PowerPoint is perhaps the most widely used method for delivering a presentation or delivering information broken up into short and concise sections that are engaging and versatile. My exploration and consideration of this tools capabilities has yielded the following reflection.

The technical aspects of PowerPoint are:

What can this technology do?	Allows the user to present a topic in the form of slides. May be narrated. May switch to next slide automatically at times pre-set by user. Slides can incorporate features like transitions between slides, animations, word art, smart art, shapes, charts, photos, hyperlinked screenshots, video, comparison and columns.
What do the settings allow?	The settings allow the user to determine whether the slide are shown in full screen or a window. The user can also select options that loop the presentation, disable the narration or animations, choose which slides to show and how they advance and facilitate multiple monitors.
Authorship – single/multi	May have multiple authors.
Privacy settings	PowerPoint is an offline programme so it is private unless it is put on the internet.
Customization	PowerPoint allows customization through the use of themes and variants of themes, slide resizing and the changing of the background format.
Technical considerations – file size, platforms, upload-ability	Available for Windows and Mac and presentations can be uploaded.
Ease of use/experience	PowerPoint is easy to use. Users can learn the basics in minutes and advance through experimentation. Tool tips make most functions clear to the user. I did find the narration feature problematic because the recording was intermittent between slides. On play back some of my narration was omitted so I had to re-record those slides.

 

The learning outcomes and the materials/activities that PowerPoint supports are:

	Video/audio/images
Outcomes	Students can view a presentation projected on a screen or uploaded to their computers or device.
Materials	PowerPoint presentations make use of text, images and video to form a complete presentation.
Activities	Students learning the history of Pythagoras’ theorem, and how to use it, can watch PowerPoint slides which tell the life of the man, shows his likeness, explains the mathematical concepts of his theorem, demonstrates the use of his theorem, and provides practice problems and solutions.

 

 

Examples of how PowerPoint might be used in my classroom at each level of the SAMR model:

Video/audio/images? Plan at 4 levels?	SAMR - Substitution	SAMR – Augmentation	SAMR - Modification	SAMR - Redefinition
Activities	PowerPoint can replace the use of overhead projector slides.	Slides appear more professional and appealing.	PowerPoints versatility allows images, video and narration.	Communication technology provides an opportunity for students to contribute to a group activity creating their own PowerPoint of a topic.
Justification	Overhead projector slides are slow to produce and consume slides.	More appealing slides will engage students better.	A complete presentation will convey more information and engage students further.	Students can send the presentation to each other and add their contribution and then send this back to their there group.