Poweroint - Monday Section
Monday SectionPowerPoint… Evil?
After reading the article by Tufte and listening to the NPR segment on PowerPoint, what are your reactions to the opinions expressed? Are teacher-centered uses of technology more or less effective as student-centered uses of technology?
Please click on the "comment" link below to submit your thoughts
posted by Elizabeth Langran @ 11/13/2007 12:47:00 PM
38 Comments:
Honestly, I think Mr. Tuttle wrote a pretty poor article here. There is no doubt he has some points about how PowerPoint is used and misused within schools (and other settings). However, he let personal feelings cloud his argument so his article reads somewhat incoherently and displays what appears to be some personal bias. Simply put, I think he has good intentions, but they are written poorly.
I've got a problem with two points.
First, he writes "particularly disturbing is the adoption of the PowerPoint cognitive style in our schools. Rather than learning to write a report using sentences, children are being taught how to formulate client pitches and infomercials."
The fault here lies within larger national school issues or poor decisions by teachers, not with PowerPoint. I'd argue by attacking PowerPoint we lose focus from the real problem...that being school systems, curriculum, or teachers who use the technology improperly. Students write reports in solid school districts like Fairfield. Unfortunately education is not equal everywhere, nor is it perfect anywhere. It is the teachers responsibility to make sure PowerPoint and other technologies are used in such a way that value is added to the classroom. PowerPoint does not teach lack of content or disengage the audience. This negative aspect comes from teachers who simply allow their students to read directly from their slides, not go into detail, or over-emphasis all the cool "bells and whistles" aspect of PowerPoint.
It is also important to remember that student academic abilities are important to how we assess the effectiveness of a technology. I'm not sure this article distinguishes presentations between highly competent students as compared to those with special needs.
Secondly, Tuttle writes "the standard PowerPoint presentation elevates format over content, betraying attitude of commercialism that turns everything into a sales pitch." Again, at least from an educational standpoint this problem will lie in not having students use the program as an aid to their learning / project or relying on PowerPoint to "teach" their students.
Similarly with the NPR clip, Edward Tuffty (the Yale Professor) talks about negative aspects of PowerPoint and how they are harmful for the for everyone except "the bottom 20 percent." Great, but we as listeners are not provided with any information after that statement. Why is PowerPoint harmful? We're only working with two sources and I'm sure both the NPR investigation and Wired article cover PowerPoint more in depth, but for purposes of our MD 400 class materials we need more explanation.
I think the key point to remember is what we learned the first week of class...technology is only as good as the lesson plan which it is trying to add value to. Technology doesn't make a lesson, it's only a part of a classroom that when used effectively can aide students learning considerably.
I think Kyle is a littler harsh, but I do agree with him. I think the one point that Mr. Tuttle did recognize is, "rather than supplementing a presentation, it [PowerPoint] has become a substitute for it." I think I may have a little different viewpoint since I am not teaching in a classroom.
From my experience in education as a student, I have only seen PowerPoint used as a presentation. For organization purposes, I believe it does a great job. Also, me being someone who doesn't like very much standing in front of the class, PowerPoint definitely takes a lot of the edge off when presenting. However, it definitely needs to be used as a supplement to presentation. One of my biggest pet peeves is when students of peers read directly from their slides. If presenters can say what they have written, why not add a chart or some type of visual to the slideshow to catch the audience's interest or to present their material in a different way.
I think that Mr. Tuttle's article should at least spark some thinking in to the use of PowerPoint. Used correctly, I think it is another great tool for students.
Kyle i definitely agree with you. I feel that this man really does not like PowerPoint so he figured he would bash it in his own discussion. I think that power point has it ups and downs just like any technology that is out their today. I think that power point is very helpful when giving a presentation in the classroom. For somebody like myself who has a hard time gathering thoughts while up in front of the classroom, power point is a great tool for me. I can use my slides and look back for key words that i would like to address to the class. Without something like this i would probably be very lost when giving a speech, or would have to memorize most of it!!
One thing that i do think is a downfall of PowerPoint is that people take advantage of it as well. Many people tend to hide their face behind the screen and read the screen word for word. Not for nothing but most people in this world know how to read and by looking at the screen, we can see what you are saying. They should try to elaborate on the words that they have up on the projection screen. This is why using key words is a lot better because you do not catch yourself trying to read right off the computer.
Mr. Tuttle's article could be a little less harsh.
I agree...I was def. really harsh with my assessment of Tufte's article, but he was quite critical of PowerPoint himself. In the end I think it balances out.
