Introduction to the Class Act Site

You are on the “PacerSpacer” page of the Class Act website, a site designed to improve existing teaching practice regarding “access” to learning for deaf and hard-of-hearing students in postsecondary classrooms. If you are not already familiar with the site, we urge you to explore the site, perhaps starting by clicking the Challenges/Strategies link at the right. You will then find almost 40 links at the top of that page to challenges you may face in your classrooms with specific strategies for dealing with those challenges.

PacerSpacer

The “PacerSpacer” – Simplicity in Controlling the Pace of Presentation Software (like PowerPoint)

One of the most important things you can do for deaf/hard-of-hearing individuals in your audience when using presentation software like PowerPoint is to allow sufficient time for them to read the slides before you begin talking. For deaf/hard-of-hearing individuals, whether with an interpreter or lip-reading you directly, this means allowing time for them to stop watching the interpreter or you, switch their attention to a slide, read its content, and then return their attention to either the interpreter or you. With an interpreter, even more time is required since there is always a lag time between what you say and the signing of that message.

This page describes a simple piece of animated software, that for fun we have named ‘PacerSpacer.’ The software is simplicity itself: it’s a small square of color, which begins as red, then changes to yellow briefly, and finally to green – like a traffic light with one square bulb. Place it in an out of the way spot on the background – the slide master(s) – of your presentation; then as each new slide comes up, wait to begin speaking until the PacerSpacer changes from red to yellow to green. It’s a way to hold you back from the urge to start speaking ‘too soon.’

Four versions are provided below, one with a wait time set at approximately 4 seconds, and others set at 8, 11, and 16 seconds. Of course these are approximations and timings will vary from computer to computer. Although you could use different timing for each slide, the simplest thing to do is to select one of the four – perhaps 8 seconds – and use that on the background of all slides.

Downloading the PacerSpacer

The PacerSpacer is © 2004 NTID/RIT. You are granted the right to download and use the PacerSpacer in any presentation, whether commercial or not, without requesting permission. However, you may not resell the PacerSpacer. We ask that you include the source URL location of the PacerSpacer in any handouts you distribute, so that others will learn of it and use it in their presentations.

To download the animated file right-click (control-click on Mac) on its icon below and save the file ("Save link as...") in a convenient location on your hard disk.

PacerSpacer_4sec.avi	PacerSpacer_8sec.avi
PacerSpacer_11sec.avi	PacerSpacer_16sec.avi

Placing the file in the background of your slides: PowerPoint (PC or Macintosh)

1. Open your existing PowerPoint slide presentation, or begin a new one.

2. Choose View menu, Master submenu, Slide Master.

3. Choose Insert menu, Movies and Sounds submenu, Movie from File. Then locate and select the file you downloaded; click OK.

4. If you are asked “How do you want the movie to start in the slide show?” click Automatically.

5. If you were not asked the question above, go to the Show Slide menu, Custom Animation, Timing. On the left select the timer; it moves up to the Animation Order box. On the right, click Animate, Automatically (0 seconds).

6. Drag the PacerSpacer image to reposition it as desired on the slide master – perhaps drag it to the lower left/right corner. (We recommend you do not enlarge the size of the PacerSpacer as you do not want it to become a distraction on the page.)

7. Repeat for each slide master in use.

Placing the file in other applications

You can also use the PacerSpacer with other types of presentation software (like KeyNote) or presentation formats. For example if you use web pages to present material, you can add the PacerSpacer to your web pages. (If you prepared your pages with FrontPage for example, you would: click the location where you wanted to position the PacerSpacer then choose Insert menu, Picture submenu, Video; locate and choose the file on your hard drive to insert it. Other web creation applications work similarly.)

Showing the slides (or using other applications)

Your slide show (or other application) is now ready. As you advance from slide to slide (or page to page) wait to begin speaking until the PacerSpacer has turned green. NOTE: We suggest that you do not call the attention of your audience to the existence of the PacerSpacer; doing so will only serve as a distraction as your audience watches it instead of reading the substance of your slides.

PacerSpacer FAQ

The PacerSpacer shows up on some slides but not all slides.

Your slideshow probably has multiple master slides in use. In PowerPoint, each master slide must be changed. To do so, choose View menu, Normal. Choose View, Master submenu, Slide Master. Instead of thumbnails down the left column for every slide, you now see thumbnails for each master slide in use in the slide show. Click on the master(s) that does not have the PacerSpacer and add it to that slide master.

The PacerSpacer appears only on one slide not on all slides.

1. It is possible that you have placed the PacerSpacer on the foreground of one slide, and not on the master slide. Review the directions for placing the PacerSpacer, and be certain it is on the master slide.

2. If you have multiple master slides, it is possible that you have placed the PacerSpacer on a master slide that has only one slide in your slideshow. In this case, review the question/answer just above this one.

I sent the slideshow to someone via email, and the PacerSpacer does not work for him/her.

When you send the PowerPoint file, you must also send the PacerSpacer file with it. The recipient of the files needs to be certain to place both files in the same folder.

Where is the best place on a slide for the PacerSpacer?

We suggest that you place the PacerSpacer in an out of the way corner, such as the lower left or lower right corner. You do not want your audience to notice that it is there since you do not want to distract their attention from your message.

The PacerSpacer blends with the background of my slide ? is it available in different colors?

No, for now we only provide it in the red/yellow/green combination. However, it is unlikely that all three colors blend; even if only one of the colors is visible to you, that should be sufficient for you to determine when to begin speaking.

Can I increase, on a slide-by-slide basis, the length of time the PacerSpacer takes?

The PacerSpacer comes in just four speeds; however, you can manipulate the timings with added work. Instead of placing it on the master slide(s), you can place it individually on each slide. Then, in PowerPoint 2003, right-click the PacerSpacer and choose Custom Animation. Click the animation in the Custom Animation pane; click the dropdown arrow and choose Timing. Increase the Delay.

My remote controller does not always advance the slide on the first click. Why?

The animation has to complete before the slide will advance.