Pecha Kuchas as creative compositions

Abstract

The Pecha Kucha talk is an effective way to encourage the composition process; to promote the use of effective visuals to explain and engage; and to distribute the expertise in the classroom away from the teacher as the central expert and to the students. In this paper, we describe and give an example of what is called a Pecha Kucha (Japanese for ‘chit chat’). When examined within the frameworks of theorists in the areas of composition, pedagogy, and literacy, this emerging presentation genre is promising for both composer and audience. With this in mind, we first discuss ways that the creator of the Pecha Kucha may benefit from the specific composition space. We then share how this composition exercise is an effective teaching tool. Next, we show ways that this presentation style maximizes learning with image and speech coordination and skills of analysis and synthesis. Then we introduce how Pecha Kuchas give students the opportunity to teach and to work with technological tools in authentic ways. Finally, implications for future practice in developing compositions using oral delivery with visuals are discussed.

Differences in Instructor, Presenter, and Audience Ratings of PechaKucha and Traditional Student Presentations

“…Despite the more frequent and widespread use of traditional presentations, the findings of the current study suggest both presenters and audience members alike benefit from the innovative and unique presentation style PechaKucha offers. Though PechaKucha and traditional presentations helped presenters equally as well in better understanding course material, PechaKucha required presenters to engage with the material more due to the extra rehearsal time necessary to deliver a narrative presentation within a fixed time constraint (Anderson & Williams, 2012; Baker, 2014; Coskun, 2017; Dredger & Beach, 2016). Despite no differences in delayed retention between presenters of PechaKucha and traditional presentations, the deepened understanding of course material that PechaKucha requires may explain why presenters demonstrated better immediate retention of information.…”

“…Additionally, PechaKucha may help students develop their content knowledge beyond the classroom walls. Whether during the creation or delivery of their PechaKucha presentations, students learn both skills and content related to their talks (Dredger & Beach, 2016). Although some studies have shown similar improvement of understanding the material for students who created PechaKucha compared to traditional presentations (Beyer et al, 2012; Johnson & Christensen, 2011), most students reported PechaKucha presentations helped them review the texts they learned previously, which can contribute to improved understanding (Beyer et al, 2012; Nguyen, 2015).…”

“…In doing so, student presenters must overcome the challenges of determining the main points of their presentation and wording those points clearly (Mackiewicz, 2008). Moreover, to ensure their presentation flows, remains conversational, and presents a coherent argument within the restricted time frame, students must write and rewrite their scripts (Dredger & Beach, 2016; Gries & Brooke, 2010; Levin & Peterson, 2013).…”

“…When used effectively, PowerPoint can be a powerful presentation tool that allows presenters to simultaneously present visual and auditory information to facilitate learning (Gries & Brooke, 2010; Mayer, 2011). Moreover, when done well, student PowerPoint presentations can be an excellent learning tool that may help to promote various learning outcomes, like written and oral communication, collaboration, creativity, and content knowledge (Bakcek et al, 2020; Baskara, 2015; Dredger & Beach, 2016; Oliver & Kowalczyk, 2013; Tomsett & Shaw, 2014). However, these presentations are often plagued by some common pitfalls which detract from their overall effectiveness and may in fact hinder learning (Beyer, 2011; Cerbin, 2018; Harman, 2010; Holstead, 2015; Johnson, 2012).…”

“…Although evidence points toward the strengths of PechaKucha, there are a few notable gaps in the literature that necessitate additional research. First, most studies on the effectiveness of PechaKucha were descriptive in nature and lacked experimental control (e.g., Abraham et al, 2018; Allen, 2018; Anderson & Williams, 2012; Baskara, 2015; Carroll et al, 2016; Christianson & Payne, 2011; Dredger & Beach, 2016; Lehtonen, 2011; Levin & Peterson, 2013; Liao et al, 2020; Lucas & Rawlins, 2015; Mackiewicz, 2008; McDonald & Derby, 2015; Morrow et al, 2018; Murugaiah, 2016; Nguyen, 2015; Robinson, 2015; Tomsett & Shaw, 2014). Second, although studies have explored immediate and delayed retention for audience members, no study to date has explored whether presenters themselves experience any measurable gain in retention with PechaKucha.…”