The problem in my eyes is he's not focusing on the real problem. He's looking at the technology and writing it off as a failure for the most part, instead of looking at how the technology is used. Technology's are integrated into lesson plans by teachers and the people who make them for presentations or whatever. If a teacher thinks the powerpoint will do the teachers this is not the technologies fault...it's the teachers. I think you've got to start with the problem of poor use before you criticize the technology. In my opinion this is not what the article addresses.
"If a teacher thinks the powerpoint will do the teachers this is not the technologies fault...it's the teachers."
sorry for the typo. this sentence should read:
If a teacher believes PowerPoint will do the teachers job, this is not the technologies fault...it's the teachers.
Like I've said...blaming the teacher or the presentor for not explaining their content in full detail or using PowerPoint as a substitute for actual teaching is not the fault of the technology.
I agree that PowerPoint can be useful when presenting, and even for visual learners on the receiving line. I remember plenty of presentations and classes with overheads placed one after another on the projector and PowerPoints are much more appealing. I do also hate being read to from Power Point slides. I think presentation skills need to be taught to students so they know how to present well with slide shows.
I can definitey see Tufte's point that PowerPoints can be very limiting and allow for students to create reports that look great, but have little substance. I was particularly alarmed by the small number of words used in a typical PowerPoint presentation. I was wondering if this was empirical data that he collected.
My sixth-grade daughter actually came home today and was complaining about PowerPoint presentations by classmates where she had no idea what was being taught, because of all the swirling words and other "cool" graphics. Her class had presentation options and she had decided to create a video. As a parent and educator, I hope students have the opportunity to learn how to write reports and present them in intersting and intelligent ways. As everyone else has said, it comes down to what the teachers do and what they encourage students do that will determine if there is value in any assignment.
Back to the article, I think there is more than "some personal bias" as Kyle said, but I actually enjoyed that Tufte has such a strong opinion and I didn't think the article was poorly written. i thought the Stalin metaphor was hysterical. I have discussed in other courses how PowerPoint can diminish creativity and when used typically forces presenters to basically all do the same thing.
I have actually never created my own personal PowerPoint presentation, but I have sat through plenty of poor ones and a few good ones. I am looking forward to seeing a more creative way to use PowerPoint.
I have to agree with Kyle that I think Mr. Tufte’s annoyance is focused on the wrong aspects of the PowerPoint presentations. I think he attacked the method of presentation versus addressing the flaws of the presenter. Any presentation is only as good as the presenter or author. First of all, before the advent of PowerPoint, every business presentation I have ever had to sit through utilized the bulleted format and overhead projectors. PowerPoint has allowed for a more streamlined process with better graphics and a much better methodology for compiling the presentation. Any Business 101 class states that the presenter should NEVER read from the slide. The function of the bullets on the slide is to serve as a framework or talk piece. Thus all of the weaknesses Mr. Tufte cites are not a reflection of the weakness of PowerPoint, but of the presenter. He should be writing an article on the lost art of public or persuasive speaking. A more effective argument would be that PowerPoint has empowered people to think that they can make public presentations with little or no preparation or training.
From an educational perspective, once again the effectiveness of PowerPoint directly correlates to the effectiveness of the teacher. As a future English teacher I am horrified to think that people would allow PowerPoint to replace actual writing. However, I have seen PowerPoint used effectively in elementary schools. My children’s school uses PowerPoint in first grade when the students are just learning to construct sentences. One sentence per page is a great accomplishment for these children. They illustrate the sentence themselves, no clip art allowed. The entire classes’ individual pages are then compiled into a PowerPoint which provides the students with a sense of accomplishment and the realization that one sentence links to others to form more complete concepts. PowerPoint is also used at the school for public speaking, not writing. Every student, every year, participates in a class PowerPoint presentation in front of an audience of parents. The students present to between fifty and one hundred people. By the time they leave the school they have done this six times and even the shyest students are accomplished public speakers. It still amazes me to watch five, six, and seven year old students speak with poise and confidence. As we have learned all semester, the value of the technology lies in the design determined by the teacher.
I think everything that is being said is true. It is not the fault of technology (PowerPoint) if it is not being used to its fullest extent. I think a lot of the problem with technology in the classroom is that the development for staff is not there. If educators are being shown how to incorporate technology into their lesson in a beneficial way, I think we would be seeing better results. However, because a lot of educators lack the training, they are using technology the only way they know how. Districts and administration can't just throw technology in the classroom and expect it used in the proper and beneficial way. With proper training, educators will be able to show students different ways to use PowerPoint and other technology.
