Best presentation program

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Permalink Reply by Colleen Young on September 5, 2011 at 1:55pm

I think that so much more important than any tool is the message that it is the content that matters.

 

For me, I have grown a little weary of all the current PowerPoint bashing / Prezi is marvellous type discussion!

I have seen great ...and terrible presentations using both!  Bad Prezis make one seasick (and how come all the zooming in and out is OK when people moan about PowerPoint transitions?!)

 

I like to show students a variety of tools. Depending on what one wants to present then one can choose the appropriate tool for the job!

 

Sometimes simplicity is good - see some of the links here.

 

...and for some Prezi links  (+SlideShare & SlideSix)

 

 

 

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Permalink Reply by Marsha Ratzel on September 5, 2011 at 8:52pm

I think Colleen is right about Prezi.  It seems to be all the rage but it is plagued with the same problems as PPT.  Until we all start teaching more about design and how to create meaningful presentations....no presentation tool will be the most useful one.  What is needed is a strong teacher to intervene before students go tool crazy and help them design and prepare.

 

I can't sit thru another presentation where a student reads every bullet point aloud, facing the screen with their backs to the audience.  No matter how good the informaiton, it misses the whole point.

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Permalink Reply by Evaggelos on September 20, 2011 at 5:15pm

Good replies. Students should lern presentation software but there should use their time wisely. Perhaps they should learn to use the old transparencies too. When I worked at IBM and I had to present...99% of the time I used transparencies. I am wondering if students know how to use projectors.

 

Evaggeos

Online School Records

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Permalink Reply by Michael on September 20, 2011 at 8:17pm

I agree with Marsha, teachers and students alike need to be taught how to use PPT and Prezi properly.  That means not writing War and Peace on each slide, and certainly not reading the slides verbatim to the rest of the class (this last one drives me up the wall each time I see it).  

 

That said, I like both PPT and Prezi.  Both are simple and, if used right, can be very effective.

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Permalink Reply by Daniel Edward Sagmiller on September 21, 2011 at 9:49am

Honestly, I think which ever one the teacher is most comfortable with is the correct answer.  For most purposes, you can get similar results from each (Albeit Prezi has a fairly different approach).  But the individual teacher should typically select the system they are most knowledgeable in, so they can spend less time worrying about how to display content, and more time worrying about what the content is.

 

That being said, personally I tend to prefer creating short video presentations when needed, typically a mix of whiteboard, screen capture and audio, mixed with any default OS video editor.  They can be you tubed for distribution if need be, including future use ones.  There are free screen capturing video software, such as CamStudio, which I have used in the past.

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Permalink Reply by Mr Stu on October 3, 2011 at 6:10pm

I agree with Daniel that what ever works for the teacher, usually works best for the class.

 

Since Prezi is one of my favorite presentation tools, I taught it to my students. They picked it up in one class period and made new presentations for the next day. Colleen is right, that newer Prezi makers can go a little overboard and make viewers dizzy.

 

Here are some examples of students giving Prezis. You can both watch them give it, and tour the prezi yourself. Both formats are located on the site.

 

Student Examples

http://mrstuartralston.weebly.com/ancient_greece_prezis.html

 

Professional Examples

Also, here is an iMovie-Prezi blend. This video covers the creation of the "China Files" a Virtual Field Trip project I have written on here about in the past. The focus of the video is on creating authentic assessments, which speaks to Marsha's point of having students do more than just read from their presentation slides.

 

 

 

I would love your feedback on it!

Cheers,

Stuart

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Permalink Reply by Vicky Carlson on October 9, 2011 at 9:35am

I have experimented with several presentation programs.  My current favorite is SlideRocket.  It is easy to use and download or embed.  Some of the advanced features are only available in a paid version. I agree that no matter which program you use, it is the content and design that makes the difference.

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