[LINK] Research points the finger at PowerPoint

[Roger Clarke]

>At 08:44 PM 23/04/2007, David Boxall wrote:
>>It is more difficult to process information if it is coming at you 
>>in the written and spoken form at the same time."

At 21:24 +1000 23/4/07, Jan Whitaker wrote:
>  ... the combination of text and voice reading the words was one of 
>if not the worst outcome. The hypothesis is that reading words 
>oneself and hearing words from someone else at the same time sets up 
>a conflict because we take in information through those separate 
>code channels (seeing and hearing words) at different rates.  ...

Did you control for boredom (e.g. count yawns?), and for disdain at 
the triviality of the slide quality (e.g. count sneers)?

I had the advantage that all of my early teaching was in cadets and 
then the CMF (= Army Reserve these days).  They're *all* bastards, 
you know.  You soon find out what your credibility-index is.


>  ... Pictures helped because they added complimentary information 
>that was a different coding system.
>
>  ... use key words and illustrations rather than complete sentences. 
>The hypothesis is that the key words would provide 'word bites' for 
>organisation or mental 'hooks' and the concepts reinforced by the 
>illustrations just like the picture stories with the kids.

Surely they're the two that speakers with half a brain *try* to do - 
complementary / parallel presentation through a separate sensory 
channel, and summary info;  plus the third one:  expressed 
positively: surprise, and negatively: boredom-avoidance.  (Okay, I 
agree that a lot of us stuff up the execution, well me anyway).

-- 
Roger Clarke                  http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/

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Visiting Professor in Info Science & Eng  Australian National University
Visiting Professor in the eCommerce Program      University of Hong Kong
Visiting Professor in the Cyberspace Law & Policy Centre      Uni of NSW