The document summarizes Edward Tufte's book "The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint" which is a critique of PowerPoint. Tufte argues that PowerPoint encourages oversimplification through bullet lists, hides relationships between ideas through its hierarchical structure, and focuses too much on formatting rather than content. While Tufte believes PowerPoint should be abandoned, others argue people are ultimately responsible for how PowerPoint is used and it can be used effectively with care. The document provides an overview of Tufte's arguments and perspectives on both sides of the debate around PowerPoint.
I love designing learning experiences. I have worked with children through adults, in academic and corporate environments. Please contact me with any questions.
I love designing learning experiences. I have worked with children through adults, in academic and corporate environments. Please contact me with any questions.
This is a short powerpoint deck I wrote on how to write powerpoint decks. My staff had a wide range of experience in presenting and the results were often disastrous. This is a simple baseline briefing about guidelines for creating powerpoint presentations. Or not.
Slides with speaker's notes from the Presentation on "Presentation Design" given at the Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland Conference on 20 February 2014
Returning to an Ideal That Never Existed: Business Management and the Rhetori...Patrick Lowenthal
The rhetoric of conservative reformers and big business seems to have found favor with a publicdissatisfied with the limitations of earlier more liberal approaches to public education. Bennett, Hirsch,and Finn (among others) have capitalized upon the "back to basics" approach to educational reform. Asthe name suggests, theirs is an approach rooted in the past. Unfortunately, these conservative reformershave too readily forgotten the lessons learned from attempts at reform by their ideological forebears.Their historically shortsighted notion of going "back" to basics suggests an idyllic era that neverexisted. More specifically, the conservative language of school reform mirrors that of another era:industrialization and its corresponding focus upon social efficiency. Reformers at the turn of the lastcentury followed the model provided them by the management of big business. Today’s trend appearsto be a recycling of this tradition sans reflection upon some of the more salient and disturbing outcomesof it. The current trend, led largely by business leaders themselves, establishes a respective identity of "consumers" for students and "managers" for educators while ignoring the need for critical thinkers andcritical consumers who truly have power to engender change in themselves and their worlds
Comparison studies have focused a great deal on the similarities and differences between online and face-to-face learning. However, there has been little research on how faculty think about and plan differently when teaching the same course online and face-to-face. In this exploratory study, we investigated faculty perceptions about instructional practices in online and face-to-face learning environments. The results suggest that faculty need additional faculty development and/or instructional design support to combat misconceptions about what works and does not work in online learning environments.
Tweeting the night away: Using Twitter to enhance social presencePatrick Lowenthal
To be truly effective, online learning must facilitate the social process of learning. This involves providing space and opportunities for students and faculty to engage in social activities. Although learning management systems offer several tools that support social learning and student engagement, the scope, structure, and functionality of those tools can inhibit and restrain just-in-time social connections and interactions. In this teaching tip, we describe our use of Twitter to encourage free flowing just-in-time interactions and how these interactions can enhance social presence in online courses. We then describe instructional benefits of Twitter, and conclude with guidelines for incorporating Twitter in online courses.
Online faculty development and storytelling: An unlikely solution to improvin...Patrick Lowenthal
Institutions of Higher Education are beginning to place a greater emphasis on quality teaching and student learning. However, few faculty receive any type of teacher training prior to entering the academy. As a result, faculty development is one likely solution to teacher quality issues. But faculty development is faced with serious shortcomings that impede its ability to improve teacher quality. This paper explores how moving faculty development online while at the same time incorporating the use of teacher stories could be a viable strategy to improve faculty development and teacher quality.
This is a short powerpoint deck I wrote on how to write powerpoint decks. My staff had a wide range of experience in presenting and the results were often disastrous. This is a simple baseline briefing about guidelines for creating powerpoint presentations. Or not.
