Lecture for Everyone
- Class Notes or Outlines: Consider providing an outline of class lectures to all students in advance of the class meeting. Useful outlines will, at a minimum, highlight the testable topics planned for that class period. Any testable material covered in class that was not planned and outlined can be reinforced in a follow-up email or digital announcement using your college's learning management system's tools.
- Writing on a Board: When you write on a whiteboard or chalkboard, consider visibility. Use high-contrast marker colors such as black, red, and dark blue, and avoid using dry markers. If you have a chalkboard, use high-contrast chalk colors such as white or yellow. To ensure your text size is consistent with ADA standards, match your text size to the size of your classroom. As a rule of thumb, no text should be smaller than two inches high, and for every 10 feet of occupied classroom beyond 20 feet deep, increase the size of your text by one inch. For example, in a classroom that is 20 feet deep, write in two-inch-high letters. For a classroom that is 40 feet deep, write in four-inch-high letters, and so on.
- Using PowerPoints: PowerPoints should be created using high contrast color schemes, sans serif fonts (such as Arial), and should have a font size of no smaller than 18 point. Because the final projected size of PowerPoint text is determined by the dynamic relationship between screen size, projector distance and resolution, and font size, you will have to judge your PowerPoints in the classroom and be prepared to adjust font size if necessary.
- As You Lecture: Whether you lecture using a board or a PowerPoint for illustration, make sure to verbally cover any material given visually. While you are not encouraged to read your PowerPoints, you should ensure than any testable material they contain is presented verbally in some way. If you present images of any kind (photographs, artwork, graphs, diagrams) provide a complete verbal description of the image. Do not assume the visual image can "speak for itself." If you are lecturing in a classroom that is large enough to contain a microphone, use the microphone.