I like the above comment regarding the need for technology support staff. I've noticed from talking with the media staff at my school that things appear to be a bit under-staffed. They can't get everything they want done...teach teachers, students, etc. Perhaps this is one solution we should follow to improve how technology is used.
At the same time what I'd question what people think about the common sense aspect of technology. What I mean is shouldn't you as the teacher have a pretty good sense of how to integrate technology in effective manners on at least a basic level? For example I'm sure many of have either been a part of or witness presentation after presentation where students just repeat the words they've got on the slides. We may have even done this ourselves...I know I did. There is a place for this, but I'd argue this is a part of technology where the lesson plan and teacher are at the problem. If teachers don't make students accountable in some way for memorizing parts or using note-cards I can't see how an tech. specialist will help this aspect.
Also with the whole bells and whistle over-use of graphic features problem I'd again argue that would fall into the teacher fault category. We can't be letting students earn points for fancy graphics instead of solid research and at least attempting to follow good presentation skills.
When I initially read the Tufte article I thought it was a little humorous. Clearly he was trying to make a point but there are always two sides to a story. Power point is a great tool that simplifies material and helps organize thought. It is an excellent tool to help students that have trouble organizing thoughts,it helps re-emphasize material, it can quickly sell an idea or it may be great for presenting an overview. It is not a solution to all educational needs. Like all forms of technology, the uses in the classroom vary. It is just another tool to have in your belt to help reach more students and help cover educational needs for all. That is why it is important that the teacher always keep in mind the purpose of the lesson and determines the best uses of technology or other tools in the classroom.
Mr. Tufte is generalizing when he draws an inference to PowerPoint making people into bores and degrading the quality and credibility of communication. In fact, a PowerPoint presentation can give energy and excitement to a presentation, which would otherwise lack the fuel to ignite the audience’s attention. PowerPoints can be effective for visual learners, when using images and graphics. PowerPoint can give the speaker support and confidence to captivate the audience’s attention.
PowerPoint helps speakers outline their talks, but it also helps students organize their information. It also helps students to stay on task. Mr. Tufte is “stretching” it a bit when he says that PowerPoint turns students’ reports in to sales pitches. PowerPoint lays out the facts clearly and therefore it might be more persuasive than a regular oral report on its own. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that it turns reports in to sales pitches, but I would say that it makes reports more persuasive to the audience. What’s wrong with that?
Mr. Tufte has a problem with PowerPoint’s ability to give the speaker power and dominance over the audience. He even goes as far as to say that it gives the speaker manipulative powers possessed by such dictators as Stalin. What is so wrong with having power and dominance over the audiences? Isn’t that what they are supposed to do in their presentations? Aren’t they supposed to captivate their audiences? His reference to Stalin and the image of the Russian army is over the top and comical. Is he suggesting that we are breeding future dictators in our schools, maybe even world leaders?
I agree with Mr. Tufte’s opinion about the importance of writing a report using sentences. However, not every report has to be sentences, paragraphs and five page reports. PowerPoint, posters, movies, digital stories and podcasts are equal alternatives to written reports. Also, you have to create an outline for a PowerPoint just the same way as you for a written report. Students should create storyboards with full sentences when planning out their presentations. Students may not be writing full sentences in PowerPoint, but they are learning other skills like summarizing, paraphrasing, being factual and generally being concise with their words.
I agree with Mr. Tuft’e point that presentations should “stand or fall on the quality, relevance, and integrity of the content”. However, I disagree with his point “audience boredom is usually a content failure, not a decoration failure”. I have seen students with interesting and accurate content in their projects, but then unable to communicate their content to their audience effectively. It was always due to their volume, speed, tone or diction. These factors lead to their failure to engage their audience. On the other hand, I have seen students use PowerPoint’s “bells & whistles” to confuse, annoy and distract their audience. Like everything else, PowerPoint and the features of PowerPoint should be used in moderation.
The PowerPoint style
only “disrupts, dominates, and trivializes content” when it is used as a substitute for a presentation rather than a supplement i.e. when the presenter is reading the content word from word from the presentation. Also, this occurs when students try to “jazz up” their presentations by using too many “magic tricks”. Students should be consistent with font size and color, backgrounds, design, transitions and animations. Also, they need to minimize the features, so as not to turn their slideshow in to a “parlor trick” and thus trivializing the content. All in all, PowerPoint presentations should be used in moderation, to supplement an oral presentation and convey the message clearly.