Slides with speaker's notes from the Presentation on "Presentation Design" given at the Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland Conference on 20 February 2014
Returning to an Ideal That Never Existed: Business Management and the Rhetori...Patrick Lowenthal
The rhetoric of conservative reformers and big business seems to have found favor with a publicdissatisfied with the limitations of earlier more liberal approaches to public education. Bennett, Hirsch,and Finn (among others) have capitalized upon the "back to basics" approach to educational reform. Asthe name suggests, theirs is an approach rooted in the past. Unfortunately, these conservative reformershave too readily forgotten the lessons learned from attempts at reform by their ideological forebears.Their historically shortsighted notion of going "back" to basics suggests an idyllic era that neverexisted. More specifically, the conservative language of school reform mirrors that of another era:industrialization and its corresponding focus upon social efficiency. Reformers at the turn of the lastcentury followed the model provided them by the management of big business. Today’s trend appearsto be a recycling of this tradition sans reflection upon some of the more salient and disturbing outcomesof it. The current trend, led largely by business leaders themselves, establishes a respective identity of "consumers" for students and "managers" for educators while ignoring the need for critical thinkers andcritical consumers who truly have power to engender change in themselves and their worlds
Comparison studies have focused a great deal on the similarities and differences between online and face-to-face learning. However, there has been little research on how faculty think about and plan differently when teaching the same course online and face-to-face. In this exploratory study, we investigated faculty perceptions about instructional practices in online and face-to-face learning environments. The results suggest that faculty need additional faculty development and/or instructional design support to combat misconceptions about what works and does not work in online learning environments.
Tweeting the night away: Using Twitter to enhance social presencePatrick Lowenthal
To be truly effective, online learning must facilitate the social process of learning. This involves providing space and opportunities for students and faculty to engage in social activities. Although learning management systems offer several tools that support social learning and student engagement, the scope, structure, and functionality of those tools can inhibit and restrain just-in-time social connections and interactions. In this teaching tip, we describe our use of Twitter to encourage free flowing just-in-time interactions and how these interactions can enhance social presence in online courses. We then describe instructional benefits of Twitter, and conclude with guidelines for incorporating Twitter in online courses.
Online faculty development and storytelling: An unlikely solution to improvin...Patrick Lowenthal
Institutions of Higher Education are beginning to place a greater emphasis on quality teaching and student learning. However, few faculty receive any type of teacher training prior to entering the academy. As a result, faculty development is one likely solution to teacher quality issues. But faculty development is faced with serious shortcomings that impede its ability to improve teacher quality. This paper explores how moving faculty development online while at the same time incorporating the use of teacher stories could be a viable strategy to improve faculty development and teacher quality.
Construct maps are important tools in educational assessment and can serve multiple purposes related to development and validation, as well as score interpretation and use. This chapter outlines a process for developing a construct map from the qualitative ordering of teachers’ responses to open-ended assessment items. The construct of interest pertains to a teacher’s ability to attend to what students say and do, which is a key component of many recommendations for instructional practice within mathematics education. The instrument we are developing is designed to measure teachers’ attentiveness to student thinking in quantitative reasoning problem situations. A key aspect of our instrument development process is the development of a construct map that hierarchically orders qualitatively different levels of teacher attentiveness. In this chapter we describe our process for developing the construct map with the intent of providing an example to others who may be interested in engaging in the development of construct maps.
Scholars across many disciplines have grappled with questions of what it means for a person to
be and interact online. Who are we when we go online? How do others know we are there and
how do they perceive us? Within the context of online learning, scholarly questions tend to
reflect more specific concerns focused on how well people can learn in a setting limited to
mediated interactions lacking various communication cues. For example, how can a teacher and
students come to know each other if they cannot see each other? How can they effectively
understand and communicate with each other if they are separated by space and, in many
instances, time? These concerns are related to issues of social presence and identity, both of
which are complex, multi-faceted, closely interrelated constructs.
In search of a better understanding of social presence: An investigation into...Patrick Lowenthal
Research on social presence and online learning continues to grow. But to date,
researchers continue to define and conceptualize social presence very
differently. For instance, at a basic level, some conceptualize social presence as
one of three presences within a Community of Inquiry, while others do not.
