300 million powerpoint presentations are given daily, yet there is a disconnect between the amazing technology of powerpoint and a mediocre student learning experience. To unleash the full potential of powerpoint presentations, we must do a better job of creating presentations that fit the educational needs of students. Slides for Students does just that.

Slides for Students is an open and honest discussion about powerpoint in the classroom. A need exists for thoughtfully designed and implemented classroom instruction that focuses on the learner rather than on the technology. This book was written to translate academic research findings into practical suggestions about powerpoint that educators can use. Divided into two parts, Slides for Students discusses the history of powerpoint, explores academic studies on the topic, and demonstrates how to design slides to best suit educational needs and engage with students to avoid the dreaded “death by powerpoint.”

Gary D. Fisk is a professor of Psychology at Georgia Southwestern State University. He received his Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Alabama, where he studied behavioral neuroscience. His areas of specialty include the study of how awareness emerges from the earliest stages of visual information processing in the brain and using technology to support and encourage student learning. These technologies include instructional web pages, Flash-based animations, online learning management systems, and PowerPoint software. In his free time, Dr. Fisk enjoys gardening and making homebrewed beer.