And yes, I use powerpoint!!
In my recent quiz about powerpoint posting, 12% (to date) of you chose "Powerpoints are the devil. Please stop using them. Please."
Entre nous commented,
I not only found instructors using power point prensentations quite simply boring, but most importantly, it leveled to nil the spontaneous jewels that have a tendancy to flow durung traditional lectures. Sorry, newer is not necessarily better or, 'if it ain't broke, it don't need fixin!
I disagree. (and I'm not picking on E.N here...I hear similar critiques of ppt all the time). I have plenty of "spontaneous jewels" in my powerpoint-supported lectures. In fact, I find that BECAUSE I have powerpoint to frame my lectures, I can actually inject MORE stories and tangental discussions. I always have a reference to pull me back and keep the class on track. Now could my lectures suck? Sure, especially if I made powerpoints that broke all the rules, like the many that you all commented on here.
It's not the powerpoints that are making those instructors boring. They're just crappy teachers. Put those same crappy teachers in front of just a chalk board or just a podium, and they are still going to be crappy teachers.
Powerpoints don't suck the life out of lectures. Terrible teachers do.
