Relative Advantages of Presentation Tools in the Classroom

The use of presentation tools in the classroom is not a new practice.  Tools like Microsoft's PowerPoint have been used for lesson presentations for many years.  As the world travels farther into the 21st century, additional presentation tools have joined the ranks to increase the production options that program users have.  New presentation tools such as Prezi, Google Presentation, Glogster, and Zoho (Morrison, 2011) have provided a variety of different platforms from which users can express creativity while sharing their message with an audience.

Presentation tools, especially PowerPoint, have earned a negative label as a result of improper development and implementation.  Many people can think of an instance where they have witnessed the use of a poorly designed presentation with too many words on each slide, animations and transitions flying in from every direction, or color schemes that make viewers want to look away.  Author and communications consultant, Garr Reynolds has published tips to assist presentation creators to develop clear, organized, and effective presentations.  These tips include suggestions such as: keeping the design simple, limiting words and bullet points on slides, use of high-quality graphics in place of clip art, and minimal use of transitions and animations (Reynolds, 2013).  By following these tips, the use of presentations in the classroom presents a great advantage to the student learning environment. 

The relative advantages of using presentation tools in the classroom have an impact for both the teacher and the learner.  Teachers are able to use presentations to deliver instruction to students in the classroom and supplement lessons with graphics, audio, and video that may contribute to student understanding.  According to Teachnology, an effectively used PowerPoint may be "one of the most powerful tools for disseminating information ever known." (Teachnology, n.d.).  Presentations are able to accommodate a variety of learning styles, making their use even more beneficial.  The ability to make presentations available on the Internet allows for struggling students to revisit the information presented, as well as makes it available for students who are absent from class and still responsible for the materials.

Presentation tools also provide significant relative advantages to students.  The most obvious advantage to using these tools is that students will build upon their technology-use skills, typing, navigating programs, and ethical/copyright text and image use.  Creating presentations also allows students to take ownership of their learning by allowing them to represent information in their preferred style.  Presentations give students access to a larger audience than traditional assignments because they have the ability to discuss their learning and present to other students (Young & Behounek, 2008).

The use of presentation software will probably always suffer from improper use by well-intentioned people.  When making the decision to use presentations in the classroom environment, it is important for teachers to be aware of the strategies that contribute to effective presentations.  Under these conditions, the benefits of presentation software greatly outnumber the drawbacks.



Resources:

Morrison, M. (2011). Technology tools for the classroom: Presentation resources. Retrieved from: http://www.pearsonschoolsystems.com/blog/?p=295#sthash.Tj2VQA2Y.dpbs

Reynolds, G. (2013). Top ten slide tips. Retrieved from:  http://www.garrreynolds.com/preso-tips/design/

Teachnology. (n.d.). PowerPoint in the classroom. Retrieved from: http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/powerpoint/ 

Young, D. & Behounek, L. (2008). Kindergarten students use PowerPoint to lead conferences. NAESP Principal (May/June). Retrieved from: https://www.naesp.org/resources/1/Principal/2008/M-Jp58.pdf‎