Week 4-Powerpoint

"The Cognitive Style of Powerpoint" gives many reasons why Powerpoint presentations are not the best option. I can see how some of the arguments in this article can be persuasive, but I think others are not as valid.

One argument the author makes is that Powerpoints are only presenter-oriented and not content or audience-oriented. He argues it's just something for the presenter to turn to, in order to get over presentation nerves. In a way it is a safety blanket. You easily organize ideas and don't have to think about what you are saying. However, I do not agree with this claim. Many of my teachers use Powerpoint presentations, and I find them very content and audience friendly. It gives me the key points I need to remember and provides visuals to accompany these key points. For example, in my design class, the teacher laid out different color schemes on Powerpoint that are very easy to refer to when I am working on a project.

The author also argues that bullet lists do not generate thought. The article argues that bullets are generic, leave relationships unspecified and create false assumptions. I do agree that sometimes bullet lists can be overused. The article argues a strong point. The example given is a presenter gives three reasons arguing his or her point. However, the presenter does not state how these three points tie together. I agree that this can be confusing. However, I also think if bullet points are used properly, then they can be very effective in getting a message across to an audience. The bullet points may not be enough for audience understanding but accompanying the bullet point with a chart or another visual can tie the bullet points together. I believe the bullets provide a quick glance and easy overview of main points to the presentation.

Finally, the author claims Powerpoints are in low resolution. "Impoverish space leads to over-generalizations, imprecise statements, slogans, lightweight evidence, abrupt and thinly argued claims." It takes many Powerpoint slides to get a message across, which can get very tedious for audience members. One slide does not fit a lot of information, so sometimes important statements are abbreviated. I do believe this is one downfall to Powerpoint. Many times I am in class and I see how long a presentation is, and  I can't help but dread it. Sometimes it does seem like too much information is put into one presentation. It would be more enjoyable if there were more than one method to teaching, like a game complementing a Powerpoint. I believe Powerpoint is a great way to teach, but it can't be the only way to teach.