The argument Tuftle makes is as old as civilization and remains true: language structures thought. The reduction of complex topics to short phrases often lacking a verb renders thinking that is lifeless at best and frequently simple-minded. The military in particular has become enslaved by the PowerPoint display.
I agree with some points from the "PowerPoint is Evil" article and disagree with others. I do feel PowerPoint is basically boring! I just used it for a presentation I was giving; it was great to organize my thoughts and what I was going to say but I don't think there was anything visually interesting about it at all. I do not think that it's the best use of technology for students in the classroom. A line that stands out to me is "Rather than learning to write a report using sentences, children are being taught how to formulate client pitches and infomercials." Where I do not think that PowerPoint is corporate propaganda, I feel its similar to what Peter writes lifeless and simpleminded. However, I do feel PowerPoint is important to know and if there are more creative ways of using it I would like to learn, but as for the classroom I think it should be used but limited.
I also agree with what Kyle says about not blaming the technology. In the classroom it is the teachers responsibility to use and not abuse the programs. PowerPoint is not my favorite program but I do see it having place in the classroom; not a leading place but still a place.
I agree with some points from the "PowerPoint is Evil" article and disagree with others. I do feel PowerPoint is basically boring! I just used it for a presentation I was giving; it was great to organize my thoughts and what I was going to say but I don't think there was anything visually interesting about it at all. I do not think that it's the best use of technology for students in the classroom. A line that stands out to me is "Rather than learning to write a report using sentences, children are being taught how to formulate client pitches and infomercials." Where I do not think that PowerPoint is corporate propaganda, I feel its similar to what Peter writes lifeless and simpleminded. However, I do feel PowerPoint is important to know and if there are more creative ways of using it I would like to learn, but as for the classroom I think it should be used but limited.
I also agree with what Kyle says about not blaming the technology. In the classroom it is the teachers responsibility to use and not abuse the programs. PowerPoint is not my favorite program but I do see it having place in the classroom; not a leading place but still a place.
Sorry I posted that twice!
I agree with John that PowerPoint does make reports more persuasive, and not a sales pitch. What could possibly be wrong with this should be left up to viewers to decide.
We have discussed how teachers should evaluate technology for the "added value." Just as important, we should be teaching students to always evaluate information they are receiving regardless of how it presented. With the amount of information students are bombarded with on a daily basis (t.v., computer, books and other printed material, radio, classroom discussions and lectures, and even rumors/stories amongst peers), I think we need to focus a great deal of effort in teaching children to be critical viewers/listeners/learners. This is one of those skills that is needed and used for life-long learning.
If students learn to view PowerPoint presentations critically, they will also become better at creating and self-assessing their own presentations.
On another point, I think Peter's comment was very true and insightful. (It might also be short enough to fit on a PowerPoint slide.)
--Kris Hart Rooney
What can I say that hasn't been said already. I found the Power Point is evil article a bit humorus too! I've created a bunch of power point presentations in my time and what we really used them for were "leave behinds". We'd give the presentation and leave the presentations packets, which were printed in full color and bound, behind for the client to review the important points and facts. Therefore not boring our audience and reinforcing our purpose. I think Kyle is right that it all depends on how the technology is used. It shouldn't be in place of learning to write reports or doing oral reports; it should be used to enhance the learning "added value". In the NPR sound bite PowerPoint is a tool to be used for organizing thoughts or to creatively present information. Used within reason PowerPoint can be helpful to students. It's kind of like the car that can parallel park itself. Everyone really should learn how to do that the old fashioned way...by hitting the curb a dozen times before finally succeding!!! Christine C.
I have to agree both with Professor Tufte and with my classmates. PowerPoint can be a useful presentation medium and it can be an overused, overrated technological tool, replacing format for content. Much depends on the development of each project, the involvement of media specialists, and the expectations and requirements of the teacher.
Having worked in school libraries in elementary, middle, and high schools, I have seen both effective and poor uses of PowerPoint. At the elementary level, as some of you have already stated, it can be a powerful tool for emerging readers and writers. The youngest elementary students can collaborate to create a presentation that they can share with classmates and parents. I have seen kindergarten students create a class PowerPoint with sentences that they have recorded and, with help, have typed, and illustrated with original drawings that they have created on the computer. These have been done under the guidance of the media specialist who acts as the technology expert at the school and who collaborates with the classroom teacher to develop and implement an effective assignment. As in the NPR clip, students can also effectively retell familiar stories or invent new ones using PowerPoint.
