In your own experience, either as a teacher, being in a classroom as an aide or visitor, or from your viewpoint as a student, what do you think are the pros and cons of teachers using multimedia presentations (PowerPoint or other slide show type formats) for educational purposes?
As a high school student I had never experienced power points as an educational tool. When I entered college I was bombarded with power points. I have experienced terrible power points, and wonderful power points. I believe that the pros and cons of power point presentations in education is based on the way the instructor organizes it.
Example of a terrible power point:
My PSYCH 001 class was taught through power point. All notes were placed on a slides and then read to the class. The class was a lecture of around 200 students. Everyday I would walk into class, sit down, pull out my notebook, and prepare to COPY notes for two hours. Each slide was filled with information. Students were unaware if they would be tested on the information so would rush in order to copy down everything they were hearing. The anxiety caused by trying to keep up with the notes, and drowning tone of the professor reading each slide, provided a perfect opportunity to "zone out." Although I could have made more of an effort to succeed in the course, the style of teaching through power point was so boring that it did not seem worth it.
Example of a wonderful power point:
My Adolescent Psych class was also taught through power point. Everyday I would walk in, sit down, and an Essential Question of the day would be up on a slide. An example of this would be:
" How can home life affect students performance?"
This would be topic we would explore for the day!
Next the next slide would be the agenda for class. For students who need this we were provided an opportunity to copy down exactly what would be done in class.
If there was a lecture planned for that day, key points would be placed on a slide in bright colors. The rest of the information would come straight from the professor. There was no anxiety because we were given exactly what we needed to write down and then an opportunity to listen and digest information.
If there was an activity planned for the day, directions would be clearly stated on a slide. Even groups for activities were divided and placed on a slide.
If an educator chooses to use power point as an educational tool, it needs to be just that, a tool. Power points can be used to help transition students, organize lectures, and give directions but: It cannot become the teacher, it must be used as reference.
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I had the experience that you described of being in a college class and struggling to write down everything on the slides. It's a daunting task to have slide upon slide of information that you must copy in the amount of time it takes the teacher to read it. As you said this made for an environment that was less than ideal for learning. I recall purposely trying to zone out on the sound of the teachers voice because it made it harder for me get all of the information. For this reason I agree with your statement, "If an educator chooses to use power point as an educational tool, it needs to be just that, a tool." I agree with this for many reasons. There are many different types of learners and for those that are visual learned a power point can help them to digest the information. A power point can also be a great way for students to see pictures and even clips of movies that add greatly to lessons. It allows the teacher to only include what is pertinent in the moment instead of going to a web site and flipping through pictures in order to find the one or two that apply to the discussion. It's a great organizational tool. I think you hit the nail right on the head by stating that "It cannot become the teacher."
ReplyDeleteDo you think that power points should be used with all age groups?