unit of instruction: slide tune-up for improved learning

7/29/2019 Unit of Instruction: Slide Tune-Up for Improved Learning

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Unit of Instruction

Slide Tune-Up for ImprovedLearning

Jeff Toorongian-EDTECH506-Spring 2011

Unit GoalsThis unit of instruction includes five lessons (four lessons developed for this project) covering

key techniques to improve presentation slide design. It begins with an introductory lesson,

followed by lessons on signaling, weeding, chunking, and multimedia design techniques. The

unit is designed for online asynchronous delivery to university instructors of all ranks through

the Blackboard learning management system. The lessons are designed as short technique

primers for busy instructors. Each lesson is estimated to require no more than thirty minutes

to complete and learners can progress through the unit at their own pace. Participants will have

advanced educational levels ranging from graduate students, post-docs, and various professorial

ranks. All participants will possess at least basic computer skills and in many cases will haveintermediate or advanced skills with specific software including PowerPoint, Keynote, or similar.

Goals for the instructional unit include:

- Establish the importance of well-designed presentation slides to support learning.

- Review of common design flaws including:

extraneous information

poor font choices

poor use of white space (overcrowding)

inconsistent design and layout (use of templates)

poor use of visuals/clip art

- Introduce design techniques to improve readability and reduce information overload.

- Provide examples of improved presentation slide designs.

- Guide participants in the redesign of an existing presentation slide.

Goals/Curriculum Relationship

Goals in this instructional unit reflect department goals in support of university teaching andlearning efforts. The workshop adheres to goal 1.1 of the university's strategic plan, which calls

for support of professional development and collaborative opportunities. The workshop also

provides opportunities for lifelong learning and continuous improvement for all members of the

university community.
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Learner Characteristics

This instructional unit is intended primarily for university instructors who use presentation slides

(PowerPoint, Keynote, etc.) as a primary component of their teaching materials. Faculty are

busy people, so this instruction is not intended as a comprehensive unit on all the intricacies

of effective presentation slide design. Instead, it is offered as a primer of common design

problems and proven techniques that can help them improve their existing presentations quickly,

and create new content using these design principles. Intended as a university-wide resource,

participants from all academic departments will be invited to participate in the training. This

campus-wide participant community will feature a demographic mix of age, gender, and

ethnicity. The audience will reflect the needs typical of a well-educated adult learner population.

Learners Present Level of Performance and KnowledgeIt is expected that participants in the unit lessons will have basic computing skills including a

basic knowledge of the slide presentation software they use to produce their teaching materials.

Basic competence with mouse/keyboard manipulation, and file management skills associated

with their specific operating system are required. Additionally, participants will be required to

have a familiarity with web browsing to access the training materials and any online resources

that are included. Web browsing skills may also be necessary for cloud-based presentation

production tools.

Classroom Layout and Participant Group

This training unit is designed for online delivery. Participants will be required to access allcontent through a Blackboard-enabled web course. Participants will be required to have a valid

university password to access the course. Although the unit is intended as an independent study

activity, discussion forums will be provided to post comments and ask questions of the workshop

moderator.

Introductory Procedures

To prime participants, an introductory lesson will provide background information on human

information processing theory. The concept of cognitive load will be introduced and its

importance will be established in relation to effective presentation slides and improved student

learning. The four design techniques in the unit will be introduced and additional information of

cognitive load will be offered through YouTube video presentations.


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Media and MaterialsWorkshop materials in this online instructional unit will be delivered through Blackboard, the

university learning management system. Lesson content will be delivered in standard html web

page format. External links for additional resources will be provided for optional additional

information. Demonstration slide content, and before/after comparison slides will be embedded

in the lesson pages and also available as native resolution links to allow for a more detailed

study of the design techniques. Participants will have random access to the instructional content.

The following resources are required for full participation in this instructional unit:

A computer with broadband Internet connectivity is required to access all instructional

content. Flash and Silverlight browser plug-ins will be required for full functionally with the

resource materials.

Blackboard- the university learning management system. All content for this

instructional unit will be delivered from the Blackboard course, including instructional mediapresentations, links to examples and external resource sites.

Presentation slide creation software: Microsoft PowerPoint, Apple Keynote,

OpenOffice. Cloud-based options include Prezi, and Google Docs, among others.

Image editing software to create and modify visuals for the presentation slides. Adobe

CS4 or CS5 software tools are recommended but other bitmap and vector-based editing tools will

also work.

Visuals

Visual Purpose

4 Design Techniques to HelpImprove Learning

Summary table introducing the for designtechniques in the unit of instruction.

Typography examples Typographic designs that demonstrate:

cognitive overload, signaling, and chunking.

Facts of Tooth Structure-demonstration

slide on four design techniques

Integration slide design featuring examples

of signaling, weeding, chunking, and

multimedia. Used as a conclusion slide to theintroductory lesson.

Three Steps to Signaling Organizational design intended to help learner

coordinate signaling design procedure.

Molecules: The Key Ideas Interactive demonstration slide providingsignaling techniques and descriptions in a

javascript roll-over web graphic.


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Signaling-Directs Learner Attentionsummary slide

Summary slide for signaling lesson. Providesa detailed before/after comparison of

signaling techniques applied to an example

slide layout.

Three Steps to Weeding Organizational design intended to help learner coordinate weeding design procedure.

Weeding-Removes Extraneous Information

summary slide

Summary slide for weeding lesson. Provides

a detailed before/after comparison of weedingtechniques applied to an example slide layout.

Three Steps to Chunking Organizational design intended to help learner

coordinate three types of chunking design.

Acid-Base Titration Example slide design highlighting proceduralchunking technique.

Chunking-Groups Related Material

Spatially summary slide

Summary slide for chunking lesson. Provides

a detailed before/after comparison ofchunking techniques applied to an example

slide layout.

Assessment and Evaluation of LearnerThe concluding before/after slide designs are intended as lesson self-assessment tools for

participants. Because this workshop is intended as a continuous improvement exercise and not

a formal course, no traditional assessment will be administered to participants. Participants

will be encouraged to submit before and after samples of their coursework presentation slides

highlighting the improvements made through information presented in the training. These

submissions will become part of the gallery archive for the Blackboard course and will be

available for review by all current and future participants. Additionally, learners will be given an

opportunity to post comments and suggestions in a gallery archive forum.

Assessment and Goals

Upon completion of each lesson, participants will have been introduced to key design concepts,provided visual examples of the techniques, and have been provided summary before/after slides

to further establish the design concepts covered. Participants who put their new skills to work

will have visual confirmation of their improvement. Learners who choose to post sample slides

representing their improvements will also be aiding the efforts of future participants who will

gain knowledge from the gallery archive of previous workshop participants.

unit of instruction: slide tune-up for improved learning

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