How To Keep Learning Alive And Avoid Death By PowerPoint

November 17, 2017 / Oskar Cymerman

Hi friend,

I recently started a podcast Keeping Ed Real, but kept it hush, because I was figuring out which direction I want to go with it. But now, I am happy to say I know what I want it to be.

Each Keeping Ed Real episode is a 3-5 minute show on brain-based teaching and learning. It's a show for teachers in which I discuss learning techniques that are not common practice. In other words, I plan to use the show as a platform to share strategies that help teachers teach in brain-friendly ways that allow students to gain skills and learn more effectively.

Below, is a transcript of an upcoming show, which will air in two weeks or so. In the meantime, check out other episodes of Keeping Ed Real here and let me know what you think.

How to Avoid Death By PowerPoint

Are you killing your students? Killing their learning I mean?

About a month ago I assigned a project to my principles of engineering class for which my students were asked to interview an engineer and create a slideshow of this experience to present the rest of class.

This week we spend the first two days presenting and sure enough, everyone packed each slide full of text. Most lacked images. Death by powerpoint ensued. It was painful!

We all had to sit through student after student reading words from slides.

And then I realized that it was all my fault. I did not show my students a better way. I knew but I forgot. I did not hold them to a higher standard. I did not teach them how to Avoid Death by PowerPoint.

So today I am committing to teaching them how to create better presentations. I hope you do the same.

There are 2 ways to accomplish this. One, burn all your wordy presentations and replace them with simplicity. Two, create projects that direct your students on how to do it better.

And there’s a bonus. By doing less, they will learn more.

It’s all about using the brain the right way. Here’s How:

Keep It Short and Stick to 3 or Fewer Key Points And Expand On Each.
Use Images And Speech, Not Text.
Give Time To Process the Information in Class.

Keep it Short and Stick to 3 or Fewer Key Points And Expand On Each

The human brain is capable of holding only a few things in its working memory, the now memory we use to process information in the moment. So if you want your students to remember information you present, introduce the 3 or fewer concepts you want them to learn at the beginning of your presentation, support them with examples and stories, and restate and summarize them at the end of your presentation.

And do it all in 10 minutes or less to keep their best attention.

Use Images And Speech, Not Text

Get rid of the bullet points and the paragraphs. In fact, get rid of nearly all text. Instead, use images that convey your points. Then, talk about the concepts.

You know your content. There's no reason to read off the slides. Your audience will be able to follow and engage as opposed to trying and failing to keep up with the information overload.

Give Time To Process Information in Class

After summarizing your presentation, allow your students to apply it. Come up with 2 or 3 quick activities that prompt students to use what they are learning. Have them draw a diagram of a concept, explain in a Flipgrid video, solve a problem, compare and contrast 2 concepts and Tweet their Venn diagrams - the possibilities are endless!

So ask yourself: Am I using presentations the right way? Or are they Death by Powerpoint?

Do you:

Stick to a few key points and expand on them?
Limit text and use images and speech to teach?
Allow class time so students can process the information you presented?

Check out my post on how to avoid Death by PowerPoint here for more descriptions and an example lesson you can use to teach students how to create better presentations.

You have the power to change the world. Use it often.

I frequently share brain-based teaching and learning strategies, lessons, and brain infographics. Sign up for my newsletter below to receive them in your inbox.

Hi! I'm Oskar.

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categories / Teaching
tags / focus, teaching teens, deeper learning, learning, teaching

Creative Teaching, Teaching Creativity, And A Forbidden Cramming Technique

November 14, 2017 / Oskar Cymerman

Creative Teaching and Teaching Creativity + Cramming

Witaj przyjacielu!

That means Welcome friend! in Polish. If you want to pronounce the first word: Witaj correctly the best way to do it is to think of the letter V and a neck-tie. So, next time you see a Polish friend you can impress them by greeting them with a V-tie followed by their name. To remember this word and it's pronunciation better just close your eyes and imagine a V-shaped necktie. Say it a couple of times. Got it?

If you made any kind of effort I bet you do. And, if you actually imagined the V-shaped necktie you are likely to recall the word quite easily next time you see a Polish person. It's because you used a few strategies that are not common practice in life or school.

A creative teacher might break down the word into V and tie the way I did. But how many teachers tell you to consciously use your imagination each time you try to remember something? How many understand how the brain learns and intentionally leverage that knowledge in the classroom to help their students learn better? How many observe their learners for who they are, not who they want to mold them into, and teach strategies that are unique, counterintuitive, but effective?

I don't know about your past teachers, but this is not who my teachers in Poland were. You see, communist Poland of my youth was a place where creativity was crushed and compliance compulsory. But this approach did quite the opposite. While many people appeared to comply with the demands of the totalitarian iron curtain regime at school or work they resisted them and everything the Polish United Workers Party (PZPR) stood for in their minds and homes.

I remember the conversations my parents, uncles, aunts, friends etc. were having at the time. They were mostly about ways to circumvent the censorships, bans, and prohibitions. The artistic community, with the writers and the moviemakers leading the effort, was always able to create works that subliminally and cleverly ridiculed the system and its leaders. What happened was... the lack of freedom led to the increased craving for and the very expression of free will and freedom of thought.

And that's precisely the point! Tell a human she can't do something and she will prove you wrong. Forbid him and he might nod in silence, but as he's walking away his head begins to fill with ideas. Then their actions counteract your teachings.

This was the communist Poland of the 80s and before, but I am reminded of it often in conversations with students and colleagues. Creativity is crushed in American schools. Often quite unconsciously and unintentionally teachers crush student creativity.

Learning is prescribed all the while it should be created. Formal schooling is necessary. Compliance is compulsory but should be voluntary. We even teach them to control their breathing so they can hold it together and comply better...

But humans are hardwired for addictive behavior. Phone, Snapchat, YouTube, gaming, coffee, candy, forbidden things, YES I WANT MORE the brain screams.

Except that teachers the EXPERTS know better, right?

And yet the best way to learn is to teach it to yourself. Wanna learn how to fix cars? Pop the hood and fix the car. Maybe you'll find a better way to do it than what they showed on YouTube. Wanna learn how to cook? Find a recipe on Pinterest, buy the ingredients, and cook that chicken dinner! And don't forget to add your own flavor because you thought that it might taste better if you add a pinch of chili powder and a tablespoon of honey.

But this is not how we teach it. The formula in the book is always the same, so Learn it the right way or else you fail! we say.

Hey!

How about we teach students how to cram better? C'mon. Step over to the dark side for this one! I'll be your hooded and cloaked guide and we'll practice the dark arts in secrecy so no one knows we are teaching kids things the system says are W R O N G.

What say you?

We'll even tell them that others don't want us to teach this stuff. This way they'll learn it really well.

Psych!

So here's my...

Last Resort Cramming Technique

It is an excerpt from my latest project, an upcoming all-in-one book, guide, and workbook Crush School Notebook: 12 Weeks To Better Learning.

The crazy thing about the strategy above is that it uses spaced repetition all the while you're cramming. It's still a far cry from spacing out studies over several days or weeks, but beats studying just once on the night before a test.

Use it or don't - the choice is yours. I'm just throwing it out there to see what you think.

Peace. Love. Thanks.

Oskar

You have the power to change lives. Use it often.

I frequently share brain-based teaching and learning strategies, lessons, and brain infographics. So sign up for my newsletter below and you'll be in the know.