Why and How?

Overview: In this section, you will explore ideas about effective pedagogical use of PowerPoint. You will be asked to complete three activities, described in detail below.

Objectives: Upon successfully completing this section, you should be able to:

•List major guidelines for decisions about use and design of PowerPoint slides.

•Explain ways to make PowerPoint slides accessible to people with visual impairments.

•Critique sample PowerPoint slides for strengths and weaknesses.

 

Activity 1: Watch Robert Yale’s 22-minute video about the assertion-evidence approach to designing PowerPoint slides.

Activity 2: Read Michael Alley’s Web page with further details about the research behind the assertion-evidence approach, including examples. Note that there’s a link to some slide templates.

Activity 3: Read the following:

For both ethical and legal reasons, instructors are required to make Web-based content accessible to students with disabilities. For PowerPoint materials that will be distributed electronically, this means that slides need to be formatted so that they can be processed by screen-reading software that is often used by students with visual disabilities.

Recent versions of Microsoft PowerPoint have a built-in accessibility checker that provides step-by-step instructions for fixing any accessibility problems on a slide. To use the checker, click on the “file” tab at the top of your screen. Then in the list at the left side of your screen, choose “info.” Next choose “prepare for sharing” and then “check accessibility.” The accessibility checker will flag any problems and provide tips on how to fix them.

NOTE: If your version of PowerPoint doesn’t have a built-in accessibility checker, you can also find step-by-step tips at Penn State’s accessibility clearinghouse.