Pedagogy Meets PowerPoint: A Research Review of the Effects of Computer-Generated Slides in the Classroom

The present essay offers a comprehensive review of the effects of computer-generated slides in the classroom, beginning with an overview of the ongoing debate over whether. To date, much of this debate has been testimonial in nature; in an effort to move beyond testimonials, this essay will attempt to ground the pedagogical debate over PowerPoint in various learning theories. Extant research on such slides is examined in four subcategories: (1) student reactions; (2) learning outcomes; (3) learning styles; and (4) slide variation effects. This essay closes with a discussion of how various research findings help inform (but by no means settle) the debate over PowerPoint and pedagogy. Notes 1. Studies examining the pedagogical effects of "multimedia" have incorporated a variety of educational technologies. Some studies using the term "multimedia" have simply looked at the effects of computer-generated slides. These studies, since they isolate the effects of such slides, are included in the present review. 2. The Butler and Mautz (1996) study actually contrasted standard black and white (text only) computer-generated slides with multimedia slides (computer-generated slides containing text, graphics, color, and motion). In the study, the researchers classified the former slides as "traditional" visual aids since these visuals merely replicated overhead transparencies. 3. The Ahmed study results contain no test of statistical significance. However, the reported data clearly reveal that computer-generated slides did not improve student learning outcomes; students in the overhead condition outperformed their counterparts in the computer-generated slide condition on most of the test questions serving as the dependent variable. 4. The Lowry (1999) study may serve as the exception due to a unique feature in this particular experiment. This study not only involved adding PowerPoint to course lectures, it also added PowerPoint as a non-lecture problem-solving tool; in non-lecture settings, students attended timed PowerPoint presentations demonstrating step-by-step solutions to course problems. Additional informationNotes on contributorsDavid G. Levasseur David G. Levasseur (Ph.D., 1994) is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at West Chester University J. Kanan Sawyer J. Kanan Sawyer (Ph.D., 2004) is Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at West Chester University