> Alan Rudy writes:
>
> I get more and more questions like: "When are you going to
>> put the powerpoints up on Blackboard so I can start to study
>> for the test?" which 95% of the time means: "I assume the
>> chapter itself is unimportant and that everything I need to
>> know is on - and all the relationships I need to understadnd
>> can be gleaned from - the powerpoints."
>>
>
> I hope you give them what they ask for; or is it actually the case that
> your PowerPoints have everything needed for the test?
>
> I see this all the time in the post-college world; people don't want to pay
> attention in a meeting because they think they can just read the slides
> later. Well, I've got news for them: the slides are an outline *for me* to
> work from and all the interesting bits are in what I'm saying, not what's in
> the slides.
>
> That these people can get out of college with passing grades is purely the
> fault of the reinforcement they receive while in college.
>
> This is a completely different question than the Subject: line would imply.
>
> /jordan
>
Did you mean to write "do not give them what they ask for?"
When I have powerpoints, which I often do not, I share them but, like you, my ppts are a skeleton I flesh out during class discussions and which I use to keep me from going too far afield, which I am wont to do otherwise. I make this all super clear in the syllabus and in class... many students appear not to want to hear/understand that... for many, if there are powerpoints then they are/must be comprehensive (otherwise, I am doing a bad job).
At the same time, student evaluations are really important here and I get blasted for not teaching exactly what will be on the test quite regularly... haven't been dinged yet but I've seen others who have been.