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Online presentations involve... ...the use of computers and computer networks to deliver content. As with online discussion, the idea of computer-based presentations takes a traditional concept, one usually bounded by time and space, and transfers it to the virtual realm. Online presentations can be based on text, images, audio, or video -- or even a combination of these media types. Thus, there is no one software or set of software tools to learn. Indeed, as with online discussion, the success of online presentations depends as much or more on instructors' choices about their relationship to the material and to the learning as it does on the choice of any specific information technology or software. |
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Why Present On Line? Compuer-based presentations -- especially those delivered via the Internet -- enable instructors to disseminate material easily, broadly, and inexpensively. While supporting traditional linear, instructor-centered pedagogy, computer tools also allow instructors to define and implement new structures and organization of material, easily allowing for non-linear, self-directed exploration and learning. As important, online presentations let students access material at times of their own choosing, and further allows for the easy revisiting of all or a portion of the material being presented. For students, all the above holds true. The added dimension is that the online dissemination of student-created materials can facilitate peer review and evaluation, thus affording students a greater opportunity to learn from each other. How to Present Material On Line: In the classroom, tools such as Microsoft's PowerPoint software are most often used to deliver text and images in support of traditional lectures and presentations. But these tools can also be used to create stand-alone multimedia presentations that are more akin to an "experience" than to a lecture. Similarly, the creation and posting of Web pages offers a great amount of flexibility, both in terms of the types of material that can be delivered and in terms of the learning structures that can be created. However, the learning curve for creating and disseminating effective multimedia presentations, whether or not Web-based, is fairly high and can involve learning at least the rudiments of several sets of IT skills and software, including word processing, web authoring, image editing, sound editing, video transfer, file transfer, etc. Of course, the use of online presentations needn't start out at such a high level: the delivery of simple text via e-mail or its posting to a Web server are simple and straightforward examples of presenting material online. Again, when considering the use of computer-based presentations, the most important decisions will center on pedagogy, particularly on the type of learning the instructor wishes to promote (e.g., linear vs. non-linear, instructor-centered vs. student-centered, etc.). |
