classrooms, with enrollments of 5 and 15, so I think visibility is less of an issue.
geneseo - October 25, 2010 at 7:40 am
I love chalk because I am allergic to the white board markers. They make me loopy in a drunk sort of way, which is not the way to teach anything, me thinks. And the white board markers that are out there that do not stink to high heaven work for only a few days and are difficult to find. So, chalk for me!!! Oh, and I have a box of colored chalks in more vibrant colors than any white board markers have ever come in.
blog21 - October 25, 2010 at 8:19 am
With some frequency, when a “dumb” question was asked or comment made, our macro econ prof in grad school would stare at the class and, with a scowl on his face, take a bite of his chalk.
I think that ruined chalk for me!
rholmgre - October 25, 2010 at 8:40 am
Thanks for the refreshing post. Not all good technology is high tech. I taught college mathematics for years and now work in higher ed IT. Quality colored chalk and a quality chalkboard are still my favorite technologies for a number of reasons:
1. Good colored chalk has vibrant colors, erases well, and will last a long time. (If you are spending less than 50 cents a stick, it’s probably not going to erase well. You can tell good chalk by its weight. Omega colored chalk was good when I last purchased it ten years ago. Staples and other office supply stores carry it. Good white chalk is less expensive; use that for the exploding chalk trick.)
2. I can always tell when I am running out of chalk. Not so for marker ink.
3. Chalk and boards are much more cost-effective and sustainable than whiteboards and markers. Good chalkboards last for decades (projectors four years, whiteboards ten years). A box of good colored chalk would last me three years of full-time teaching. Markers, maybe a semester.
4. I am chemically sensitive and marker fumes induce asthmatic symptoms in me. I suspect it will do the same for some of our students. To the best of my knowledge, chalk dust may be annoying but it does not have health risks.
5. If you use common sense, chalk dust won’t kill classroom electronics. (Some of our instructors like to use a cable cutout on some of our podiums for an eraser holder. The dust falls off the eraser, into the podium, and gets sucked into the PC. That does eventually kill the PC.)
On the downside, chalk is dusty, but it does wash out. I can live with that.
cfurchner - October 25, 2010 at 8:54 am
I’m neutral on the subject – each technology has it’s features and bugs. How did teachers function before chalkboards (ca. 1801)?
By the way – if you wash your whiteboards with water rather than bottled cleaner, they are much easier to erase between washings, in my experience. That vile smelling cleaner has the property of making it necessary to buy more cleaner.
emmadw - October 25, 2010 at 9:23 am
rholmgre said:
“2. I can always tell when I am running out of chalk. Not so for marker ink. ” – I’d add to that that the chalk is as bright at the end of its life as it was in the begininng – unlike a marker that gradually gets fainter & you have to decide when to bin it!
From an accessiblity point of view many have reported that yellow chalk on a green board is much clearer & less glare for students with limited vision.
From the point of view of a short person, those boards that are moveable (which, in my experience are much more likely to be chalkboards than whiteboards) mean you can write at a height that’s writer friendly – then lift it up to a height that’s reader friendly!
billhandy - October 25, 2010 at 9:36 am
I teach in two different rooms, one with a whiteboard and one with chalk. Truth be told I prefer the chalk.
Here is my interesting observation – I am part of an iPad pilot at Oklahoma State University and with the integration of the iPad and the way we modified class I find myself using the board more than ever. No more lectures in class but true conversations/brainstorming sessions which oftentimes requires the added value of a white/chalkboard.
drjeff - October 25, 2010 at 9:37 am
Even though I have allergies, and taught Physics, where the many diagrams I used benefited from the color (I always used 4), I still prefer chalk.
I also found that, with chalk, I got LESS mess on myself. Especially my hands. It was midway through the first semester before I figured out that my hands were always black from the dry-erase ink left in the tray by the cleaning crew: the tray at the bottom of the board, where you rest the markers, would catch all the ink that flaked off as it was erased. Put down a marker, transfer the ink to it. Pick up a marker, transfer it to your hand.
Once I figured it out, I started keeping my markers in a cup, and my hands stayed clean.
Dry-erase ink is indelible on porous surfaces (hands, clothes).
Chalk cleans up easily.
karenrlow - October 25, 2010 at 11:03 am
I’ve taught with both and much prefer chalk. The worst experience I had with a dry-erase marker was in a weekend grad seminar in a smallish classroom. The students and I both got “high” and headachey and we had to open the windows even though it was winter in Montana: below freezing and blowing. I much prefer the risk of leaning on the chalk rail and getting a line across my backside. :o)
jmil3198 - October 25, 2010 at 11:12 am
Buy sidewalk chalk at a toy store. The sticks are fat and don’t break. It’s very soft so it makes lines that are visible from anywhere in the room. And it comes in an array of colors, all in one package!
heatherwhitney - October 25, 2010 at 11:22 am
I feel torn on this issue. I love the smoothness of writing on a whiteboard, especially for long sequences of writing equations, and in physics the ability to use lots of different colors for diagrams is critical. The vibrance of markers is preferable to even colored chalk for drawings. And I appreciate that we’ve been using Crayola Dry Erase Markers, which are truly almost no-odor. I went back to a Expo marker the other day and almost swooned from the intense odor.
