Incorporating Audio into an Online Presentation

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Wow, that was a lot of work. I tried to include what I, as a parent, would like to hear, but I’m not sure I hit the mark. I included information that fit the school I observed in Newark last semester, but added the kind of technology that I would like to incorporate. I tried to create a presentation that could realistically be presented to a back-to-school audience, but as I listen to it I’m not sure it would be right— or that I would have the nerve to present it. In any case, preparing this with the idea of uploading it for all to view, and re-view, is intimidating.

Sometimes a “picture is worth a thousand words”, and sometimes a video is worth much more. However, they are not without their disadvantages, and I believe video and audio recordings should be used with restraint and only when the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. I have watched many teaching videos online. These have varied from short YouTube videos, to recordings of live lectures, to full courses; and from topics I know little about to those I am more or less expert in. 

At their best these have been opportunities to experience a “live performance” when I could not be there in person, and where no “text” exists. Occasionally I have also found these videos to offer a degree of clarity than would be much more difficult with a more traditional presentation or written words and pictures. 

However, from my perspective as a “consumer” there are significant disadvantages to recorded videos and audios over print. Until fully downloaded it is difficult to skip around, and even then it is not always easy to find what you are looking for. To a large degree, the rate of information flow is fixed. It can seem unbearably slow if the information isn’t of interest to me or is presented in a way I do not find interesting, or is just paced more slowly than I would like. Being paced too fast can also be a problem. However, it is easier to go back and re-listen than it is to fast forward. Also, I sometimes find it hard to understand the material when I don’t know where the presentation is going. With print I can look ahead to preview the information, or skim to see if it is interesting enough to read fully. Also, without the ability to ask questions or the presence of others in the room to check for their understanding or reactions, it is hard to know if it is just me. Another disadvantage is the inability to skim on either first or subsequent viewings. If I haven’t made notes while viewing or listening it’s difficult to review what was said without listening to the entire piece all over again. Finally, taking notes from a recorded presentation is more difficult than from written text, and unless there are clear benefits to the video or audio presentation it does not have the advantages of a more spontaneous classroom environment. Perhaps that is why I find “boring” pre-recorded information more difficult to pay attention to than the same information delivered in much the same way by a live person.

The article “How PowerPoint is Killing Education” by Marc Isseks showed me that some of my complaints are with how PowerPoint and PowerPoint like technologies are too frequently used, and I was pleased to see that the article echoed some of my points. Key for me is that, whatever the delivery method, it is still all about the teaching.

I finish this blog with an example of how I, as a student, like to use technology along with written documents. I prefer if documents are provided in a form that allows me to place the text and images into my own notes. I can copy and past text from a webpage, pdf or word processing document and then add my annotations and notes. Below is a screenshot of a paragraph from this weeks reading along with my annotations:

A favorite new method of processing what I’m reading is to copy quotes (for example, the yellow highlighted sentence above) and then to reflect, or make comments and notes, below it (like the simplified comment in red). I have used this method to keep an entire course’s worth of reading notes in one place. I believe the ability to re-read information and to make notes and later reflect on and add to or change those notes has significant benefits. 


If we are going to make video and audio recordings a part of our teaching, I believe we, as teachers, need to ask, for each situation, if the benefits of a video or audio presentation method outweigh the limitations. In my own personal experience there have been times where I felt it was worth the presenter’s efforts and times when it was worse than if they had only given me an outline of what they wanted to say. I hope that I will be able to walk this line in my own courses.

As a final side note, Marc Isseks’ final prescriptions for good presentations … 

Remove many bullet points. Class notes should be derived from discovery and discussion, not a predetermined list of facts. Create presentations that are rich with images, videos, political cartoons, diagrams, and maps—presentations that feature questions rather than answers.

Don't waste time with fancy transitions and sound effects.

Perhaps most important, keep the classroom lights on.

… reminded me of a presentation I was pointed to a couple of years ago. I just Googled “Great Keynote presentations” and found it again. Although it isn't about teaching, I embedded it for anyone who is interested in seeing a really simple PowerPoint (well Apple's Keynote actually) style presentation which I think has been made immensely engaging and fun. Unfortunately, it also shows how much more difficult it is to do it right rather than filling a presentation full of bullets and built-in effects.

As educators (or future educators) you might like this video about creativity in education: