Black or White Out Your Google Slides Presentation

A new feature in Google Slides is while you are presenting you can switch to a black or a white screen.

Press B

While in presentation mode press the B key to switch to a black screen. Press the W key to switch to a white screen.

Does Google Slides Improve Learning

No. A presentation tool is a presentation tool. The old model of the teacher at the front of the room would not improve learning simply by adding Google Slides.

Active Learning

The research is clear, active learning is better. Students taking notes is not active student engagement.

” Instructors who adopt a student-centered approach to instruction increase opportunities for student engagement, which then helps everyone more successfully achieve the course’s learning objectives.” – University of Washington

Stopping the Slides with the press of a B allows for a pause to engage students in discussion and their active engagement in the lesson.

“Engagement is a precondition for learning,” he adds. “No learning happens until students agree to become engaged with the material.” – Harvard

Try Q&A

“Most of the instruction was teacher talk, but such talk produced the lowest engagement.Teachers talk between 70 and 80 per cent of class time, on average.” – John Hattie

When presenting, click on the Q&A icon in the toolbar when hovering. This will automatically create a URL students can use to join a Q&A screen. Press “Show” to switch the slide to a student question. Press “Hide” to resume the slide presentation.