Patterns of PowerPoint Use in Higher Education: a Comparison between the Natural, Medical, and Social Sciences

PowerPoint is one of the most widely used technological tools in educational contexts, but little is known about the differences in usage patterns by faculty members from various disciplines. For the study we report in this article we used a survey specially designed to explore this question, and it was completed by 106 faculty members from different disciplines. The results suggest the existence of different patterns in the use of PowerPoint. In addition, the importance of habit in its use is highlighted. Those professors who reported greater dependence on PowerPoint tended to use PowerPoint primarily as study material for their students. We discuss the practical relevance of these results.