ICT Tools- Group 3: Powerpoint, Prezi and Glogster

ICT Tools- Group 3: Powepoint, Prezi & Glogster.

Power points:

I have used PowerPoint's previously and I have used quite a few of them at my school placements. This is one of them, found at my Wiki space and it is called "Das Wetter", I used this PowerPoint for my German class when the topic was on weather.

What is a PowerPoint?

PowerPoint is a versatile presentation tool that can be used as a multimodal presentation to accommodate intelligences or as an advanced organizer to present content to learners.

Resource:
http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/creating-animations-powerpoint-support-student-learning-and-engagement

     PowerPoint is regarded as a presentation tool that is used to support oral presentations. But it is so much more. It is a platform that supports the embedding of text, linking and interactivity, audio, video and images. So it is really a very easy to use multimedia authoring tool. When you analyse this tool, consider the multiple uses and think beyond the tired presentation. PowerPoint can be used to create a narrated stand alone presentation. This means that your students6 are able to record, listen, improve and re-record their narration - a benefit that is not afforded by an oral presentation. Thus, your students have the opportunity to develop their spoken skills rather than being confronted by nervousness when presenting orally. As a presentation tool, PowerPoint supports embedded audio and video, which has already been proven to be important to this generation of learners, and certainly by the learning theory you have consulted. PowerPoint can be used to analyse a process, to create interaction "choose your own path" story books. It can be used to create interactive quizzes both by yourself and by your students for each other (or other audiences).

Extended entry on the PowerPoints: 

Affordances:   

Teachers:

• The PowerPoint's can be used for the presentation of nearly every topic.
• The teachers can communicate their speech presentation better with the PowerPoint because it is possible to add images, videos, audio files to the PowerPoint's.
• The PowerPoint's can be zoomed using Prezi and it is perfect for global learners.
• Can do a presentation for the parents.
• Can create interactive presentations, where it is possible to click on the image and access a program from the computer if needed.
• Mischief mouse can be used for interactive activities.
• Adding a pop quiz at the end of the presentation.

Students:

• Students can create animations in PowerPoint.
• Students can present any topic with a PowerPoint, using graphics, images, videos and choose their own timing when presenting, with elaboration possible.
• Can get creative and use various backgrounds and custom bullets.
• Use Prezi to zoom the presentation and explain the certain parts in detail if needed.

Positives:

• Powerful presentation tools. 
• Videos and web videos can be embedded.
• PowerPoint can be converted to video.
• Many visual elements to create a powerful presentation.
• The new co-authoring function allows users to simultaneously edit the same presentation from different locations or computers.
• PowerPoint presentations can be organized into sections.

Negatives:

• PowerPoint works best for things that are presented visually, not verbally. It helps when you need to draw a picture and not necessary to tell a story.
• Since Powerpoint 2007 and 2010 both use the pptx extension, it is virtually impossible to tell which of the two versions the presentation was created in.
• It can take away the control from the presenter.
• It does not handle too much text well and so it is the best to use for visuals or interactive activities but not fro presenting long texts.
• The PowerPoint's real purpose is to be short, visual and informative.

Application:

• In German and English classes, the PowerPoint could be used to introduce any language features, for example presenting vocabulary words and maybe adding a picture with it for remembering better.
• A short, informative PowerPoint on Shakespeare.
• Students can do presentations about Germany and present it to the class.

Resource: http://www.shkaminski.com/Classes/Handouts/powerpoint.htm#How well does it work

Prezi.

What is Prezi?

         One of the drawbacks of PowerPoint is that it is linear. For your sequential learners this is ideal. For your global learners this is frustrating. Prezi allows you a global perspective on your material whilst allowing you the ability to add minute detail not possible in PowerPoint. In addition, sometimes you do wish to add detail to a presentation. In PowerPoint, this results in the slide that nobody
 can see - you know, the one that the presenter states "I know you cannot see the detail in this slide, 

but.....", and you wonder why they put it up. Nonetheless, we all screw up our eyes and battle to read the detail. Prezi allows you to present the big picture, and then zoom in to as much detail as you wish. It is like taking a magnifying glass to the tiny print on that hard-to-read PowerPoint slide.

I have never heard of Prezi before but once I tried it and copied one of my PowerPoint's to it, I realised how powerful it it, it is great. I consider myself a global learner and Prezi makes it so much
more interesting, with powerful zooming abilities and a possibility to add extra text and notes. I have enjoyed selecting the backgrounds.

I have explored Prezi and have added one of my created Power points here. Prezi is awesome, I am going to use this in my future schools. It is simply amazing!

Glogster:

What is Glogster?

Is a social network that allows users to create free interactive posters , or Glogs. A "Glog", short for "graphics blog", is an interactive multimedia image. It looks like a poster but readers can interact with the content.  The tool is currently being used for advertising as well as for CV's. Glogster provides an
online environment to design interactive posters. The user inserts text, images, photos, audio (MP3), videos, special effects and other elements into their glogs to generate a multimedia online creation. Posters can be shared with other users on the site, embedded in external wikis and blogs, and shared via many social networks such as Facebook.

Resource: Wikipedia.