Effective Use of Teaching Aids Take from DCU: 1

Why use teaching aids? Teaching aids are useful to: zreinforce what you are saying, zensure that your point is understood, zsignal what is important/essential, zenable students to visualise or experience something that is impractical to see or do in real life, zengage students’ other senses in the learning process, zfacilitate different learning styles. 2

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

WHITE-/BLACKBOARD Advantages zNo advanced preparation required, zexcept when displaying a complex table/chart/ diagram. zTechnology is not dependent on electricity or other possible glitches. zCan be used by students for problem-solving, etc. Disadvantages z Time-consuming if you have a lot to write. z Handwriting may be difficult to read (legibility, size, glare, etc.). z Turn your back on audience. z Cleaning the board (chalk dust, permanent marker, etc.) z Can’t go back to something you’ve erased. 4

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

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

OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Preparing Transparencies zBy hand, or zComputer application (eg. MS PowerPoint, MS Word, HTML documents) zPrinting - colour or B/W zPrinter (laser or inkjet), or zPhotocopier 7

OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Selecting Text zAvoid overcrowding zAvoid continuous prose zBullet or numbered points preferred zKILLS Keep It Legible, Lean and Simple 8

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

OVERHEAD PROJECTOR 10 Tables are best avoided:

OVERHEAD PROJECTOR 11 Use Charts/Graphs instead:

OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Choosing a Font zSize - minimum 20pt (5mm high) zSans serif fonts preferred Examples: z 14 pt Tahoma z 20 pt Tahoma z 28 pt Tahoma z 36 pt Tahoma  Times New Roman zArial zComic Sans 12

OVERHEAD PROJECTOR Style Notes for Transparencies zAllow a margin of 5 cm (2”) all round. zAvoid TOO MUCH UPPERCASE TEXT zFor emphasis, use bold or underlining instead of italics zKeep titles systematic and consistent zJustification - left or centred zAvoid light text on dark background. 13

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

DATA PROJECTOR (portable) 15

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

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

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