Use of PowerPoint in the Classroom: A Participatory Research Project

This study uses the participatory research approach to investigate how college instructors feel about the use of PowerPoint presentations when teaching an introductory course of computer information systems. Nine college instructors participated in this research project by exchanging their views through an online discussion forum. The findings revealed that the instructors' preferred teaching method was to combine PowerPoint presentations with other techniques; that there was a shared concern about the changing role of the instructor because of the use of PowerPoint presentations; that the instructors perceived that students' attention and participation is affected by the use of PowerPoint presentations, whereas their performance is not.