I'm sure you all remember sitting in the classroom when the teacher would roll the projector into the center of the room. It was this big, bulky black device that lay on top of a wheeled cart. You would hear a resounding groan from all corners of the classroom as students were forced to get out paper and pencils in order to transcribe the notes being projected onto the board. It was sometime in sixth or seventh grade that my teachers began relying on the newly bought software for the county, Microsoft PowerPoint; however it was still very rare for it to be used in the classroom, and it would usually be the same basic Calibri font on that boring, white background. It was between eight and ninth grade when the use of Powerpoints increased exponentially. Teachers were hailing it as the best innovation for education this century. It allowed teachers to create their own sets of notes that could easily be reused from class to class. Nowadays it's rare if I have a class in college without the use of Powerpoints that day. But are Powerpoints really an efficient tool to transfer knowledge in a succinct, time-saving way? No way, and here are a few reasons why.
1. They breed laziness
We all have those days when we just don't feel like taking notes, but now with the advent of Powerpoints, every day can be just like that. More and more teachers are simply uploading their notes at the end of each week or lecture. Even if the teacher doesn't upload the slides online, students can easily just take pictures of the slides. Most of my teachers even openly use what is covered on the slides on the test. Instead of promoting actual learning, they're simply promoting absorption and regurgitation of what's on the slides. I've spent many a night simply staring at Powerpoint slides knowing that I don't actually understand the info, but that this is all I really need in order to pass the test.
2. They don't pass along enough info and they're horrendous to look at
The proper format for a single Powerpoint slide states there at most should only be seven lines of text with seven words in them.The format of Microsoft PowerPoint doesn't allow for much creativity with the presentation of information except in bulleted form. Therefore at the end of the day, you can either pick/choose what information to include or have fifty slides. Not to mention despite the fact that Microsoft PowerPoint has gotten several updates since its conception in the 80's, it still looks terrible. There is no variety with the slides, the backgrounds they provide are still horrendous after ten years, the effects and transitions look like children designed them and don't even get me started on Word Art.
3. They act as a replacement for real teachers
I can't tell you the number of times that I've had a teacher just stand at the front of the classroom and read off Powerpoint slides to me. I can read just fine. I passed the SAT, ACT and 1101 & 1102 just fine. I don't need some teacher to sit there reading slides to me. That isn't teaching. That is recitation. Not only is the teacher wasting valuable class time by reading through the slides, but also students aren't actually learning anything from it. It feels like the teacher doesn't actually want to be there, and it makes me wonder why I even bothered paying for an education while falling asleep. If teachers are going to teach in that manner then we're all just better off taking online classes taught by Powerpoint slides.
Solutions:
1. Prezi is a great alternative to PowerPoint. It offers really solid backgrounds, fluid transitions, and more customization when it comes to how you wanna display your info whether in a bullet, thought bubble, box, etc.
2. Teachers can create fill-in-the-blank powerpoints which foster discussions amongst the classroom about what completes it. It also will leave students blanking if they don't take notes in class and try to simply look at the powerpoint online.
3. Foster communication between the students in the class and your teacher. Some students benefit off of seeing a visual display of information such as PowerPoint while others don't. If you truly feel like you're not learning let your teacher know. Don't try to struggle through a learning method that truly isn't working for you. By working with your teachers you could form study sessions outside of class that allows for different modes of learning or even adjust the lesson plan to better suit a variety of students. You're paying for this education so make sure that it benefits you.