Older elementary students used PowerPoint to organize and present research reports. However, again the best projects were those that were done under the guidance of the media specialist who introduced the students to research techniques, essential questions (the Big Six), and even citation requirements. At each step in the process, students had to satisfy certain requirements - note taking, outlines, resources consulted, storyboards, original drafts, and revisions - all approved and checked by the classroom teacher and media specialist, before they were allowed to sit at the computer to begin to create their PowerPoint. When presenting, even at this age level, students were expected to elaborate on the material on each slide. Many projects also required the students to present a written report along with the PowerPoint presentation, ensuring that the students’ understanding of the given subject went beyond their bulleted points.
At the middle school level, the teachers collaborated with the media specialist to teach the students effective research and organizational techniques. Class time was scheduled with the media specialist to go over the expectations of each project – material to be covered, resources to be used, focus questions, etc. The teachers and media specialist would develop rubrics for each project, placing as much emphasis on the steps along the way as on the final presentation. However, even in these situations, some students focused more on the “bells and whistles” of their presentations than on the content. There were presentations with too many transitional effects - with sentences flying in, swirling in, and zipping in with sound effects – that were appealing to classmates, but that distracted from the information delivered.
Unfortunately, it has been my experience, at the high school level, that many teachers do not involve the media specialists in their projects. Some assume that their students have mastered research and technology techniques, and therefore, do not require the assistance and expertise of the media center staff. Others do not want to lose time from their schedule to devote a day or more to working collaboratively with the librarians. As a result, many students have projects that have been poorly researched, improperly cited, and again, that place more emphasis on presentation than on information. The PowerPoint projects satisfy a “technology” requirement for the teachers, but do little for the students. Often teachers do not require that any intermediate steps be evaluated and often the PowerPoint project is used as an alternative to a written paper. While this may offer a welcome respite to those visual learners who struggle through research papers, in these cases, students’ understanding of the “researched” material is truly reduced to their bulleted sentences.
The best projects are those that involve the library staff, that guide the students through research procedures, and that require outlines and written papers from which essential points are incorporated into the PowerPoint presentation. When presenting projects, the intentional teachers require students to elaborate on their slides rather than reading from them. Students use material from their written reports to expand on the basic information projected on the screen to their classmates. Each student is expected to provide handouts for the class. When teachers require their classes to take notes on each presentation and ask or answer questions related to individual classmate’s work, the students become active, engaged learners and listeners.
I def. agree with Kris's comment about how we,as teachers, should be teaching our students to evaluate the information they receive. I went through the Fairfield Public Schools and I know I'm lucky to have had that opportunity, but I don't remember doing much work with evaluating sources and information. It seems like things may have changed a bit, but my observations with many Social Studies projects is that students don't really know how to look for strong sources and rely to much on Google. Often the case is they choose whatever the search engine spits out in front of them without too much thought into it. There are exceptions, but I'd say this fits a general level.
One other question I've been thinking about is: what is the difference between poor use of technologies like PowerPoint as compared to over-reliance on textbooks?
We have to follow a lot of curriculum guidelines / rules that require the use of textbooks, but still, I think a teacher can just as easily hand out worksheets and find a way for paper to "teach" a days lesson. This really goes back to my original criticism of the article / NPR broadcast. As teachers we've got to be thinking constantly about how we are using any materials in our classroom, not just new technologies like PowerPoint.
My other thought with PowerPoint is this is one technology that allows for student creativity and student ability to do some teaching. It gets them more involved in active learning, which I think is much better than just passive learning through copying notes or following instructions (for example). With a good guide plan or project outline I really think PowerPoint can be an effective tool, like many technologies, as long as they are incorporated into the classroom effectivly.
My earlier posting may have seemed to over-emphasize the importance of involving school media specialists in technology-driven research projects. However, it is important to remember that being the school technology “expert” is an important aspect of the media specialist position. While many newer teachers have taken courses such as ours and have gained some familiarity with PowerPoint, blogs, and websites, it is the responsibility of the media specialists to educate and support the entire staff in the effective use of new technologies. Recently on Election Day, the media specialists at my high school ran PD sessions on GradeQuick, Edline (the school website), Pod casts, Smart Board, helping the staff gain mastery in these and other technologies for their own presentations and to develop and support effective projects for their students.
In my own limited teaching experience, when my middle school students worked in the computer lab, whether on web-based inquiry projects, PowerPoints, or Publisher brochures, their focus often had to be redirected back to the informational content. Their interest was on the “prettiest colors”, the “coolest” transitions, the “snazziest” fonts, despite having rubrics showing the greater value placed on their research and information than on their creativity. Having worked alongside strong media specialists helped me to develop projects that stressed content and research skills; however, I was constantly reminding students to spend more of their time fact-finding than designing.
