Powerpoint (Score 1)

Our school (middle school / junior high) just installed digital projectors in all our classrooms, and bought licenses of powerpoint. As a teacher who knows something about tech, I'll repeat what a lot of other posters are saying: technology on its own does not improve teaching or learning. It's a tool. If you've got a bad lesson plan, technology isn't going to make it any better.

At the same time, I find it really useful for some things:

• Easy-erase graphs.Project a blank x-y grid onto your whiteboard. (not your screen!) Draw, erase, repeat. No re-drawing of grids.
• Fill-in reviews.Project your typed assignment complete with blanks. Kids can track more easily their own copies of assignments as you go through problems on the board.
• Relational diagrams.At age 12, kids still have a hard time creating their own flow-charts and relational diagrams. Powerpoint makes it easy to create these for kids to visualize.
• Ease of reading.If you've got to give notes, and write chicken scratches, a typed version is nicer.
• Speed.Is it better to draw out molecules, turning your attention away from a group of social 12-year-olds, or simply project manipulable, coloured, 3-d molecules, while watching the class the whole time?
• Pictures.You'd be surprised how many kids don't know what a moose looks like. Yes, really.
• Prepared notes.All my notes are numbered; when a kid is out sick, they tell what notes they missed, and voila, print note-X to note-Y and I'm done.