POWERPOINT

What is PowerPoint

It is a closed source, commercial presentation program developed by Microsoft. The original version of this program was created by Dennis Austin and Thomas Rudkin of

Forethought, Inc PowerPoint presentations consist of a number of individual pages or "slides". PowerPoint provides three types of movements:

Entrance, emphasis, and exit of elements on a slide itself which are controlled by Custom Animations

Transitions, on the other hand are movements between slides. These can be animated in a variety of ways

Custom animation can be used to create small story boards by animating pictures to enter, exit or move

A careful presenter can make the most of PowerPoint's strengths, but only with a healthy dose of communicative discipline.

STRENGTHS

Visual aid presentations are more persuasive.The class is more likely to act on the message if the speaker has

and uses visual aids. It is a great help to present charts and graphs for which it was

used initially.PowerPoint works best for things that are presented visually, not

verbally.Slides can be prepared at home. It is possible to retain eye contact with the audience(class)

during the presentation It is possible to reproduce very complex drawings, sound ,

pictures and even clips in the presentation

STRENGTHS

It is quicker to add information on slides rather than writing it on the whiteboard

It is possible to ‘build up’ an argument: by showing one sentence after another

Students can be given the slides in advance and they can use that to prepare for the discussion in the class

The presentations can be easily customised to the target audience.

Looks very professionalIt is possible to use colours to add to the contentGraphical presentation is often an excellent complement to

an oral presentation 

STRENGTHS

Communication delivered over multiple channels is more efficient and makes it highly likely that the whole message will be received. An appropriate picture or a video/audio clip adds another channel.

 A picture aids in memory by making a visual connection to an abstract idea.

Memory rests on connections and a picture forms a solid connection.

PowerPoint makes it easy to create visuals, and, by using a template, make it easy to be consistent

WEAKNESS

It can easily be abused. It's too easy to create slides  It wastes time. It takes too much control away from the presenter It makes for ugly presentations It can actually impede attention It lends itself to unnecessary competition

WEAKNESS

Presenters fail to establish the connections necessary to make their message memorable

Presenters fail to establish ethos, their most powerful appeal-Speakers don’t look at the audience and the audience doesn’t look at the speaker.

The subtle nonverbal cues are lost such as eye-contact, posture, etc.

Presentations tend to be read off the slide or handouts flattening delivery.

The slides cannot be changed during presentation

WEAKNESS In semi-dark presentation rooms it is difficult to actually get

eye contact with your audience Might have to skip through various slides during the

presentation which distracts audience Presenter loses sight of the total presentation as there is no

preview of next slides Risk of too much ‘movement’ in the presentation which is

distracting If the speed of the presentation increases, note taking

becomes difficult Getting the slides in advance can lower the concentration Abuse of a graphical technique: too many wordsVery much dependent on the proper working equipmentNeed for contingency plans increases, which increases

preparation time

WEAKNESS

It does not lend itself to spontaneous discussions It does not handle text well . PowerPoint text is no more than

three lines of text on a slide and no more than 6 words per line. If there is too much text ,one has to go through a lot of slides and

the rapid movement detracts the viewer from the message It too easily becomes a replacement for the presenter, not a

reinforcement.Presenters rely too much on the slides for structure

THREATS It's not the tool, it's the wielder. Limit the amount of text, the number of slides, and the amount

of time on each slide. And stick to that If the audience cannot Act Out then we need both text and

graphics as they do not learn from the spoken words alone. The trick is how much we use

Keep the focus on the talk and not the slideLimit the use of special effectsDon't become a slave of PowerPointTell a Story and have fun doing that.

THREAT- PowerPoint Gone Wrong

Gen. McChrystal was heard to comment “when we understand that slide, we’ll have won the war”.

OPPORTUNITY

People do not have the time to learn different techniques as well as make their presentations better and effective

Don’t want to work at our words but allow ready-made PowerPoint slides to think our thoughts for us.

An effective presentation should keep the audience’s attention without depending on visuals. The visuals should be the aids and not commanders. They should reinforce the attention factors already present in the presentation.

TIPS FOR TEACHERS

Use PowerPoint judiciously Avoid text slidesAvoid using PowerPoint for discussion or coaching sessionsWork to help students make connections as that is the

foundation of memory and ingenuity, Students learn as they make connections. An efficient use of

visuals in the classroom can help students make connections between parts and the whole, between cause and effect, between problem and solution, between principle and practice.

REFERENCES

PowerPoint Presentations: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ,January 16, 2003 retrieved on 5th April http://www.shkaminski.com/Classes/Handouts/powerpoint.htm

www.skillsheets.com/...Presentation/F5_(Dis)advantages%20PowerPoint.pdf

The Dangers of PowerPoint retrieved on 5th April http://presentinenglish.com/the-dangers-of-powerpoint