Creating Effective Presentations With Powerpoint Sodm

Creating Effective Presentations with PowerPoint Patrick R. Lowenthal CU Online [email_address]

Learning Objectives

You will be able to describe some of the issues surrounding the use of PowerPoint

You will have a list of strategies that you can use to improve the use of PowerPoint in your classroom or online

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Gettysburg: Where it all began? http://norvig.com/Gettysburg/ http://norvig.com/Gettysburg/sld001.htm Peter Norvig

Gettysburg: Where it all began? http://norvig.com/Gettysburg/ http://norvig.com/Gettysburg/sld001.htm

Critics of PowerPoint

Death by PowerPoint

Official: PowerPoint is bad for Brains

Bad PowerPoint: When is enough enough?

PowerPoint: Shot with its own bullets

PowerPoint is evil

Does PowerPoint make us Stupid?

PowerPoint: Can software edit our thoughts?

The PowerPoint Critic Edward Tufte Cognitive Style of PowerPoint

Edward Tufte’s Criticisms

Low resolution

Bullet outlines dilute thought

Deeply hierarchical and linear structure

Fragments narrative and data

Preoccupation with format, not content

Decoration and phluff

Critiques of Tufte

Focused on presentations—not learning

Blames the tool

Over-emphasis on content

Doesn’t offer any strategies to improve PowerPoint

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Tufte’s Implicit Recommendations

Use more useful visuals or give handouts

Use clear headings, numbered lists or very few bulleted outlines

Design and leverage PowerPoint’s non-linear and non-hierarchical capabilities

Use plain, non-distracting backgrounds; use information rich and relevant images

What did Tufte overlook?

Additional Critiques of PowerPoint

Teacher centered

Technology centered

Screen centered

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Strategies to Improve PowerPoint

Four ways we use PowerPoint

For presentations

To teach a face-to-face class

Computer-based & online learning

Student Assignments

Instructional Design Instructional Design is the systematic development of instructional specifications using learning and instructional theory to ensure the quality of instruction. It is the entire process of analysis of learning needs and goals and the development of a delivery system to meet those needs. It includes development of instructional materials and activities ; and tryout and evaluation of all instruction and learner activities.

Message Design Robin Williams The Non-Designers Design Book

CARP C ontrast A lignment R epetition P roximity

Contrast Bad Good

Alignment Good Today I went to the store to buy an apple for my grandmother. Bad Today I went to the store to buy an apple for my grandmother.

Repetition Bad Introduction xkdkdkdkdkd Body kdkdkdkd Good Introduction xkdkdkdkdkd Body kdkdkdkd Conclusion kdkdkdkd

Proximity Bad Introduction xkdkdkdkdkd Body kdkdkdkd Good Introduction xkdkdkdkdkd Body kdkdkdkd Conclusion kdkdkdkd

Font Size and Type Matter Bad FONT Good Font

Non-linguistic Representations Good Bad

Multimedia: Audio & Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cagxPlVqrtM Link to and embed an external file Link to an external file (needs internet access)

Multimedia: Audio & Video Embed a local audio and/or video file

Delivering PowerPoint Presentations

Presentation Tips

Test your PowerPoint before giving it

Learn how to move from slide to slide

Use the “B” key (or the “W”) to turn the PPT off

Don’t be locked to your PPT or the podium

Use numbers to navigate your slides

Some Rules of Thumb

PPT should support learning objectives

Avoid PowerPoint templates

Avoid using more than one level of bullets

Less is better: less words & less slides

Avoid distracting clip art or unrelated images

Avoid distracting slide transitions

Use CARP to improve design

Avoid using all CAPS

Leverage multimedia: visual & audio when appropriate

Don’t let PowerPoint control your teaching

The Rules Change Online!

The Rules Change Online This slide is an example of what a PowerPoint slide online might look like: More content is better online When developing PowerPoint presentations for online learning, the rules change. The number one reason is because your audience is now sitting right at a computer screen. Therefore, while the two central principles (i.e., sound instructional design and sound message design) remain important because learners often skim instead of read content online, the actual development of the PowerPoint presentation changes and becomes more like designing a webpage. Implications The number one way this impacts faculty is by the fact that one presentation cannot and should not be used for classroom and online courses—that is, unless you are going to include audio or video to supplement the slides.

The Rules Change Online This slide is another example of what a PowerPoint slide online might look like: Interactivity When developing PowerPoint presentations online, it is important to recognize and take advantage of the fact that your learner is now able to interact with your presentation. Therefore, including URL’s, video, audio, games, quizzes, can all strengthen your presentation as a learning experience. Bandwidth The size of your files, images that you use, and any video components takes on new importance. As a general rule of thumb, it is hard to email anything over 4mb so you should strive to keep your PowerPoint presentations under 4mb. Home :: Week 1 :: Quiz 1 :: Week 2 :: Quiz 2 :: Week 3 :: Quiz 3 ::  Back | Home | Next 

Moving Beyond Text

Interactivity

MS Producer for PowerPoint

Articulate Presenter

Impatica for PowerPoint

Games

Digital Stories

We need to think of ways to get students to interact and actively engage in their learning. MS Producer is a good tool if you want to add audio and video to your slides. It is also free! Articulate Presenter offers a seamless (but expensive) alternative to Producer. Also has quiz making tools. Impatica is an easy tool to covert PowerPoint slides for the web. PowerPoint can used to create learning games to engage students online Digital stories can be an effective way to build teacher presence online.

Resources PowerPoint Viewer - http://tinyurl.com/3buwr5 PowerPoint Producer - http://tinyurl.com/4mcn69 Articulate - http://www.articulate.com/ Impatica - http://www.impatica.com/imp4ppt/index.html Games - http://it.coe.uga.edu/wwild/index.html Digital Stories - http://www.storycenter.org Adobe Ovation - http://www.adobe.com/products/ovation/ OpenOffice Impress - http://www.openoffice.org/ (export ppt as a flash file) SlideShare - http://www.slideshare.net Inspiration - http://www.slideshare.net/contests/