Effective Use of Teaching Aids

1. Effective Use of Teaching Aids Take from DCU: http://www.dcu.ie

2. Why use teaching aids? Teaching aids are useful to: • reinforce what you are saying, • ensure that your point is understood, • signal what is important/essential, • enable students to visualise or experience something that is impractical to see or do in real life, • engage students’ other senses in the learning process, • facilitate different learning styles.

3. We Learn and Retain: 10% of what we READ 20% of what we HEAR 30% of what we SEE 50% of what we HEAR and SEE Higher levels of retention can be achieved through active involvement in learning.

4. WHITE-/BLACKBOARD Advantages • No advanced preparation required, • except when displaying a complex table/chart/ diagram. • Technology is not dependent on electricity or other possible glitches. • Can be used by students for problem-solving, etc. Disadvantages • Time-consuming if you have a lot to write. • Handwriting may be difficult to read (legibility, size, glare, etc.). • Turn your back on audience. • Cleaning the board (chalk dust, permanent marker, etc.) • Can’t go back to something you’ve erased.

5. WHITE-/BLACKBOARD TIPS • Get to the lecture hall early to make sure that the board has been cleaned. • Bring your own chalk/markers and eraser. • If you have problems with keeping your writing level, draw horizontal lines in advance using a pencil and metre stick. • Draw complex diagrams, charts, etc. in advance and cover with a piece of newsprint until needed.

6. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Advantages • Allows you to prepare all your slides in advance. • Particularly suited for complex diagrams, charts and illustrations. • Can build up information point-by-point through the use of overlays. • Don’t have to turn your back on the audience. Disadvantages • A blown bulb or power failure can spoil all your hard work. • Image quality can also be a problem. • Can be disorienting to manipulate transparencies on projector plate.

7. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Preparing Transparencies • By hand, or • Computer application (eg. MS PowerPoint, MS Word, HTML documents) • Printing - colour or B/W • Printer (laser or inkjet), or • Photocopier

8. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Selecting Text • Avoid overcrowding • Avoid continuous prose • Bullet or numbered points preferred • KILLS Keep It Legible, Lean and Simple

9. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Keep words to a minimum: Please observe the rules prohibiting the combustion of vegetable material and the exhalation of noxious fumes in this auditorium. NO SMOKING

10. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Tables are best avoided:

11. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Use Charts/Graphs instead:

12. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Choosing a Font • Size - minimum 20pt (5mm high) • Sans serif fonts preferred Examples: • 14 pt Tahoma • 20 pt Tahoma • 28 pt Tahoma • 36 pt Tahoma • Times New Roman • Arial • Comic Sans

13. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Style Notes for Transparencies • Allow a margin of 5 cm (2”) all round. • Avoid TOO MUCH UPPERCASE TEXT • For emphasis, use bold or underlining instead of italics • Keep titles systematic and consistent • Justification - left or centred • Avoid light text on dark background.

14. OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Beforehand • Get to the room early to make sure the OHP is working. • Check the aim and focus. • Walk to the back of the room to see whether the smallest print is readable. • Relax (if possible). During the Lecture • Keep used and unused slides in separate piles. • Cover the slide with a piece of cardboard and slide it down to reveal text as you go. • Use a pen on the OHP glass rather than pointing to the screen.

15. DATA PROJECTOR (portable)

16. Other MediaFLIPCHART When to USE: • if electricity is unavailable, • to enable students to illustrate group reports, • to provide a written record of points made by students. TIPS • Check the room and equipment beforehand. • Get your own pad of newsprint. • Write out important pages in advance. • Don’t put too much on a page. • Carry a collection of felt-tip pens and check that they haven’t dried out. • Bring along some Blutack.

18. Other Media AUDIO TAPES or CDs When to USE: • Particularly suited for language learning, media studies, English literature, etc. • Valuable when referring to recorded historical events (e.g. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech). • Background music can also be played before class starts and during group activities. TIPS • Check the room and equipment beforehand. • Can it be heard from the back of the room? • Find the right spot on the tape/CD and queue it up in advance. • Don’t play more than a few minutes of audio at one time. • Break up longer clips into segments, interspersed with discussion or other activities.

19. Other Media VIDEO TAPES or DVDs When to USE: • Adds a dimension not available through audio alone - helps students to visualise. • Essential when illustrating things that are impractical to do in real life. • Particularly suited for language learning, media studies, engineering, etc. • Valuable when referring to recorded historical events. TIPS Same as for CDs/audio tapes • Check equipment beforehand. • Can images be seen from the back of the room? • Queue up the tape in advance. • Break viewing into short segments, interspersed with discussion or activities.