Making PowerPoint SlidesAvoiding the Pitfalls of Bad Slides

Tips to be CoveredOutlinesSlide StructureFontsColourBackgroundGraphsSpelling and GrammarConclusionsQuestions

OutlineMake your 1st or 2nd slide an outline of your presentationEx: previous slideFollow the order of your outline for the rest of the presentationOnly place main points on the outline slideEx: Use the titles of each slide as main points

Slide Structure GoodUse 1-2 slides per minute of your presentationWrite in point form, not complete sentencesInclude 4-5 points per slideAvoid wordiness: use key words and phrases only

Slide Structure - BadThis page contains too many words for a presentation slide. It is not written in point form, making it difficult both for your audience to read and for you to present each point. Although there are exactly the same number of points on this slide as the previous slide, it looks much more complicated. In short, your audience will spend too much time trying to read this paragraph instead of listening to you.

Slide Structure GoodShow one point at a time:Will help audience concentrate on what you are sayingWill prevent audience from reading aheadWill help you keep your presentation focused

Slide Structure - BadDo not use distracting animation

Do not go overboard with the animation

Be consistent with the animation that you use

Fonts - GoodUse at least an 18-point fontUse different size fonts for main points and secondary pointsthis font is 24-point, the main point font is 28-point, and the title font is 36-pointUse a standard font like Times New Roman or Arial

Fonts - BadIf you use a small font, your audience wont be able to read what you have written

CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. IT IS DIFFICULT TO READ

Dont use a complicated font

Colour - GoodUse a colour of font that contrasts sharply with the backgroundEx: blue font on white backgroundUse colour to reinforce the logic of your structureEx: light blue title and dark blue textUse colour to emphasize a pointBut only use this occasionally

Colour - BadUsing a font colour that does not contrast with the background colour is hard to read Using colour for decoration is distracting and annoying.Using a different colour for each point is unnecessaryUsing a different colour for secondary points is also unnecessaryTrying to be creative can also be bad

Background - GoodUse backgrounds such as this one that are attractive but simple

Use backgrounds which are light

Use the same background consistently throughout your presentation

Background BadAvoid backgrounds that are distracting or difficult to read fromAlways be consistent with the background that you use

Graphs - GoodUse graphs rather than just charts and wordsData in graphs is easier to comprehend & retain than is raw dataTrends are easier to visualize in graph form

Always title your graphs

Graphs - Bad

Good

20.430.6

27.438.6

9034.6

20.431.6

Blue Balls

Red Balls

Items Sold in First Quarter of 2002

Bad

20.430.6

27.438.6

9034.6

20.431.6

Blue Balls

Red Balls

Sheet1

JanuaryFebruaryMarchApril

Blue Balls20.427.49020.4

Red Balls30.638.634.631.6

Sheet2

Sheet3

Graphs - Good

Good

20.430.6

27.438.6

9034.6

20.431.6

Blue Balls

Red Balls

Items Sold in First Quarter of 2002

Sheet1

JanuaryFebruaryMarchApril

Blue Balls20.427.49020.4

Red Balls30.638.634.631.6

Sheet2

Sheet3

Graphs - Bad

Good

20.430.6

27.438.6

9034.6

20.431.6

Blue Balls

Red Balls

Items Sold in First Quarter of 2002

Bad

20.430.6

27.438.6

9034.6

20.431.6

Blue Balls

Red Balls

Sheet1

JanuaryFebruaryMarchApril

Blue Balls20.427.49020.4

Red Balls30.638.634.631.6

Sheet2

Sheet3

Graphs - BadMinor gridlines are unnecessaryFont is too smallColours are illogicalTitle is missingShading is distracting

Spelling and GrammarProof your slides for:speling mistakesthe use of of repeated wordsgrammatical errors you might have make

If English is not your first language, please have someone else check your presentation!

ConclusionUse an effective and strong closingYour audience is likely to remember your last words

Use a conclusion slide to:Summarize the main points of your presentationSuggest future avenues of research

Questions??End your presentation with a simple question slide to:Invite your audience to ask questionsProvide a visual aid during question periodAvoid ending a presentation abruptly

sourcewww.iasted.org/conferences/formatting/Presentations-Tips.ppt

LDCU ppt RESEARCH FORMAT (15 minutes presentation)TITLE ( Name of Researcher/s, Department)INTRODUCTION ( maximum of 3 slides)STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM/ OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY (maximum of 2 slides)SCOPE AND DELIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY(maximum of 2 slides)METHODS/MATERIALS AND METHODS ( Flow chart )RESULTS ( per problem/per objective including Tables, Figures, Plates)CONCLUSION/SRECOMMENDATION/S