Integrating Technology in the Foreign Language Classroom

PowerPoint (Office 2007)

PowerPoint is very versatile and interesting presentation software.  You can create very sophisticated projects to make presentations on computer screens, overhead projectors, slides, etc.  As you work with this new software, think about how it serves the needs of communication.  Once you have learned to work with PowerPoint, also think about how you could incorporate this new skill into your classroom or business. One caveat; PowerPoint, like most presentation software, was designed for business presentations, not for education. Beware of the tendency to make very linear presentations in which students remain passive and do not manipulate information. Consider what the computer can really add to the lesson; do not use technology to do what can be better done without the technology.  Do the typical default slide layouts provided really meet the needs of FL pedagogy?  i.e. Don't lose track of your goal.

Getting started

Find the PowerPoint icon on the Start menu or desktop and launch the program.

Choosing a presentation mode

When you create a new PowerPoint presention, you will get a dialog box that will ask you if you wish to use the format of a blank presentation, one of your own previous presentations, various installed presentation template models, ora number of available models online:    Choosing from these Templates skips this preliminary planning step and gets you immediately into choices of presentation design and mode.  Select a Template allows you to begin with a complete presentation design including background for your slides.  You can preview all of these before choosing.

Blank presentation

If you choose to begin with a Blank presentation, you can selest your own layour design for your presentation and for individual slides. You can preview all of these before choosing them.  Choosing from these slide layouts can make it easy to add content to your slides. You can also modify these layouts after you insert them.

Other aids and special effects in PowerPoint

Toolbars

Toolbars allow you to organize the commands in PowerPoint the way you want so you can find and use them quickly.  Clicking on the menu options will reveal the commands and actions possible under a given menu.

For example, the Home menu offers many options that you will want to investigate, such as inserting slides, layouts, and shapes, editing or aligning text, controling fonts, etc.

The Insert menu helps you insert tables, pictures, clip art, charts, links, objects of all sorts including movies, sounds, etc.

 Special effects

In addition to inserting sound, pictures, graphics, videos, and the like into your PowerPoint presentation, you can also create other special effects to enhance your project.  You can create Transitions between slides (e.g., dissolve, fly in or out, blinds, boxes, etc.).  You can also include preset and custom Animation Settings for graphics and text on your slides.  You can even Hide Slides in your presentation.  All of these options are located under Animations and Slide Show on the main menu bar. Remember that cute animations look cute the first time but can quickly become annoying for the user.

First things first . . .

 PowerPoint has many options, and you will discover them by experimenting as you create your initial sample presentations. You do not have to be fancy or complicated at first.  Go ahead and begin to use PowerPoint and see what it is capable of doing.  Take small steps:
 
• For starters, try creating a 4-5 slide presentation with just text.
• Then add some graphics, sound, and branching among the slides.
• Enjoy!

Try out some PowerPoints for Spanish language instruction by Paul Widergren:
http://pwidergren.net/PPT/index.html

PowerPoint and Sound

Adding Sound to PowerPoint 2007
Use embedded and linked sound files in PowerPoint 2003
Playing MP3 Files during a slide show
PowerPoint Tutorial: Adding Sound to a PowerPoint Show
Sounds/Movies don't play, images disappear or links break when I move or email a presentation
Free PowerPoint templates and tutorials!

Be careful to avoid the negative aspects of PowerPoint:
Edward Tufts, author of The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint. One of my favoritepieces by him is:
PowerPoint Is Evil - http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/ppt2.html

PowerPoint 2007 Help & How-to from Microsoft