Are you fast, snappy and colourful enough?

The challenge of the digital age

As we consume content faster than we ever have before, the way in which we process information is changing. And it’s no different for our students. As academics, we’re competing with fast flying tik tok videos, eye catching reels and constantly moving news feeds. As educators, how do we capture and more importantly, retain our learners’ attention in this rapidly evolving landscape of distractions?  

I was once in a seminar when one of my students was drawn into watching a tik tok video that she had just received. As she watched, she helplessly confessed it was a huge distraction. So, has the game changed? Are we able to successfully compete with the pace and colour of distractions coming at our students from every direction? Being the glass half full optimist that I am, my answer is yes! Absolutely! It’s all about strategy! 

I believe there’s a place for technology, but as Dr Lieberman (2013) states, our need to connect with other people is even more fundamental than our need for food and shelter. Therefore, face to face contact and interaction (even if it’s online), is invaluable and our challenge as academics is to leverage that effectively. Over the years, I’ve trialled and been successful in employing several active learning strategies, of which I share one today. 

Building knowledge together

One of my most reliable and trusted companions in every teaching space is One by Wacom. Think of it as a turbo charged, multi-functional, multi-purpose whiteboard and more! It has resulted in improved student engagement consistently attracting positive feedback from students.  

While I focus specifically on Wacom in this blogpost, it’s worth noting that there is other technology on the market with similar functionality. 

The Wacom allows you to annotate documents in real time, which means instead of simply being didactic and linear in your communication, you can structure your lesson in such a way, that you build understanding together with your students. It moves away from reams of neatly typed up PowerPoint slides. Instead of simply offloading knowledge, the Wacom allows me to get my students actively thinking and creating rather than passively receiving.  

My most recent student cohort specifically requested that I upload my Wacom annotated notes and solutions that we co-created in class. Why? Because students could relate to these documents, they played a part in creating them and therefore, it had more meaning to them. Think about it this way...if you gifted a child a ready-made outdoor playhouse, as opposed to building the playhouse together with the child, which one would they appreciate, understand and value more? Knowledge acquisition and understanding is no different.   

Figure A below captures a discussion with my level six audit and assurance students, when they were learning about the purpose of audit and assurance.  

We started with a blank canvas and progressively created the visual in Figure A. Rather than focusing on the final outcome, what I really want you to appreciate is the process involved in getting there. There was a significant amount of student engagement and students could see how various aspects interacted with each other. I would ask a question and as they answered, I would annotate the page. Slides can convey the same message, but it’s far too passive. The process of using the Wacom means, I explain something and then ask students for their input. A fantastic tool to facilitate active learning.  

The process in action: co-creating understanding

For those of you who would appreciate more detail, I provide a snippet into the process and dialogue with students: 

Mariam: “Let’s take a look at a publicly listed business. What do we call entities that invest money into the business?” (I draw the business as a circle at the centre of the top half of the page and annotate it as Grub Co).  

Students: “Shareholders”.   

Mariam: “Great and what types of entities might the shareholders be?” 

Students: “Individuals, companies etc”. (I add the various types of shareholders and show that they have invested money into the business to the left of the Grub Co circle).  

Mariam: “Now take a look, we have directors within the company who manage the shareholders money. (I add the directors within the publicly listed business). How do the shareholders know that their money is being managed properly?  

Students: “By looking at the financial statements.” (I draw a square representing the financial statements produced by management). 

Mariam: “Good point, but how do the shareholders know that they can rely on those financial statements?” 

And so the discussion continues. As you can see, at every exchange with my students, I am annotating and we are effectively creating their understanding together. It prompts students to think and without realising, they’re engaging and learning! By the end of it, you have a visual document that can easily be shared with students electronically.  

Does that mean I’ve thrown my PowerPoint slides out the window? Quite the contrary. I use slides to structure discussion with students but leave gaps where we develop understanding as shown in Figure B below.

Be strategic with Powerpoint

As Jones (2003) explains, PowerPoint “is often limited to an information transmission mode”. He argues that instead, it is a very powerful and flexible teaching and learning support tool. This is further supported by Xingeng et all (2012) who talk about PowerPoint inducing neglect of student interaction. And that’s the risk, that we rely heavily on PowerPoint and sacrifice deeper and more meaningful engagement which results in greater learning gains. Therefore, our use of slides needs to be more strategic, use it as a crutch rather than a wheelchair.  

The opportunities are endless! What active learning easy wins do you have to share, and can you see yourself incorporating the Wacom? 

Mariam Essof is a Chartered Accountant and Senior Lecturer at De Montfort University with more than two decades worth of experience across four countries. Renowned for student engagement and support, she’s received multiple teaching awards. Her innovative, cross-cultural approach drives dynamic learning environments. She is currently working on a project that will reshape accounting education.  

References: 

Jones, A. M. (2003). The use and abuse of PowerPoint in Teaching and Learning in the Life Sciences: A Personal Overview. Bioscience Education, 2(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.3108/beej.2003.02000004 

Lieberman, M. D. (2013). Social: Why our brains are wired to connect (First ed.). New York: Crown Publishers. 

Xingeng, D. Jianxing, L. (2012). Advantages and Disadvantages of PowerPoint in Lectures to Science Students.