@SherryErney
I have to agree, overloaded powerpoints are a nightmare for the student. It is best to limit the number of points in a slide and keep it to a minimum for the student. Also, I like to the leave the students a copy of the PowerPoint presentation.
@SherryErney
I agree to a point as many instructors do tend to overload PowerPoint's with too much information. I like the less is more approach. The key points/bullets are on the PowerPoint, but we discuss within class information the expands on the PowerPoint in various ways. I think students should also have access to the PowerPoint's as well, but in certain cases, their version may be different the the final version used in class (mainly because of topics and how quickly information many change in certain fields such as Politics/History).
Couldn't agree more a ppt that is not put together right can take the class in an entire different direction. I have been in classes that the teacher just really reads from the ppt that was poorly put together and the entire class is upset. It is great to have a ppt for the visual learners in your class and to make sure the students get your information but it should be put together correctly.
@SherryErney
Agreed. I've been a subject matter expert for developing online courses. When the LMS basically becomes an internet delivery system of power point like prresentations students turn off and ignore the material. I have even talked with instructors who feel like they have to teach as if no one has accessed those materials.
@rmenke. I make and build my own PowerPoint presentations for each chapter. This gives me flexibilty and control over the material that students need to understand.
We are about to start Moodle for our first term classes, so it will be a learning curve for the students as well as the instructors. Students obviously all learn at a slightly different speed, but having everything available to them on their iPads will be interesting. They will be able to read ahead if they want and we may lose the everyday interaction with the student because they will be focused on the material on their device.
@SherryErney
I actually enjoy using power points and have found them to be quite useful. I do undertand your points though, and make a concerted effort to not have my back to the students. I use a clicker and walk around the room and encourage the students input. I also utilize handouts with the power point and try to add in videos where appropriate.
I only use power points that I have extensively reviewed or created myself to avoid the embarassment of someone else's mistakes (I make enough of my own)
@SherryErney
PPT are awesome...for sleeping...no really. I use PPT for keeping me on track. My PPT are guide topics to connect the dots. The speaker notes are key or my lecture. I will walk the classroom with the PPT or online I will flip through PPT as I am speaking. It gives direction for the student in regards to where we are going. I use PPTs like mindmaps...it helps when I discuss the concept with my students.
@SherryErney
I find PPoints to be overused. One of the worst things I see from instructors is that their entire speech IS the PPoint. They and the class read to screen verbatim...making it dull and uninviting.
I try to create PPoints that are bullet points about what I am going to instruct...the highlights.
I also try to use some of the fancier tools to make the PPoint looking more interactive and also make sure my slides are not 100% text.
@SherryErney recently myself and some colleagues put together a presentation that on that out set looked overwelming. We found ways to break up the slide show with demonstrations and even used a monitor from the side of the room with the main board behind us showing the slide show to make sure we maintained godd face to face contact with our learners.
I use Powerpoint a lot. The first thing I learned was to make sure there is enough light for your students to take notes and refer to additional resources. Lights out, powerpoints result in nap time. Text in powerpoints must be as concise and as short as possible while still conveying any information that will be asked for on a test. Since I teach an industrial trade a higher percentage of my students are kinesthetic learners. They get much more out of the powerpoint if I literally step into the picture and draw in additional information. While the picture play on my body my be a little distracting, seeing me actually take a straight edge, triangle or protractor and draw in connecting lines that complete geometric figures or show relationships seems to be much more effective for kinesthetic learners than simply having the lines appear in the powerpoint. When they see me actually draw something it helps them to see what is happening, they can picture themselves doing the same thing. In fact, they are often mimicking my motions on their drawings or work sheets.
I like your idea of doing a demonstration and then watching the powerpoint and using it as a second learning style. I also like to have the powerpoint available as I am showing the students something just in case they do not understand why we are doing this. Most of our students are hands on and learn much more from a visual presentation. I feel that over half my class tends to drift off when I begin a powerpoint. I try to ask questions to bring them back into the presentation but this is the time they secretly pull out their phones and read their emails. But, if I am doing a demonstration and the powerpoint at the same time, this may eleviate the problem.
I almost never use power point presentations, however, when I do, what I project is a complement to what I am talking about. So for example, if I am teaching about wine, the ppt will show pictures of vineyards, wine cellars, bottling, so on and so forth. As for my lecture, I use the white board a lot, with colors and I encourage the students to take notes and pictures of the board. I feel that as I write on the board in a progression of what we are discussing, it is as if they are watching a story unfold in front of them and they tend to keep more focused. Like when I teach Nutrition, I slowly draw "Joe", who is my digestive system model, and as Joe eats an apple, I make that piece of apple travel down his digestive tract and explain the different stages of digestion and absorption. I could do that using ppt as well, but somehow the white board makes is more fun for the students. They like Joe. Should this class ever be on an Adaptive Learning model, then Joe and the digestive system could be turned into some sort of game.
