Abstract:
Increasing use of desktop presentation software has
created the need for understanding basic concepts of
presentation design. Software such as web page editors,
Inspiration and PowerPoint now support branching navigation,
custom buttons, interactive menus, program control, and web
interactions. These features can make a presentation software
tool powerful and adaptable for custom lesson and
presentations. It is easy to incorporate multimedia elements
such as sound, graphics, animation, photos, and movies into a
presentation. In addition, a presentation can include Web
links, and files created in other programs, such as
databases, spreadsheets, and charts. This session will
provide an overview of design guidelines to enhance the use
of text, sound, images, video, and slide layout. Suggestions
for optimizing the display of the presentation will be
addressed, along with ideas for testing presentations before
delivery with a variety of equipment. This information is
useful for beginning and experienced presentation developers
who are interested in proven principles of effective visual
and multimedia design.
Effective Presentation Design
The Need
While publishing and presentation creation used to be
within the realm of specialists only, today this is no longer
so. Since desktop publishing and presentation creation
software has become a basic component of most application
software packages, more people now need a basic understanding
of some of the concepts of designing effective presentations.
Desktop presentation creation software applications have
become more than a linear presentation tool. Software such as
web page editors, Inspiration and PowerPoint now support
branching navigation, custom buttons, interactive menus,
program control, and web interactions. These features can
make a presentation software tool a powerful and adaptable
product for creating custom lesson and presentations. It is
easier than ever to incorporate multimedia elements such as
sound, graphics, animation, photos, and movies into a
presentation. In addition, a presentation created with a tool
like PowerPoint show can include Web links, and a variety of
files created in other programs, such as databases,
spreadsheets, and charts for example.
Presentation software, such as PowerPoint, can be used for
education in three general formats: Teacher to Audience;
Teacher to Individual; and Student to Audience. Teacher to
Audience presentations involve the teacher or presenter
sharing information with a group in the room or lecture hall
or even across the web. A presentation can be used to do more
than just to share information; it can also become
interactive with brainstorming, organizing, and reviewing.
Benefits of interactive presentations include sensory
engagement through multimedia and easy reuse and updating of
saved files. Teacher to Individual presentations are often
delivered by way of a hands-on computer station. Here
learners or small groups can work on tutorials, interactive
lessons with feedback, review, and even testing. Using this
approach, people can work at their own pace, and can
experience individual remediation or enrichment. This type of
program can be run in a computer lab, through a school's
network, or on the World Wide Web. Student to Audience
presentations allow a student or group of students to share
their learning with their class, their parents, their
community and the world. By developing a presentation or
electronic portfolio, learners gain extensive experience with
organizing information, and they experience the real-world
task of communicating knowledge to others.
Design Basics
Presentation elements
When creating a presentation, some design considerations
should be followed. The effective application of these
considerations will make presentations easier to follow and
understand and will make the presenter appear more
professional. A rule of thumb for designing a presentation
slide or screen is known as the rule of threes: a slide
should contain three base elements. The elements are
generally a title or topic, text, and illustration such as
diagram or chart. Slides are best understood when they are
limited to a maximum of six text items as phrases or bullet
points. Any more than this will cause the text to become too
small or there will be too many points for the audience to
keep in mind. When there are more than five or six points,
they should be grouped or "chunked" them into
subtopics, and then information related to each subtopic can
be presented on its own side. Slides should include plenty of
white space to avoid clutter. Material should not extend from
edge to edge. People read faster and comprehend better when
there are margins around material. Using a few high-contrast
colors works best for a presentation: too many colors can
become confusing, and a lack of contrast between text and
background can render a presentation unreadable. While people
prefer to read dark text on a light background, light text
and dark backgrounds are also acceptable. The contrast must
be sufficient.
Text concepts
One of the most basic elements to consider is the
structure of text. Text should flow from left to right and
down from the top. When adding moving text to a slide, place
text so that it moves from the right to the left, because
viewers are accustomed to reading from left to right. Some
font styles are easier to read than others are. Some font
sizes are more comfortable than others are, and some font
colors provide better contrast than others. Younger readers
prefer a simple font such as Arial, a sans serif font. As
people get older and move through their education, they
change their preference to a serif font such as Roman or
Times New Roman. For purposes of presentation, it is best to
use clean fonts and large font sizes. Decorative fonts should
be avoided; classic Arial or Roman font types are preferable.
