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Graphic Aids

Students need to include graphic aids in their written proposals and oral presentations in several of the Business & Technical Writing courses. This page gives some thoughts and suggestions that can help you help your students.

Use the "Things that Work" link to the left to return to the Table of Contents.

Presentation Software

Students will be well served to learn how to create slides using PowerPoint, a widely used software program for doing presentations in the business world. The link gives a basic introduction to the program which instructors and students can work with. There can, however, be a tendency to overuse PowerPoint while other media for developing visuals are overlooked. The tables on the lower part of this page help students think about options. There's also the matter of needing a laptop computer to give PowerPoint presentations. If you (or at least one of your students) don't have one to lend, students will have to use other strategies. They can, however, create PowerPoint slides, print them, and have transparencies made. It's a bit expensive, but the results are very good.

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Here is an activity that has been used frequently to help students think about the way visuals are used to communicate information.

Looking at Visual Aids

Visual aids are an important part of both your oral presentation and your final project. They can provoke an immediate response in your audience in a way that a paragraph of statistics may not. In preparation for your oral presentation, bring in at least three visual aids with stapled commentary.

These three visual graphic aids should be cut from newspapers or magazines, or printed out from online sources. They could be ones that you are considering using for your oral presentation and project proposal, but they could also just be interesting examples of graphics. Please do not bring in pictures or photographs; I would much rather have you find images which are visual representations of statistical information, as in charts, tables, graphs, and so on. You may find certain graphics that you find misleading, and would like to show the class possible "sneaky" tactics used by the presenters. To help you develop good, informative, attractive visual aids, we will look at your examples and some others in a peer review/class presentation session.

These will be handed in: please staple them to a piece of paper and write down some notes about what you thought of each one. Don't give me your only copy, especially if you are one of the first people scheduled for oral presentation. If you are confused as to how to comment, you can refer to the five legitimate functions of a good visual found in The Portable Business Writer.

Writing for Engineers (355:322) uses Mike Markel, Technical Communication, 6th edition as a text. On page 376, Markel presents a figure (recreated here) which reminds students that specific types of graphics are created for specific purposes. It's an excellent lesson for students to learn.

Purposeful Graphics

Purpose	Type of Graphic	What the Graphic Does Best
Illustrating numerical information	Table	Shows large amounts of numerical data, especially when there are several variables for a number of items.
	Bar graph	Shows the relative value of two or more items.
	Pictograph	Enlivens statistical information for the general reader.
	Line graph	Shows how the quantity of an item changes over time. A line graph can accommodate much more data than a bar graph can.
	Pie chart	Shows the relative size of the parts of a whole. Pie charts are instantly familiar to most readers.

Illustrating logical relationships	Diagram	Represents items or properties of items.
Illustrating logical relationships	Organization Chart	Shows the lines of authority and responsibility in an organization.

Illustrating instructions and process descriptions	Checklist	Lists or shows what equipment or materials to gather, or describes an action.
	Table	Shows numbers of items or indicates the state (on/off) of an item.
	Flowchart	Shows the stages of a procedure or a process.
	Logic box	Shows which of two or more paths to follow.
	Logic tree	Shows which of two or more paths to follow.

Illustrating visual and spatial characteristics	Drawing	Shows simplified representations of objects.
	Map	Shows geographic areas.
	Photograph	Shows precisely the external surface of objects.
	Screen shot	Shows what appears on a computer screen.

M. Markel, Technical Communications, 6th ed., p. 376.

Students don't often consider the range of options for developing visuals. Because PowerPoint is so now commonly used, students may forget how useful a poster might be. Drawing again from Mike Markel, Technical Communication, 6th edition, a table on page 646 is recreated here to help you talk to your students about what information they want to show and how best to show it.