Kyle made good points about some teachers’ over reliance on the textbooks and about the way most students research. We recently had Social Studies students working on an American History “research” paper. They were required to use five print resources, however most of the students “googled” their topic, used the basic information reported by Wikipedia, then found five books that at least mentioned their subject in the index and wrote their report. Admittedly, this was an extreme case and a poorly designed project. The teacher made no effort to involve the library staff, and it was not until several students had come in all looking for five different books dealing with very specific events or individuals from the American Revolution that we were even aware of the project. The teacher’s requirements dealt more with the “delivery” of the paper than with the development of effective research, essential questions, evaluation of resources, or strong report writing. The parameters called for five, non-reference, print resources and that the papers be submitted to Turnitin.com for evaluation of originality and plagiarism. While the students were given a month to do this project, most waited until the final week, and in some cases, days before it was due to even start researching. There were no intermediary steps, no outlines due, no drafts to be reviewed and revised. This “technically” complied with the junior year curriculum requirement of a research paper, however, such a project really does a disservice to our students. (And, I am sorry to say, Kyle, this was in a Fairfield High School. The teacher even complained to the library staff about the quality of the papers he expected to receive – and had received in all the years that he had used this same assignment. He failed to acknowledge or realize that the fault lay partly in his development of this project, his lack of collaboration or even notification of the media specialists, and his assumption that his students had mastered essential research techniques. He was completely oblivious to the scrambling of the media specialists to help students find enough print resources and develop a focus for their paper before the looming deadline.)
We are supposed to be giving our students the tools to succeed in high school and beyond. With such assignments, it is no wonder that universities are finding some students ill prepared for their requirements. The students in this class learned no more from having written a paper than they would have from preparing a PowerPoint, with the limited, bulleted information. So, although Professor Tufte makes the point that students writing an essay gain greater understanding of their subject than those working on a slide presentation, more depends on the project itself, the teacher expectations, the intermediary steps, the research skills mastered by the students, and the information acquired. No matter the tool used for delivery, the focus has to be on the content.
Laura R
kyle:
I disagree with your point. The idea behind the article is that writing informs and structures thinking. Reducing presentations to bullet points (usually without verbs) stunts logic and expression. I have seen the PowerPoint culture in corporations and it renders discussion that is simple-minded and lifeless. This has nothing to do with what the schools are teaching. The people I have seen reduced to PowerPoint speak are highly educated and the product of the best private schools.
Peter
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In the past, I have had some experience with PowerPoint. I first learned how to use PowerPoint when I was in high school. Once we learned how to create a PowerPoint presentation, we then were asked to give the presentation to the whole class. I remember thinking that each presentation used too many special effects to try and make a boring presentation more interesting. But the special effects took away from the presentations rather than adding to them. In college, I only used PowerPoint once and I did so only because it was a requirement for the presentation.
Within the article, the author makes a good point about using the tool PowerPoint. The program was originally created to serve as a supplement for a presentation; however, it has become more of a substitute. Because of this, it has now become something that is a distraction to learning. Some argue that if used correctly, PowerPoint can be a useful tool in aiding in learning. I think this is be true, however, I also think that too often it is not used well and thus takes away from learning. This again is true for any technology, if used correctly it can be an incredibly powerful tool that stimulates our learners. But teachers must look at when and how they are using PowerPoint and whether or not there is value added.
After listening to NPR and reading everyone’s comments, I still feel the same way, technology has a place in education but it must be controlled by the teacher. Listening to the arguments against PowerPoint on NPR seemed to suggest that all learning and teaching was now being accomplished solely by PowerPoint. A good axiom for life is everything in moderation. I laughed at the comments about the times spent by students with all the graphics and special effects. It is analogous to the “old” days when some students spent more effort illustrating the cover page and creating fancy presentation binders than on the actual information in the report. Regardless of the presentation method this will always be a reality. Clearly defined goals and the use of a rubric will help prevent these concerns. It all comes down to the fact the teacher needs to create the value in the tools used to relay education.
In an earlier post by Kris, I would have to agree with the point that she made about students having the opportunity to learn how to write reports and also learn how to present them in ‘interesting and intelligent ways.’ I have not seen how PowerPoint can be used in interesting and creative ways; however I am hoping it is possible. I also think that students need the opportunity to learn various mediums. As we are learning in this class, there are so many different technologies to use in the classroom. As said previously, teachers need to use each in an effective way that adds to their students learning. By teaching students various ways of presenting, students have the power to decide what form works best and how to best reach their audience. There should not be a cookie cutter format to all presentations.
