Blackboard - Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages and Disadvantages

As compared to whiteboards, blackboards have a variety of advantages:

• Chalk requires no special care; whiteboard markers must be capped or else they dry out.
• Chalk is an order of magnitude cheaper than whiteboard markers for a comparable amount of writing.
• It is easier to draw lines of different weights and thicknesses with chalk than with whiteboard markers.
• Chalk has a mild smell, whereas whiteboard markers often have a pungent odor.
• Chalk writing often provides better contrast than whiteboard markers.

On the other hand, chalk produces dust, the amount depending on the quality of chalk used. Some people find this uncomfortable or may be allergic to it, and according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), there are links between chalk dust and allergy and asthma problems. The dust also precludes the use of chalk in areas shared with dust-sensitive equipment such as computers.

The scratching of fingernails on a blackboard, as well as other pointed, especially metal objects against blackboards, produces a sound that is well known for being extremely irritating to most people. Many are averse also to merely the sight or thought of this sort of contact.