Reflection 3: Presentations

Presentations are used all of the time in teaching. 'Direct Instruction' occurs when teachers are explicitly teaching a new skill, providing information, or demonstrating something to the class before asking them to do the same; often teachers use a platform such as PowerPoint to help them do this with visual aids and key notes. Students themselves are also often asked to present their assessment to the class using a multi-model presentation. Again, the most common digital platform used is PowerPoint.

For this blog post I decided to investigate Canva further, as this site also provides the option to create presentations. Much like PowerPoint, Canva allows you to design your own slides or customise one of the many templates available. It also gives you the option to record a voice-over and download your presentation as a video. I have been really surprised at how easy to navigate the Canva site is; I don't profess to have great technological expertise, so for me to be able to jump on and easily create my own video and work out how to download it to my computer means that the site is very well designed.

I decided to again create something for my fictional Year 10 novel study unit on Little Women, as discussed here and here. I made a very short introductory video on Louisa May Alcott's life and a little bit of context about the time she was writing in (she was a big part of the abolition and suffrage movements in the mid-1860s):

To create my video, I used a template I found on Canva that I liked the layout of:

I then played around with different 'elements' and designs to customise slides to match my content:

It was then easy to record my voiceover. I just used the built-in microphone from my laptop but I'm sure the quality would be much better if you were to use a proper microphone:

After I finished recording it was super easy to download the video to my computer:

I then was able to add it to my Wix teacher site where students would be able to access the video at any time:

For me, the beauty of being able to record these small videos and upload them to a class site is that students can go back and access the information at any time; much like students at university can access their recorded lectures again to pick up any information that they've missed. This is also particularly helpful in the current climate where students are missing many weeks of term due to contracting COVID-19 or a family member in the same household who has.

Creating videos can also be a highly effective way for students to present their own findings and research. Presently in high schools, students often have to present speeches in front of a class for certain assessment pieces. Recording their own video presentations not only allows them to be more creative, it also means they have multiple chances to record, edit, and improve their work.

When creating presentations and videos, it's important to remember to stay within the legal bounds. If you or your students are using information, pictures, or designs that aren't your own work, then they must be referenced and acknowledged. Also, the free Canva designs are okay to use, they just must not be used for financial gain or used more than 2,000 times.

References

Canva. (n.d.). Canva. http://www.canva.com/

Encyclopedia Britannica. (2022, March 2). Louisa May Alcott: American author. http://www.britannica.com/biography/Louisa-May-Alcott

Mass Moments. (n.d.). Concord women cast first votes. http://www.massmoments.org/moment-details/concord-women-cast-first-votes.html

Masterpiece. (2022). 7 Surprising facts about Little Women's author, Louisa May Alcott. PBS. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/specialfeatures/little-women-7-surprising-facts-about-louisa-may-alcott/#

Styles, N. (n.d.). Are you staying legal with Canva? 5 ways to protect yourself. http://www.nicholettestyles.com/blog/are-you-staying-legal-with-canva-5-ways-to-protect-yourself