I enjoyed reading all of the comments so far on the class blog.
I thought Kyle had a great point on the textbooks. John Dolan's view on added energy and excitement were right on. I loved reading about Laurar's experience, but in the ed I still feel the same as I did when I posted my original comment. Technology, power point presentations, is just one of the many tools in your tool belt as a teacher. If used correctly, it can be very powerful tool, if not, it can be detrimental.
The NPR story talks about students who once stumbled through reports looking professional. This is true for probably most students in that PowerPoint has the ability to help the presenter stay on task while presenting.
Gina Sisk of Aiken Elementary School in Wiley Texas allows her students to use PowerPoint to supplement their presentations on Texas heroes. Students role play such characters as James Bowie while clip art and images are displayed on the PowerPoint. I don’t agree with Edward Tufte when he says it is for the most disorganized student. It can help all students to organize their data. I wouldn’t say it’s just for the disorganized student. He goes on to say that it helps the presenter and not the audience. What is so wrong with PowerPoint helping the presenter? He goes on to say that it is harmful to the audience. Where does Mr. Tufte get his facts from? How can it be harmful?
I agree with Marsha Cuzmo of Microsoft’s Educational Solutions Group when she says that it helps students to bring together data from a variety of sources. Also, it is open ended software so that students and teachers can be authors. Isn’t this the wonderful aspects of PowerPoint, in that you have the freedom to create? I agree with Sheri Turkel of the Science, Technology and Society program at MIT when she says that you need to have a complex discussion and not get caught up in the “bells and whistles”. The important thing about PowerPoint, is to not get caught up in all the”magic tricks”. That is where the teacher comes in. The teacher should be there to guide students, making sure that they are not losing the point of why they are using PowerPoint to present.
I disagree with her when she says that it is not always beneficial to the students to extract three points to put in PowerPoint presentations. Summarizing, paraphrasing, getting the main idea and recalling facts are critical thinking skills and I don’t believe there is anything wrong with extracting main points to present data in a PowerPoint presentation.
I actually found Tufte's article to be somewhat of a relief. Everyone today goes crazy for technology in the classroom and although I've jumped on the bandwagon, I still like to do some things the "old fashion way" with a pencil and paper. I think that the point that some people seem to miss with PowerPoint is the fact that it's great with some activities and detramental with others. I saw PowerPoint slides for the first time in my Undergrad class, "Biological Basis of Behavior"...it was a difficult class but I appreciated the slides. We all printed the slides before class and were able to take notes on them while she lectured. I'm not sure how the class could've been run differently, I personally liked the set up. The points that she was going to get to were up on the screen and we all knew what we were going to cover in class meanwhile we were taking all the necessary notes in addition to the bulleted points. I saw it as more of an outline that we were able to follow along with and it was our responsibility to fill everything in.
I'm not sure how this would work with kids in Elementary school. I liked listening to the NPR but without video it made it difficult to visualize exactly what the kids were doing with PowerPoint. It sounded like they were doing something more closely related to video-type presentations.
It seems that PowerPoint gets both good and bad reviews. On one hand it's helpful for kids trying to pull out necessary or important information but on the other hand people seem to think that kids minds are going to catagorize things by bulleted points! In some subjects this may be what the kid needs but in an English class, the kids need to be able to expand on points and write freely. In conclusion, I think that PowerPoint is neither good nor evil-it just has to be used at the appropriate age-level and in the approporiate subjects. I suppose that arguement could be used for just about any type of technology.
I definitely agree that it is not the technology itself that is to blame it is more how the technology is being used. Technology can be an asset in the classroom but it has to be used in the right way. I do agree that PowerPoint is sometimes misused in the classroom, but that is because of the teacher and the assignment not because of the technology. I agree that there should be a lot of paper and pencil work, but there is nothing wrong with students exploring how to use the technology and as long as they are not doing it all the time. Basically there needs to be a balance.
I also feel that Mr. Tuttle is missing so many things when looking at PowerPoint. There is a lot more then the end product. For example how to navigate around the program is very important to learn because it is guarenteed, especially with advancements in technology that students will need to use this program in later years in their lives. Also cooperation, that is if there is a group project done on PowerPoint. They will learn how to collaborate and they have such a small space they need to find the most important pieces. I really feel that this article is poorly written and that all aspects should be explored because making a judgement on if something works or not in the classroom.