Given this problem, we analyzed how researchers in highly cited social
presence research defined social presence in an effort to better understand how
they are defining social presence and how this might be changing over time. In
this article, we report the results of our inquiry and conclude with implications
for future research and practice.
Open Access Journals in Educational Technology: Results of a Survey of Exper...Patrick Lowenthal
As the academic publishing industry evolves, there has been an unprecedented growth of “open access journals” (OAJs). In educational technology alone, with an estimated 250 or more total journals, nearly one-third are designated as “open.” Though OAJs are lauded for their contribution to social justice issues (reduction of subscription requirement barriers), many people are suspicious of the content found in them and question the legitimacy of publishing in them. In this study, we sought to discover the opinions of educational technology scholars about OAJs in their own field. We were able to learn which OAJs were deemed to be most valuable, as well as the characteristics of OAJs thought to be particularly important. A companion site accompanies this article, http://edtechjournals.org
In Search of Quality: Using Quality Matters to Analyze the Quality of Massive...Patrick Lowenthal
The concept of the massive, open, online course (MOOC) is not new, but high-profile initiatives have moved them into the forefront of higher education news over the past few years. Members of institutions of higher education have mixed feelings about MOOCs, ranging from those who want to offer college credit for the successful completion of MOOCs to those who fear MOOCs are the end of the university as we know it. We set forth to investigate the quality of MOOCs by using the Quality Matters quality control framework. In this paper, we present the results of our inquiry, with a specific focus on the implications the results have on day-today practice of designing online courses.
Getting graphic About Infographics: Design Lessons Learned From Popular Infog...Patrick Lowenthal
People learn and remember more efficiently and effectively through the use of text and visuals than through text alone. Infographics are one way of presenting complex and dense informational content in a way that supports cognitive processing, learning, and future recognition and recollection. But the power of infographics is that they are a way of delivering the maximum amount of content in the least amount of space while still being precise and clear; because they are visual presentations as opposed to oral or text presentations, they can quickly tell a story, show relationships, and reveal structure. The following paper reports on an exploration of top 20 “liked” infographics on a popular infographic sharing website in an effort to better understand what makes an effective infographic in order to better prepare graduate students as consumers and designers of infographics. The paper concludes with recommendations and strategies on how educators might leverage the power of infographics in their classrooms.
Intentional Web Presence for Research and Technology ProfessionalsPatrick Lowenthal
Intentionally creating a well-crafted online presence, sometimes called a web presence, is important not only for recent graduates but for any professional in a community of practice that values technology use and innovation (e.g., information technology, computer science, digital and graphic design); also, professionals who work with external stakeholders (e.g., consultants working with clients, teachers working with parents, artists working with customers and funding sources) benefit from attention to their web presence. In this presentation, I will share why professionals need to attend to their web presence and share some strategies for crafting the components of a vibrant and dynamic professional web presence and digital footprint.
AERA 2015 Instructional Design Lessons Learned From Reviewing Popular Infogra...Patrick Lowenthal
Infographics are one way of presenting complex and dense informational content in a way the supports cognitive processing, learning, and future recognition and recollection. Infographics, as the name implies, are a way of presenting information graphically. But the power of infographics is that they are a way of delivering the maximum amount of content in the least amount of space while still being precise and clear. In this session we will share the results of our inquiry into what makes an effective infographic. Derived from our inquiry, we will share recommendations on how educators might leverage the power of infographics in their classrooms, and assignments we now use with our students.
Online video is believed to help build social presence and community in online courses. But do students actually watch these videos? And what do they think of them? Do they always build social presence for every student? This mixed methods exploratory study investigates students’ perceptions of online video and the degree to which different uses of online video (e.g., video announcements, instructional screencasts, and video feedback) help establish and maintain social presence. The results of the study and the implications for faculty and instructional designers will be discussed in this session.
Intentional Web Presence for Educational Technology ProfessionalsPatrick Lowenthal
Educational technology professionals must be digitally literate. Part of this involves effectively managing one’s web presence. In this presentation, I will argue that educational technology professionals need to practice what they preach by attending to their web presence. I will share strategies for crafting the components of a vibrant and dynamic professional web presence such as creating a personal website, engaging in social networking, contributing and sharing resources/artifacts, and attending to search engine optimization (SEO).
