First off, since I often get classrooms all over the place, it is hard to know whether I will be dealing with blackboards or whiteboard. Blackboards tend to be in traditional classrooms while whiteboards will be in computer labs or "smart classrooms" though not always. So, I try to bring chalk (both white and colored) and markers. I also bring hand sanitizer and some tissues because its alcohol content (>60%) works really well on on removing old ink on whiteboards (in addition to killing them viruses dead.
On Sat, 27 Mar 2010 07:36:21 -0700, Christopher D. Green wrote: >[email protected] wrote: >> Most of our whiteboards hang unused. Almost everyone has shifted to >> Powerpoint and projectors. > >That's too bad. Here's why: > http://markandrewgoetz.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/tufte-wallpaper.png > I would suggest on look at the following which an article by Edward Tufte that appeared in Wired and is titled "Powerpoint is Evil": http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/ppt2.html Whether powerpoint actually corrupts your soul and will cause it users to burn in hell for all eternity is not up to me to say. However, I admit to never using Powerpoint for any lectures though I might use powerpoint slides associated with a textbook to focus on a particular concept in the text. I write out my notes in Word which follow a general outline with major and minor headings and brief comments/examples/tables/figure where appropriate. When I use a computer projector in class (in truth, I use it in all my classes), I find it easier to control the presentation within Word. However, even though I make heavy use of computer presentation, I still find that I have to use the blackboard or whiteboard in order to expand upon a point, provide an alternative example, or more detail on a point. The most infuriating thing that I have experienced is finding that some idiot has decided that the screen used for the projector should be in front of the board. In classrooms where there is only one board and the screen is in front, I find myself having to turn off the projector, lift the screen, write on board, pull down the screen when I'm done (which can lead to some amusing moments when the screen won't stay down), turn on the projector, and pick up where I left off. In classrooms where there are several boards, I can keep the screen down and work around it and though this is better it can still be a pain in the butt. No one has mentioned this point yet and I wonder if others are as frustrated as I am about this? Sidenote: one of the worst powerpoint presentations I attended was made by the then head of the NY Dept of Health and who is currently the head of the CDC. He spoke very fast and all of his slides were packed with text/tables/figures but he went through his presentation so quickly that his large number of slides could each appear on the screen but for only a few seconds at a time. A few minutes into this presentation I realized that he was not giving people enough time to think about what was on the slides, that is, one could not critically analyze his slides because one had to process a new slide immediately. I realized that the slides were a distraction and I had to focus on what he was saying because it was easier to analyze what he saying. That presentation taught me several things but not the points that the speaker intended. -Mike Palij New York University [email protected] --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=1572 or send a blank email to leave-1572-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
