Presenting
Scott Elias has a good example of an effective presentation on his blog. I would have liked to hear him speak, too, but I just found his blog after many trips to education blogs and found particular interest in this one.
Some time back, I wrote on this topic to our teachers in Goochland. I talked less about the visual look of slides (or Promethean Flip Charts), and more on how pedagogically slides ought to be organized. I think it would be worthy of me to repeat this topic again (after seeing more teachers deliver boring slides via PowerPoint). I think the second-installment ought to be on the visuals and perhaps could manifest itself in a workshop. Bring your content, we’ll enhance your craft.
It still amazes me how many teachers think giving the assignment of creating a “presentation” to students is worthwhile. Yes, in 1999 that would have been a whiz-bang lesson. In 2007, it’s dull, inappropriate, and disgusting.
Yes, I have harsh feelings on this. Are there no teachable moments in the creation of slides? Perhaps there are. But, many teachers are woefully prepared to teach students how to make effective messages with slides. They instead, follow the lead of the Microsofts and students are making lists in bullets with silly clip art.
As I hinted in my rant (linked above), I think slides can be used as a pre-writing exercise. But as a final product, it too many times is robbing us of our time.