PASSHE 2015: If You Record It, Will They Watch It? And Will It Matter? Explor...Patrick Lowenthal
If You Record It, Will They Watch It? And Will It Matter? Exploring Student Perceptions of Online Video
Online videos can help build presence and community in online courses. But do students actually watch these videos? The presenter will share his experience using asynchronous video (e.g., video announcements, video feedback) as well as share research on students perceptions of asynchronous video, while engaging the audience in their own use of rich media.
1. Tufte, Edward R. (2006). The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint: Pitching Out
Corrupts Within.Second edition. Cheshire, CT: Graphics Press LLC.
Pages: 31 Price: $7.00 ISBN: 9780961392161
PowerPoint was recently listed by authors in USA Today as one of the top 25 inventions "…that changed our lives
since 1982" (Acohido, Hopkins, Graham, & Kessler, 2007). The authors boast that, "lecturers from CEOs to sixthgraders
display topic headings and charts with the click of a mouse" (PowerPoint section). While we could argue
about the significance of certain things on the their top 25 list (e.g., lettuce in a bag), we whole heartedly agree that
PowerPoint has "changed public speaking forever" (PowerPoint section).
The use of PowerPoint (and slideware software in general) has become ubiquitous; whether in a corporate board
meeting or a classroom, PowerPoint is commonplace. In fact, it is estimated that over 30 million PowerPoint
presentations are given each day(Weinstein, 2006). This rise in popularity has attracted supporters and critics alike.
Supporters can be found in every school, college, and university throughout the country; critics are fewer, but their
numbers are steadily growing.
The most notable, or at least the most vocal, critic of PowerPoint is Edward Tufte. The Cognitive Style of
PowerPoint is a brief monograph, or treatise, that is a must read for any PowerPoint user and every educator.
Throughout The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint, Tufte argues the following:
1. PowerPoint's low resolution is inadequate to display rich content.
2. PowerPoint's low resolution encourages bulleted outlines which dilute thought.
3. PowerPoint's deeply hierarchical and linear structure decontextualizes and hides information.
4. PowerPoint has a tendency to fragment narrative and data.
5. PowerPoint encourages a preoccupation with format, conspicuous decoration, and phluff rather than content.
We will focus on elaborating on each of these points.
Low Resolution
Tufte argues that PowerPoint's low resolution makes it difficult to display information rich datacontent.
Unlike paper
or computer screens, PowerPoint slides typically contain very little information. Regular users are very familiar with
running out of room on a slide.
Bullet Lists
Related to low resolution, Tufte argues that PowerPoint encourages the use (and overuse) of bullet outlines, which
dilute thought, narrative, and data. He is especially critical of the use of PowerPoint in our classrooms. He argues,
Instead for writing a report using sentences, children learn how to decorate client pitches and
infomercials…student PP exercises (as seen in teacher's guides, and in student work posted on the
internet) typically show 5 to 20 words and a piece of clip art on each slide in a presention consisting of
3 to 6 slides – a total of perhaps 80 words (20 seconds of silent reading) for a week of work. Rather
than being trained as minibureaucrats
in the pitch culture, students would be better off if schools
closed down on PP days and everyone went to The Exploratorium. Or wrote an illustrated essay
explaining something. (p. 7)
While Tufte fails to demonstrate convincingly that the use of bullet outlines make people stupid or children illiterate,
the use of bullet outlines can encourage oversimplification and decontextualization of material; the use of multiple
layered bullets can further decontextualize material by blurring connections and relationships between points.
Hierarchical and Linear Structure
Tufte also criticizes PowerPoint for being deeply hierarchical and linear. By default, PowerPoint is a very linear tool.
