BP2_Prezi

We Have Met the Enemy and He Is PowerPoint

— Title, NY Times Article by Elisabeth Bumiller

That title may be a slight exaggeration but as the collaborative, interactive nature of Web 2.0 is to the linear, static version of Web 1.0, Prezi is to PowerPoint.

Prezi is a free online tool that may be used individually or collaboratively to build engaging presentations. A few how-to videos from the folks at Prezi may be found here. I've made a series of videos as well.

I tried Prezi once last year. After testing the waters, I directed my students to construct and embed a Prezi-based portfolio in each of their own class websites. The kids loved the ease of use but my more discerning students were disappointed with image quality. Many reported success in using Prezi in place of PowerPoint for their other classes. Since I have over 200 new students this year, I plan on introducing them to the process as well.

Prezi, like PowerPoint, is not a great tool for displaying high-quality imagery but it is a fun and exciting alternative to Death by PowerPoint. Simple to use, it provides even less-adept students with a confidence-building Web 2.0 experience. Each of my students successfully constructed a Prezi last year. With it's new collaborative features, Prezi Meeting is sure to WOW the kids working on group projects.



To see how easy it is to collaborate, please add your own voice to this vitally important project (link expires on December 5). As you'll see in the following tutorial, setting up the collaborative environment is simply a matter of clicking a button and providing the link.



If you'd rather have written instructions, see this page.

I created the following Prezi for demonstration purposes. In the spirit of feeding two birds with one seed, it's for my FSO classmates as well as my students. In the same vein, I mentioned that I've recorded a series of video tutorials (19 videos). The videos explore Photoshop workflow, shortcuts, strategies, and a few other tips and tricks that you might find of value, especially if you're new to Photoshop. Additional thoughts on Prezi may be found in the final four videos on that page.

2010 Self Portraits on Prezi

Note: I spent a couple of hours exploring the Go2Web 2.0 site and didn't want to force a choice for uniqueness' sake. Like the rest of my Full Sail experience, I'm not really interested in resources that don't directly help my own students succeed. My second choice isn't even listed on the Go2Web site. Maybe I should keep that resource in check for a future post. ;)

Credits: The complex PowerPoint slide is courtesy of US Military (larger version), Death by PowerPoint by Frits Ahlefeldt, Prezi videos by Prezi via YouTube (1 | 2), student artwork via these students, and the video within my Prezi is courtesy of Sir Ken Robinson, RSA, and RSA Animate, via this YouTube page.