I find that the ppts made by the text book company lack any style, they are boring and the students see that! I try to incorporate ppts that the instructors have made over the years because they add more to the chapters they are working on instead of repeating what they are studying. I believe each students learns in different ways and what one student would get from one ppt, another will get it better with a different ppt. If that makes any sense haha.
Carlos,
When we read stories in a book, we create a images in our mind. So can sharring stories in class, images in the students mind. Sometimes, PPT slides with too much information can cloud the image we want to create.
Barry Westling
I agree with that, we need to use powerpoint presentation just as a guide for our classes. We should not rely 100% on them. Giving personal examples of real situation in the field, works perfectly as well.
Allison,
Clickers are great! I like the ability to ask questions and solicit answers anonymously, as a way to discuss both correct and incorrect responses. Plus the students get to see results. The biggest problem I've encountered with clickers is in some classes, as the responses are viewed, some students take this to mean "time for chatting, talking, discussing -- in essence, distracting the whole class. And while I can address that behavior, it is something I see repeated frequently enough. But even so, the effectiveness of the clicker technology reinforces their use, and outweighs their non-use due to this occasional annoyance.
Barry Westling
I agree that powerpoint presentations are a very effective and efficient way of delivering information. Most of the textbooks have created powerpoint presentations as templates for instructors to use. Along with information delivery, powerpoint can be used to show youtube videos (inserting hyperlinks) and test students with the use of clickers such as turning point. With clickers, students will receive a clicker device and the powerpoint will have a question and be given the opportunity to click on the correct answer using their device. This method is a way to reinforce the material in a very interactive way as well as give feedback to the instructor of how well the content is being received by the percentage of correct answers that were given. Additionally, http://www.actden.com/pp/ is a great resource to help streamline the content on powerpoint and make them more interesting.
Todd,
I think this is a better way to do PPT slides, rather than trying to put all necessary information on the slides. That's what the textbook, workbook, and any handouts are for. PPT should be a mere summary to guide the instructor for discussion. And I also think it's better when PPT slides are used along with other activities, mixing it up to help keep interest.
Barry Westling
