The document provides tips for designing effective presentation slides using the CRAP principles of contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity. It discusses how to apply each principle, such as using high contrast between text and background for readability, repeating visual elements like fonts or layouts to unify the design, deliberately aligning items on each slide, and grouping related items close together through proximity. The overall message is that applying these design principles can improve slide presentations compared to typical designs full of long blocks of text or bullet points.

1. CRAP
design for presentation slides
Daniel Beck
Beck University
Photo by Steve Johnson from Pexels

2. DBP

3. why?

4. typical slides

8. Typical Boring Presentation
! Usually full of bullet points
! Usually uses a font too small to read
! Usually has a distracting background
! Often has long text way too stinking long to be a bullet point, but for some reason the
presenter doesn’t have the good sense to make it shorter so it goes on and on and on
… well, you get the point.
! Might try to incorporate APA style guidelines (Beck 2008, Slide presentation
principles for Foreign Language Educators. The 14th Annual Temple University,
Japan Campus Applied Linguistics Colloquium. Tokyo, Japan)
! Comes with a printed handout of the slides. Ugh.
! Presenter often reads the bullet points or long text while you nearly hit your head on
the table as drowsiness overcomes you
! Has a room full of people flipping through the schedule as they contemplate which
boring presentation they will attend next.
! Has even more bullet points with unnecessary points, but you can’t have TOO
MUCH text on the screen, can you?

9. Endless Bullet Points
• Bullet point 1
• Bullet point 2
• Bullet point 3
• Bullet point 4
• Bullet point 5
• Bullet point 6
• Bullet point 7
• Bullet point 8
• Bullet point 9
• Bullet point 10
• Bullet point 11
• Bullet point 12

10. no more bullets
Image by MasterTux from Pixabay

11. Design
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

13. C. R. A. P.

14. CONTRAST

15. make differences different
Image by Magnascan from Pixabay
really

16. low contrast is hard to read
high contrast is easy to read

17. low contrast
looks like a mistake

18. high contrast
looks intentional
わざと
and cool!

19. thick thin
&

20. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

21. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

22. size

23. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

24. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

25. color
Photo by Deeana Creates from Pexels

26. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

27. Beyond Public Speaking
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University
Daniel Beck

28. fonts
fonts
fonts fonts
fonts
fonts
fonts

29. Beyond Public Speaking
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University
Daniel Beck

30. Beyond Public Speaking
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University
Daniel Beck

31. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

32. The Principle of Contrast
• If something is different, it should be
really different

33. The Purpose of CONTRAST
• Create interest
• Organize
• Emphasize what’s important

34. How to do Contrast
• font
• size
• color
• shape
• space

36. CONTRAST

37. C. R. A. P.

38. REPETITION

39. have a theme
Image by karl-ferdinand from Pixabay

40. TEMPLATES

42. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

43. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

44. size

45. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

46. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

47. fonts
fonts
fonts fonts
fonts
fonts
fonts

48. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

49. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

50. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

51. The Principle of REPETITION
• Repeat some aspect of the design
throughout the piece.

52. The Purpose of REPETITION
• Unify
• Add visual interest

53. How to do REPETITION
• Strengthen existing repetitions.

54. REPETITION

55. C. R. A. P.

56. ALIGNMENT

57. Every item
should have
a visual
connection
with
something
else on the
page.

58. Get your ducks in a row

59. items not aligned
can be disturbing

60. can be disturbing
items not aligned

61. items not aligned
can be disturbing

62. Centered is safe,
but boring

63. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

64. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

65. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

66. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

67. think different

68. The Principle of ALIGNMENT
• Nothing should be placed randomly.
• Every item should have a
visual connection with another
item on the page.

69. The Purpose of ALIGNMENT
• Unify
• Organize

70. How to do ALIGNMENT
• Place items deliberately.

71. ALIGNMENT

72. C. R. A. P.

73. PROXIMITY

74. group related
items together Photo by Marta Branco from Pexels

75. Beyond Public Speaking
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University
Daniel Beck

76. Beyond Public Speaking
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University
Daniel Beck

77. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

78. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

79. The Principle of PROXIMITY
• Physical closeness of items shows a
relationship.

80. The Purpose of PROXIMITY
• Organize

81. How to do PROXIMITY
• Reduce the number of groups of
items.

82. Beyond Public Speaking
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University
Daniel Beck

83. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

84. Beyond Public Speaking
Daniel Beck
Presenting Academic Content Effectively
Beck University

85. CRAP
design for presentation slides
Daniel Beck
Beck University
Photo by Steve Johnson from Pexels

86. Photography and Illustration Credits
Photo by Steve Johnson from Pexels https://www.pexels.com/photo/multicolored-abstract-painting-1509534/
Image by Tumisu from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/photos/man-thinking-doubt-question-mark-5723449/
Image by MasterTux from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/photos/bullets-shells-bullet-shells-2166491/
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/illustrations/light-bulb-think-idea-solution-2010022/
Image by Magnascan from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/photos/peas-pod-pea-pod-green-fresh-580333/
Image by Kadres from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/photos/friends-big-and-small-2531455/
Photo by Deeana Creates from Pexels https://www.pexels.com/photo/yellow-balloon-on-blue-background-2418645/
Photo by Nastco/iStockPhoto https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/standing-out-from-the-crowd-gm513274963-47212914
Image by Hebi B. from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/photos/colored-pencils-colour-pencils-686679/
Photo by Vlad Tchompalov on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/wt5Y8VY_0bA?
utm_source=unsplashutm_medium=referralutm_content=creditShareLink
Photo by Marta Branco from Pexels https://www.pexels.com/photo/variety-of-brown-nuts-on-brown-wooden-panel-high-angle-photo-1295572/
Photo by ferrantraite/iStockPhoto https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/bored-businessman-gm94158713-6080208