In fact, this is possibly part of its appeal for educators. However, despite the default hierarchical and linear structure,
PowerPoint does not have to be used in a linear and hierarchical way. For instance, by typing in the number of a slide
and hitting enter, a presenter can advance to any slide in a presentation. Thus, Tufte's criticism of PowerPoint's
hierarchical and linear structure has more to do with the way presenters think about and plan presentations—that is,
the cognitive style of PowerPoint—than with the tool itself. However, PowerPoint does seem to encourage
hierarchical and linear presentations through its default settings and "auto content" wizards.
Preoccupation with Format
Tufte is very critical of PowerPoint's preoccupation with format, conspicuous decoration, and phluff; in fact, Tufte
2. coined the term PowerPoint Phluff to describe the way PowerPoint helps people focus more on decoration and
chartjunk than serious analysis. The millions of PowerPoint templates available online alone illustrates Tufte's point
that PowerPoint or, perhaps better put, PowerPoint users are preoccupied with format and decoration.
It is our experience that PowerPoint users are also infatuated with clip art. Richard Mayer has illustrated that a
picture is not always worth a thousand words. A picture or an image needs to be relevant, or it can actually detract
and distract from a presentation and learning. Yet, PowerPoint users continually include unrelated clip art or
obnoxious slide transitions, typically in the name of fun.
Throughout The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint, Tufte essentially argues that presenters (especially those reporting
scientific information), would be better off replacing PowerPoint with Word. Rather than identifying strategies to
improve the way we use PowerPoint, Tufte seems to suggest that we should simply abandon it for most
presentations.
Moving Beyond Tufte
The work of Tufte (2006), Norvig (n.d.), and others is powerful and persuasive. In fact, Wineburg (2004) states that
educational researchers should not create a PowerPoint presentation until they have read The Cognitive Style of
PowerPoint and the work of Norvig.
Tufte focuses a great deal on the tool. He seems to blame a piece of software for the way that humans are using it.
One could argue that PowerPoint does not give bad presentations, people give bad presentations. While recognizing
the role presenter's play in bad PowerPoint presentations, Tufte argues that PowerPoint is becoming more than just a
tool but rather a cognitive style.
PowerPoint is so engrained in our culture that there is an unspoken expectation that in certain environments, one
must use PowerPoint. Try to imagine doing a paper presentation at certain major conferences without PowerPoint.
You will be labeled a luddite or even worsetechnologically
illiterate. Or imagine giving a PowerPoint presentation and
not handing out the PowerPoint slides? When a tool becomes this deeply ingrained in a culture, it becomes more
than just a tool. However, this does not dismiss the fact that how people use PowerPoint is still very much in their
control.
Conclusion
Tufte suggests that there is no hope for PowerPoint. His single mindedness is perhaps his main downfall. Tufte's
only advice is essentially to abandon its use. Despite the shortcomings of the daytoday
use of PowerPoint in our
board rooms, schools, and universities, it is not inherently evil. There is a person behind every poor PowerPoint
presentation, and this person is ultimately to blame for any bad decisions. It is time for educators and speakers alike
to take responsibility for their poor use of PowerPoint and to take back control over their presentations and lessons.
While Tufte does not offer specific strategies on how to improve the way we use PowerPoint, his work is a great
starting point by helping us begin to think differently about the software.
References
Acohido, B., Hopkins, J., Graham, J., & Kessler, M. (2007). 25 years of 'eureka' moments. USAToday. Retrieved
June 1, 2007, from http://www.usatoday.com/news/top25inventions.
htm
Norvig, P. (n.d.). The Gettysburg PowerPoint presentation. Retrieved June 1, 2007,
fromhttp://norvig.com/Gettysburg/
Weinstein, H. (2006). PowerPoint misuse raises threat of losing audiences. The Business Journal of Phoenix.
Retrieved November 1, 2007, from http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2006/10/02/smallb 2.html
Wineburg S. (2004). Must it be this way? Ten rules for keeping your audience awake during conferences.Educational
Researcher, 33(4), 1314.
Reviewed by Patrick R. Lowenthal, Assistant Professor – Regis University and John W. White, Assistant
Professor – Regis University.