EDUC 630 Discussion Board 3 - Presentation Software as Learning Tools

Video Transcript

            Presentation software can be a valuable and powerful learning tool.  PowerPoint seems to be one of the most popular versions in use today.  With a little bit of instruction and practice, a very professional looking presentation can be created in a matter of minutes.  PowerPoint, like most presentation software, is probably most frequently associated with slide presentation related to instructional delivery.  However, it can be a useful learning tool as well.  Thorsen (2009) points out the benefits of using presentation in this manner to help students “see relationships among facts.”  She goes on to say this is helpful for two reasons because “when students organize isolated facts into a presentation, they remember the facts better” and “when students see relationships among facts, they often generalize and come to understand some problem or process more deeply.”  I have seen this in action in the classroom when I was doing some observations to complete my bachelor’s degree.  I had the good fortune to observe in a special education reading class.  Instead of writing book reports, the students put together presentation using PowerPoint.  They used the local resources on the school’s intranet and other online resources accessed through Wi-Fi to conduct research about the book or story which they read.  They used the presentation software to organize the notes and pictures they found during their research.  Their final project consisted of a five page presentation that summarized what they read and captured their thoughts and reflections.  The obvious benefit of being able to graphically organize their thoughts wasn’t the only thing the students gained from approaching a book report in this manner.  They also honed their research and computer skills.  By exploring both a local intranet resource such as a library database and conducting web searches, the students were able to see how much information was available about their subject.  They also learned the finer points of accessing websites and manipulating data and media to make presentations.  It has been my experience that there can be a variety of gains from innovatively using technology when possible and applicable in the classroom. 

 

References

 

Thorsen, C. (2009). TechTactics: Technology for Teachers (3 ed.). Boston: Pearson