As a teacher I turned down a smartboard.

As a teacher I turned down a smartboard.
Let me explain.

At one of my first schools, I was not only teaching but also responsible for promoting IT use among colleagues.
When the principal told me he could buy the very first two interactive whiteboards (or smartboards as we called them back then) for our school, at a time when most classrooms still had chalkboards, he asked me which pioneering teachers deserved them.

He expected me to want one. But I said no.
A board in my room wouldn’t have school-wide impact. It might even confirm the opposite: that technology was only for the specialists.

Instead, I suggested Harrie.
Harrie, the colleague known for struggling with technology. The one no one expected to touch an interactive whiteboard.

I walked up to him:
“Would you like to get rid of that dusty chalkboard?”
“Yes, please.”
“And wouldn’t it be great to show more videos in your geography lessons?”
“Sure.”
I promised him I’d set it up, "wipe the board clean" (that's how he called it, in the beginning) whenever he needed it 😉, and place a big YouTube link on his desktop.

Harrie was off.
From day one he pulled colleagues into his classroom, proudly showing his latest discoveries. In the staffroom, he wouldn’t stop talking about his new board. Soon, other teachers began to think: “If Harrie can do this, then so can I.”

By the end of the year, the principal faced a pile of requests for new boards. Harrie had triggered a movement.

The most unexpected hero had changed the culture.

👉 Empowerment means trusting the “unlikely” colleague.
👉 Taking time creates space for hidden growth.
👉 Real synergy happens when one spark inspires the whole team.

Every school has a Harrie. Do you create the conditions for them to shine?