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I really enjoyed the NPR piece. It was great to listen to three points of view on the PowerPoint debate. Where I still feel that PowerPoint should be of limited use in the classroom, Marsha Cuzmo made an interesting point about how it effectively brings information together and is an avenue to communicate ideas. However, the opposition Mr. Tuttle brings up the point that the program is beneficial for the "disorganized" student, and harmful to the others. It is difficult for me to really know either way because my exposure to PowerPoint is limited, but I do see it working for some students and not others. People have different ways of learning, some may learn by lists and organized slides and others will not benefit from this way of teaching.
I really enjoyed the NPR piece. It was great to listen to three point of views on the PowerPoint debate. Where I still feel that PowerPoint should be of limited use in the classroom, Marsha Cuzmo
I just wanted to add that I really like the NPR piece. I think it was balanced and made what could have been a boring story (as so many tech stories in the main stream media are) full of life. It was a good job.
So here's a powerpoint of what we've got so far.
It's NOT the Tool - stupid
Synopsys: class gets the value and pitfalls of powerpoint because they have lived it.
Bullets:
Pros: Mary C - PPoint simplifies, organizes
John N - Also persuades and what's wrong with domination
Christine C - leave behinds from presentations
Beth I - provides roadmap
Cons: PeterK - military dominated by ppoint
Shannon H - special effects can kill presentation.
This would look a lot better in powerpoint!!
Marshal R
My own thoughts: powerpoint is a MAJOR tool in the corporporate and political world. Students need to learn to make a presentation using powerpoint. Not only should they not read off slides, they should not read ANY script while making the presentation. Clearly, more detailed bullets of information to be presented should be written and on hand. But the best presentations work with slides prompting a spontaneous sharing of information, anecdotes, and heaven-forbid, opening discussion. Powerpoint allows sound, and probably video, and can be a powerful mechanism for all the reasons stated above. It can be used very badly. So can paper, pencil and a chalkboard.
What it taught me: most people will only remember 5-10 things from a 30-45 minute presentation. What do you want them to remember? I really struggled to learn this lesson. Welcome to life outside academia.
Marshal R
"Rather than learning to write a report using sentences, children are being taught how to formulate client pitches and infomercials."
In its proper context PowerPoint allows for main ideas and images to showcase student reseach and interactive learning. I worked with a fifth grade class who culminated their research on the Civil War with PowerPoint presentations that they showcased in the school library. In front of 20 to 30 parents, they were able to share all that they had learned about an important historical figure during the Civil War. For a special education student, PowerPoint allowed him to type out main ideas that he was able to smoothly deliver to his audience. He was dressed like the character, and the images and slide transitions helped to move him along a decent pace and eased his anxiety level.
For a special education student to achieve this, PowerPoint was successful. The teachers had the students type out the report in Microsoft Word and then transfer the main ideas of each paragraph to PowerPoint.
Did Tufte assume that most teachers sit their students down and command them to just begin typing? Perhaps not. In my experience with 5th graders, the teachers, DO NOT schedule computer time until work is drafted and edited. Powerpoint is the culminating moment where the project allows for parents and school staff to celebrate the research efforts of the students.
It is of great importance for public speaking skills to be refined in a school setting. It allows for students to strengthen their presentation skills. What's the harm in that?
"Rather than learning to write a report using sentences, children are being taught how to formulate client pitches and infomercials."
In its proper context PowerPoint allows for main ideas and images to showcase student reseach and interactive learning. I worked with a fifth grade class who culminated their research on the Civil War with PowerPoint presentations that they showcased in the school library. In front of 20 to 30 parents, they were able to share all that they had learned about an important historical figure during the Civil War. For a special education student, PowerPoint allowed him to type out main ideas that he was able to smoothly deliver to his audience. He was dressed like the character, and the images and slide transitions helped to move him along a decent pace and eased his anxiety level.
For a special education student to achieve this, PowerPoint was successful. The teachers had the students type out the report in Microsoft Word and then transfer the main ideas of each paragraph to PowerPoint.
Did Tufte assume that most teachers sit their students down and command them to just begin typing? Perhaps not. In my experience with 5th graders, the teachers, DO NOT schedule computer time until work is drafted and edited. Powerpoint is the culminating moment where the project allows for parents and school staff to celebrate the research efforts of the students.
It is of great importance for public speaking skills to be refined in a school setting. It allows for students to strengthen their presentation skills. What's the harm in that?
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