PowerPoint goes to school: How and why to use PowerPoint in school

This is the fifth in a series of occasional posts by guest expert Mike Parkinson on using PowerPoint in different industries and for diverse audiences. Mike is an internationally recognized visual communication expert, multi-published author, and partner at 24 Hour Company, a premier proposal and presentation graphics firm. Take a look at his other posts: 2 steps to change the world with PowerPoint, 3 tips for making powerful presentations to the government, 3 presentation secrets for nonprofits, and How my slide presentation won me over a million dollars.

Presentations help educate college students, scientists, business professionals, engineers, and many more. These people go on to solve local and global problems, invent life-changing tools, and help others to overcome adversity and achieve their goals. Websites like Ted.com and SlideShare.net showcase professional and amateur presentations from various mediums (including PowerPoint) that can teach us anything from steps to using social media to steps to solving social issues. These sites and many others allow people from across the world to upload their presentations and impact a worldwide audience by communicating their ideas both visually (through slides) and sometimes verbally (through voiceovers).

With more classes being taught online and in "smart" classrooms (a classroom containing a computer and audiovisual equipment), instructors are using PowerPoint to teach students. In an abstract study across two campuses of students enrolled in psychology classes, researchers noted, "... students generally believed that the use of PowerPoint facilitated their learning." (Apperson, Laws, Scepansky, 2006). Employing PowerPoint helped students to relate more favorably to the professor and the class, and they were more interested in the material being taught.

Of course, this has led to teachers learning a new medium and finding the right balance between speaking, showing text, and using graphics. This study also surveyed the student participants about their professors' PowerPoint usage. Not surprisingly, the students preferred visuals accompanied by textual explanations. They also preferred the professor to use the slides more as discussion points during the class than just reading the accompanying text. However, overall, students found PowerPoint slides helpful to their learning experience. (Apperson, et. al., 2006)

My business partner, Dennis Fitzgerald, attended the Future in Review Conference (FiRe Conference), which introduces cutting-edge, energy-conservation technologies to attendees. Dennis wanted to learn more about energy efficiency for his home, yet wasn't an expert on the industry or terminology. At the conference, nearly every presenter used visuals to share their green solution: energy-efficient insulation, ways to lower a home's carbon footprint, and how to decrease energy consumption. Because the presenters used graphics (photographs of green homes, charts depicting energy consumption rates, etc.) to supplement verbal and textual content, Dennis more clearly understand the solutions. Visuals distilled complex information into memorable factoids and stories and motivated Dennis to take action. The presentations made him care and appealed to his emotions. When he returned, he began a yearlong home improvement effort and his newfound understanding and passion transferred to his contractors who began applying these techniques for other clients.

More far reaching, Al Gore's slides for An Inconvenient Truth contributed to the impact that documentary had on millions of viewers. The visuals were compelling along with his passionate delivery of the information. Both combined to create a moving film that informed viewers better than Mr. Gore describing the global changes with only words. As mentioned before, we are more likely to learn, retain, and understand information when presented with visuals-and PowerPoint helps us to do just that.

To guarantee your PowerPoint presentations educate (not complicate), follow these three basic rules:

1. Keep it simple. Unnecessary visual clutter and too much data interfere with audience understanding. Don't use a multitude of lines or arrows pointing in all directions or make your text minuscule to capture everything about your topic. Focus on the most important questions your audience has about your subject matter. Break up the information, if needed, into bite-sized chunks across slides. Simplify your graphics to the main points and take questions throughout your presentation to expand upon your subject when more clarification is needed. Remember, PowerPoint has a Notes feature. If you distribute your slide deck to the class, put additional information in the Notes for reference.
2. Use metaphors, similes and analogies. For complex content, substitute a concept that your audience understands (with similar attributes as your subject matter) to better communicate your topic. Using imagery that is easy for your audience to recognize and relate to aids in your content description or definition. See the graphics (designed and edited in PowerPoint) below for examples of how to apply this method:
   
   1. Each piece of our five-part training program fits together to form a winning team. (Puzzle Graphic)
      
      
   2. Bridge the gap to become a better manager using these four steps. (Bridge Graphic)
      
      
      
      There are many creative-and memorable-ways to show your information using metaphors, similes, and analogies. Look at the chart below and challenge yourself to consider how various ones can be used to communicate your subject matter.
      
      
3. Label all elements. Graphics without text results in ambiguity and confusion, especially when introducing a new subject to your audience. Labeling also ensures your audience can refer back to your slides if the need arises (like the human eye slide above). Keep your labels simple and direct. Too many labels can be confusing and make it hard for your audience to read your graphic. If necessary, use a legend to color code your graphic or break up your graphic across slides. Labeling is helpful, but legibility is key. Most presentation experts agree that the minimum font size should be 18 point with a preferred font size of 24 point-30 point for the best legibility.

-- MIke Parkinson