> > I am new to PowerPoint and used it a great deal in the past semester
> > including
> > as a lecture tool (showing slides during class) and handouts (giving
> > students
> > copies of my slides). The consistent comment I received was that the
> > slides
> > and handouts were "too much information."
> >
> > Has anyone else received the same comment?
As others have mentioned, I think the key is to have slides that are
detailed enough to give a good idea of the direction of the lecture
without being detailed enough that copying them down (or reading an
outline) becomes cumbersome. (Of course, the other advantage of having
somewhat "skimpy" slides/handouts is that students are less tempted to
believe that they contain *all* of the important points.)
On Mon, 12 Jun 2000, Hatcher, Joe wrote:
> I use a class internet list, and posted the "outline" version of my
> PowerPoint lectures to the list after each lecture. This saved paper, and
> seemed to be appreciated by the students who used them.
>
Another alternative is to post them to the web site (if there is one) for
the course. There are advantages of posting it to the class's email list,
but (1) doing it afterward prevents anyone using the outline to structure
their notes, and (2) some mail programs are pretty quirky when it comes to
printing (especially PINE for those who still telnet to read mail).
I post both a Word version and an HTML version of my "note-taking guides"
to my class web pages. (I create them in Word, so it's really not that
big a deal to put both versions up.) Often students will stop by one of
the computer labs before class, print out the NTG, and come into class
with them. NTGs include the text of the slides (and occasionally a
graphic or two) with enough space to fill in definitions, examples, etc.
Generally, they have been very well-received, although some students claim
that they find themselves not paying as much attention and/or not
remembering the information as well if they don't write down the text of
the slide on their own.
Do a lot of you make available (either through copying or online) copies
of the actual slides you use? As an audience member, I have found it
difficult to take notes on the "six slides per page" handouts you can make
with PowerPoint. Of course going to 1, 2, or 3 is slightly better, but
that increases the amount of paper (either yours or the students')
necessary.
Jeff
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Jeff Bartel
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~jbartel
Department of Psychology, Kansas State University
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