When presenting, a 20-36 point font size is effective for
distance reading. A small increase in font size may make
written material much easier for viewers to understand. While
the larger words will occupy more space, the slide will look
less crowded, therefore making viewers feel more comfortable
with the amount of information on the page. White or open
space is important in written material. It is recommended to
use both upper and lower case letters. The shape of the
written word itself produces an image to a reader that helps
in decoding, by providing clues to names and sentences. Avoid
using multiple fonts within a document or presentation.
Anything different is easily noticeable, so a change in font
or use of bold should be used to make important information
stand out. Common word processor functions of bold, italicize
and underline text can help viewers recognize important words
and phrases. Most word processors also include a highlighting
option. Research has found that the contrast that exists
between yellow and black is greater than the contrast
existing between black and white, making items highlighted in
yellow much easier for most people spot and recognize. Since
web use has become very common, it is advisable to be sparing
in the use of the underline and limit it to URLs and
references only, so that underlined words will not be
interpreted as hyperlinks. Fonts should be clear and simple
to read.
Multimedia:
Multimedia is the combination of more than one form of
media together to create a more powerful message. The media
that are combined include: text, sound, graphics, and video.
Multimedia is an excellent way to enhance a presentation.
Graphics, sound, video, animation, and charts can all add to
the message. Multimedia files should be kept small, since
they will have to load into the presentation computer's RAM
before being displayed and therefore may cause delays or
pauses in the presentation. Additional media should be added
to a presentation when they improve the quality, increase the
impact of the message, or present information better than
text alone. No image or sound should be included in a
presentation just because it exists or it is possible to do
so. An image or sound that has no bearing on the presentation
can be more distracting than helpful.
Images included in a presentation should relate to the
topic. Images may be included to inform about the topic, to
entertain, or to create an emotional response. The developer
of the presentation must decide upon the goal of the
presentation and which type of image or mixture of images is
appropriate. Otherwise, the image may cause confusion, or it
may distract from the message. The use of pictures will
motivate viewers to read the text by breaking up the slide
and creating more white space. Pictures should not be added
to the content material in such a way that they interfere
with the reading flow. It is not effective to place pictures
in the middle of text; instead they should be located near
the edges and some white space should be left around a
picture to separate it from the text.
Moving pictures can be very disruptive because when we
look at a slide our brains and eyes are automatically
attracted to the moving object. As a viewer is reading across
the screen, attention will be constantly drawn to the moving
object. Motion can be added to a presentation in order to
demonstrate action. Motion files include digital video,
animations, morphs, and virtual reality. Any motion clip
should be set to play once or a limited number of times. This
approach provides the presenter with more control, and allows
viewers to focus attention on other items on the slide after
the motion segments stops. It is recommended not to set video
clips to automatically start in a slide, but instead to allow
the presenter to choose when to start the video segment. It
may be better to have a small still image to click on that
will start the video in a new window.
Sound adds realism and should be limited to uses that
enhance the presentation. Avoid repetitive sound because they
usually distract from the purpose of the presentation. A
short tone is usually acceptable, but something longer that
repeats is often disruptive and distracting.
Final Steps
After a presentation has been created it is best to test
the presentation on other computer platforms and settings
from the computer with which it was created. Different
computer platforms and settings can cause changes in the
display, and can cause disruption of the presentation by
having a different contrast level or changing how the images
appear. A presentation that was created with a system using
true color on a monitor set at 1280 by 1024 may only show a
small portion or become completely unusable with a computer
using only 256 colors and a screen size of 640 by 480 pixels.
A presentation should also be tested on how it displays on
with a projector or television. Computer monitors usually
have a much better picture quality and show colors and
contrasts much better than television screens or video
projectors. A developer should be careful about including new
features with a software program without knowing for sure
that the presentation computer will have the same features.
Also, if possible, test microphones, speakers and any other
peripheral multimedia equipment needed before a presentation
starts.
"Don't do something just because you can, do it
because it helps in communicating the message."
"Careful of things that are "once funny,
many not."
Terence
W. Cavanaugh Ph. D. 