However, we go through an incredible amount of markers, and they do run down quickly. I find myself needing a new pack about every three weeks.
11272784 - October 25, 2010 at 12:02 pm
Chalk is dead. Students deserve better VISUAL materials in the classroom, and a whiteboard gives them a much more legible, easier to read image than chalk – provided the markers aren’t dried out.
And with the increasing use of presentation tools, whiteboards are on the way out, too. Smartboards and equivalents are what we should be using – and every faculty member should be posting a copy of his/her audio and screen capture to an online course shell after each lecture.
Students expect it – it’s only faculty who haven’t realized this change has already overtaken them.
lexalexander - October 25, 2010 at 12:03 pm
I was deeply skeptical until you got to the part where chalk explodes. But now I Have Seen the Light.
george_h_williams - October 25, 2010 at 12:12 pm
My campus no longer has any chalkboards (that I know of), and I think the impetus for this shift is to protect the computer equipment from the chalk dust (a problem @jwjulius mentions upthread).
When I did teach with a chalkboard, however, I would always end up with a slightly sore throat afterwards. I don’t know if the cause was a particular brand of chalk or if I’m allergic to chalk dust in general or if there was some other cause.
Now that we’ve gone all whiteboard, I don’t have that problem any more… and I’ve turned into a big fan of whiteboards.
@11272784: Speaking only for myself, I don’t think more than about 10% of my students would be interested in me posting audio and screen captures to an online course shell. When I’ve done things like that in the past, very few students took advantage of that information, so I stopped doing it. In general, I think it’s best for everyone to figure out what works best for their own situation, and situations are going to be different from one classroom to the next, one campus to the next.
josephofoley - October 25, 2010 at 1:10 pm
To me, writing on a true black slate board with a stick of crushed white limestone was, on good days, a sort of secular sacrament with geology playing the role of God. White against black, earth based slate receiving the informative touch of water based chalk was a simple chorus of the elements, a communion as well as a communication. Writing an equation made me imagine that I was giving birth to an idea. The sliding chemical feel of a marker on a whiteboard just never felt as good.
lexalexander - October 25, 2010 at 2:29 pm
Also, sliding your nails down a chalkboard is a good way to quiet a class down. Once the screaming stops, I mean.
facultydiva - October 25, 2010 at 2:55 pm
I still remember the day @35 years ago that an undergrad prof threw the eraser at the back wall of our wide but not deep classroom to emphasize a point. And yes, I remember the point he was making!
emmadw - October 26, 2010 at 7:24 am
@11272784 & @george_h_williams
I’ve also tried capturing lecture in the past & posting it to the VLE after the lecture – students haven’t used it much; though, to be fair to them, I didn’t do any post lecture editing (no time) – and it was very much presented as back up (e.g. they’d missed the lecture) rather than replacement (e.g. they didn’t feel like coming to the lecture) – and things like student questions weren’t always captured. As they tend to be small classes there was often quite a bit of student interaction.
I’m less convinced of the arguement that students deserve ‘better’ than chalkboards; my feeling is that they value good teachers far more than the gadgets teachers are using. If you’re boring them, they don’t care how you’re presenting it. If they’re engaged; they don’t care either (about the presentation) but they do remember the lecture.
interface - October 26, 2010 at 11:07 am
You can always lean up against the tray and give yourself Chalk Butt, which amuses the hell out of the class when you then turn around to write something.
I once put my hands on either side of my face during a dry erase-enhanced lecture and left two blue handprints. I couldn’t figure out why the class was smiling (“What a friendly lot!”) until someone exploded with laughter and told me.
I agree with emmadw: a teacher whose got the real enthusiasm and love for the subject can convey that in an empty room. A teacher who ain’t got it isn’t going to be helped by any amount of gadgetry.
interface - October 26, 2010 at 11:13 am
Bad editing – did not successfully transit from “whose enthusiasm” to “who’s got the real enthusiasm.”
ejb_123 - October 26, 2010 at 3:30 pm
The school I taught in when I lived in Japan only had chalkboards. The teachers, though, all carried around little chalk-clips that the chalk could be put into, so they would not get their hands dirty. Unfortunately, I discovered upon returning to the States that U.S. chalk is not as thick as Japanese chalk, so the chalk would fall out of the chalk-clip.
ejb_123 - October 26, 2010 at 3:48 pm
Whiteboard markers are also made out of plastic. That’s a lot of plastic that is being thrown into the trash and sent to the landfills. Yet another example of the U.S. not thinking about the environment or even about recycling.
citizenship - October 27, 2010 at 4:19 pm
Chalk it all up to experience!