Well there you go...who would have thought there were so many opinions about the use and abuse of PowerPoint? In fact, a simple Google search using the parameters "use of PowerPoint" came up with "about 42,400,000 results (0.11 seconds)" ... and there was no need to leave the house.
Interesting to find out that there are many "top 10 tips" to creating effective PowerPoint pages, just as many "how NOT to use" PowerPoint pages and even just as many "DEATH by PowerPoint" pages. It started to look more like warnings against the Black Plague than a useful application to learn, use and teach.
As I changed the parameters, I discovered the many tutorials, presentation templates, game templates and even examples of the good, the bad and the ugly of the trillions of PowerPoint's that are available to be (legally) downloaded for anyone to use.
For many years now, I have taught students how to create PowerPoint presentations, that is, how to use the software to create a presentation. This is always a shared learning experience as I do not see how anyone can profess to know absolutely everything about an entire software package (unless you wrote it). The engagement with students as they feel proud to be able to teach the teacher something is always good to see. It is even more fascinating to watch how students teach the teacher, whether they use the teachers teaching style and strategies or model another teachers or parents style. The "What If", "Can You", "How Do You" questions asked to the class about the use of the software brings out such a competitive challenge for the students to find an answer and teach it to the teacher and class.
Even though there has been a lot of good discussions and learning in my classes about the software PowerPoint, I can honestly say that I have seen presentations created by students that elicit expressions of "WOW", "ZZZ", "OMG" and "Turn it OFF". However, I have had these same expressions during workshops, in-service, meetings and conferences as presenters from many areas have used PowerPoint to present or assist to present their information. Admittedly, I find myself rather reluctant to create my own PowerPoint presentations to use in teaching after enduring so many "failed" PowerPoint presentations.
Through working on this learning task I have been re-engaged, even excited about the use and application of PowerPoint for the construction of games and how these can be tailored and implemented in education. I have started a storyboard for a game about the construction process of a woodwork project. I can see how this game will supplement the learning from practical classes and could be used as a home work activity or by a supervising teacher covering a lesson.
I am looking forward to this adventure in PowerPoint and endeavor to utilse online tutorials to expand my knowledge of PowerPoint.
Just saw a great PowerPoint idea. STudents were being read Where's Wally. Questioned the significance in the Cape!
ReplyDeleteSo they created their own version. Hid a picture in a collage of images, all significant to the area. When the little fellow was found, and was clicked, the show moved to a new slide, explaining what he was doing there eg medicinal plant etc.