Choosing Presentation Media

Medium	Advantages	Disadvantages
Computer presentations: images are projected from a computer to a screen.	Very professional appearance You can produce any combination of static or dynamic images, from simple graphs to sophisticated, three-dimensional animations. You can control the rate at which the images change.	The equipment is not available everywhere. Preparing the graphic can be time consuming Presentations prepared using one piece of software might not run on all other systems
Slide projector: projects previously prepared slides onto a screen.	Very professional appearance. Versatile -- can handle photographs or artwork, color or black/white. With a second projector, you can eliminate the pause between slides. During the presentation, you can easily advance the slides. Graphics software lets you create small paper copies of your slides to distribute to the audience after the presentation.	Slides can be expensive to produce. Room has to be kept relatively dark during the slide presentation.
Overhead projector: projects transparencies onto a screen.	Transparencies are inexpensive and easy to create. You can draw transparencies "live." You can create overlays by placing one transparency over another. Light s can remain on during the presentation. You can face the audience. Graphics software lets you create small paper copies of your slides to distribute to the audience after the presentation.	Not as professional looking as slides. Each transparency must be loaded separately by hand.
Opaque projector: projects images on paper onto a screen.	You can project single sheets or pages in a bound volume. Requires no expense or advance preparation.	Room has to be kept dark during the presentation. Cannot magnify sufficiently for a large auditorium. Each page must be loaded separately by hand. The projector can be noisy.
Poster: a graphic drawn on oak tag or another paper product.	Inexpensive. Posters can be drawn or modified "live."	Too small for large rooms.
Flip chart: a series of posters bound together at the top like a loose-leaf binder; generally placed on a easel.	Relatively inexpensive. You can easily flip backward or forward. Can be drawn or modified "live."	Too small for large rooms.
Chalkboard or other hard writing surface.	Almost universally available. You have complete control -- can add, delete, or modify the graphic easily.	Complicated or extensive graphics are difficult to create. Ineffective in large rooms. Very informal appearance.
Objects: models or samples of material that can be held up or passed around through the audience.	Interesting for the audience. They provide a close look at the object.	Audience members might not be listening while they are looking at the object. It can take a long while to pass an object around a large room. The object might not survive intact.
Handouts: photocopies of written material given to each audience member.	Much material can fit on the page. Audience members can write on their copies and keep them.	Audience members might read the handout rather than listen to the speaker.

M. Markel, Technical Communications, 6th ed., p. 646

Many of the Business &Technical Writing courses are scheduled into "Smart Classrooms" which have a variety of technological tools that can be used by instructors and students over the course of the semester. The equipment in the rooms is used when the oral presentations are given. The classrooms are maintained by "Media Services" which is connected to the Rutgers Universities Libraries.

WELCOME TO MEDIA SERVICE

Instructors who wish to use any of the technological tools in the Smart Classrooms must complete an orientation session offered by Media Services. Once this (brief) orientation is finished, it does not have to be repeated in subsequent semesters. On the Media Services home page, click the "Smart Classrooms" link. Then, on the "Smart Classrooms" page, click the "Orientation Session" link. There you will find what you need to know. Other links on the home page tell where all Smart Classrooms are located, what's in them, how to borrow or rent equipment, etc. Technical assistance is readily available.

Instructors can go to the Media Services Web page at http://www.scc.rutgers.edu/mediaservices/MediaServicesNB.html

The information below was taken from the Media Services Web page on January 16, 2002.

Rutgers University Libraries, Kilmer Library, 75 Avenue E., Piscataway, New Jersey USA 08854

* Tel: (732) 445-4685 ext. 1 * Fax: (732) 445-0290

Smart Classroom podium with touch screen and laptop/network connections.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Location, Hours, Staff

SMART CLASSROOMS/ INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORT
58 classrooms available

MEDIA COLLECTIONS
Resources and Access

EQUIPMENT SERVICES
Scheduling, delivery, and rental

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Current information related to media

Welcome to Media Services at Rutgers! Media Services is a unit of the University Libraries offering audio visual services to faculty, students and staff on all Rutgers campuses -- Newark, New Brunswick and Camden. The department maintains a library of audio visual materials, viewing facilities and instructional technology equipment. Media Services supports University teaching, research and other educational needs with a variety of media resources. We also provide assistance in the procurement, support and development of instructional media materials and technology. Media Services is responsible for 58 New Brunswick smart classrooms equipped with video/data projectors and Internet connections. A vcr, 35mm slide projector, laser disc/audio cd and audio cassette player are also permanently installed.

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