DESIGNING EFFECTIVE VISUALS AS - Lecture Support

em Aula Expositiva

GILBERTO   TEIXEIRA (D.B.A.)

Here is a checklist of ideas for helping you create effective visuals for your classroom lectures.
These ideas apply wheather you use overhead transparencies, slides, video, the computer or a presentation stand.

Four Visual Criteria:

Use big type (1/4" or larger)

Simplify & enlarge figures

Use bold outlines on figures

Use color to emphasize, not confuse

Plan bold contrasts

(light on dark/dark on light)
Let's look at these factors more closely.

THE DETAILS:

Shape

Use horizontal visuals. Vertical format is harder to project in rooms with low ceilings and most slide screens are square or horizontal in format. Also, video and computer monitors are horizontally formatted.

Amount of Information

The biggest problem with most visuals is that they contain too much information. It is important to simplify. Three simplification techniques include condensing (using short phrases or key words only), subdividing (limiting each visual to one idea), and using progressive disclosure (building complex ideas gradually, one step at a time). Your visual need not contain every word that you will say -- that is the advantage of you being in the classroom.

Legibility

You will want to be sure that your students can read the information you are presenting. Especially consider the students sitting at the back of the room. Line length, text size and text style all affect legibility.
  • A rule of thumb for legibility is to use a column of text no more than 7 words wide and no longer than 6 lines. Use more visuals if you have more to say.
Size of type is another factor. Consider using text no smaller than 1/4" tall. Sometimes even larger type is better.
Simple text style is preferable to ornate. Avoid using extra bold or delicate typefaces, or italics. Also, capital letters are more difficult to read than lower case, so use lower case lettering for any phrase longer than two or three words.
When presenting a figure or illustration, make it big; keep lines thick; keep details to the minimum necessary.

Contrast

We seldom think much about the contrast of the visuals we design. We are used to seeing book text and typewriter text as a field of boring gray. Yet, strong contrast in presentation materials helps legibility and adds interest to visuals.
Plan your work in a strong light color on a dark background or in a strong dark color on a light background. For example, light yellow text on a royal blue background looks nice. Whereas light yellow on a white background or red text on a blue background is nearly impossible to read because these color combinations lack contrast. When working with text visuals, limit your color scheme to only 2 or 3 colors.
Consider using color as a visual clue to transitions in thought -- use the same color combination on visuals with similar ideas, then change colors to represent a new train of thought in a separate series of visuals.
For figures and illustrations limit your use of color to a few which simplify, clarify and differentiate. Avoid the confusion of too many colors. And remember--some students are color blind, so you can't rely on color alone to differentiate among parts of a visual. Black outlines reinforce the shapes you color.

Summary:

Your control of shape, amount of information, legibility and contrast in planning visuals can make a significant difference in the strength of your instructional materials. Remember these criteria as you plan, and try out the many options at your disposal. Keep visuals simple and make parts big and legible. Use strong contrasts. Whenever possible, project visuals in the environment in which you will use them. Sit at the back of the room to view them, and modify what you don't like before you present them to your class. Or try your visuals on a student or two and get their reactions while there is still time to make changes. Creating on a computer makes changes and updates easier. Plan for your visual messages to come through loud and clear.