Presentations Pecha Kucha Style

Pecha KuchaPecha Kucha is a Presentation Style developed for Japanese Architects in 2003 by Astrid Klein, and Mark Dytham of Klein Dythman architecture. Their architects were having problems developing engaging presentations, so Klein Dythman Architecture came up with the Pecha Kucha method to help architects tell their story in a more interesting format, while still retaining the impact of the message.  Pecha Kucha is Japanese for the sound of conversation. Essentially what you are doing with a Pecha Kucha is telling a story. 

20 Slides, 20 Seconds per slide.  Total Presentation Time= 6 minutes and 40 seconds 

This format encourages you to be concise and get to the heart of the matter when you are speaking.  There is an emphasis on practicing what you are saying in addition to limiting the delivery time to focus on key points.   

Visual Impact  

Since you only have 20 seconds per slide, you want to select an image that has visual impact which is worth looking at for twenty seconds.  The visual will only be visible to the viewer briefly, so it should not be an image that the audience has to labor over. 

Ideas for Using Pecha Kucha with your students 

  • Mini Lectures:  Develop a series of mini, or power lectures. Develop two or three Pecha Kucha’s with a running time of less than 7 minutes. Each Pecha Kucha can highlight a major instructional theme for your unit, or module.  Or use Pecha Kucha to give students an image rich review of the concepts you presented in the Online Module, or Lesson.   
  • Flipping a Blended Classroom:    If you are flipping a blended course students are reviewing material in the online part of your course and you have active learning activities in the face-to-face part of your course.  Use the Pecha Kucha to help review what students should have covered “on their own” prior to getting them involved in the active learning activities. 
  • Craft Story Examples:  If you have a relevant story for a particular online lesson, you can use the Pecha Kucha method to tell that story using compelling images. 
  • Present Case Studies:  Perhaps you have a case study you want students to complete where they practice skills.   

Rather than creating a text-based case study, present the study in Pecha Kucha format.  Then, on the discussion board, have your students work through the case study in groups. 

  • Provide students direction for participating in Group work:  If you are doing group work activities with your students, you will need to provide them with direction.  Think of creating a few Pecha Kucha’s to guide and focus your students. The format will force you to focus your direction to key points, where you can help your students, so that they can spend the rest of the time working productively in their groups.   
  • Student Presentations:    Students can benefit from learning to structure their individual or group presentations in the format as well.  This format provides students with a good structure for presentation development, moving the focus from reading bullet points to effective presentation followed by discussion.  This concise format means that students must know what they are talking about to create a cohesive presentation that flows well.  This format is simple to explain and partnered with a rubric, can help your students to become better speakers.  

Tips for Helping Students Make Sense of a Pecha Kucha 

  • Present Pecha Kucha on the discussion board with an open-ended question What was the main point of the Pecha Kucha?”  You can then use their comments to check their comprehension, and as a springboard to spark discussion on the topic.   
  • Muddiest Point Pecha Kucha:  If your Pecha Kucha covers a particularly dense topic consider following it with a discussion board exercise where you ask students to answer the question about the “muddiest” point during the Pecha Kucha- What did they find unclear.  This will let you clear up misconceptions and will spark discussion.

Tips for Pecha Kucha Development 

  • Since the Pecha Kucha is about storytelling, when designing a Pecha Kucha, you should start with thinking about the story you are going to tell in seven minutes or less. 
  • Start by developing a storyboard, rather than developing directly in PowerPoint.  This will help you focus on the story you are trying to tell instead of designing a PowerPoint and trying to make your presentation “fit” the PowerPoint you Develop.  Low Tech storyboarding tools include: 
    • Index Cards 
    • Printing the Notes Pages of a PowerPoint Slide 
  • Time each slide to make sure that it is 20 seconds.  Remember to add time for pauses and transitioning to the next slide 
  • Next, intentionally plan the images that will go on your slide.  Plan thoughtful images that highlight the theme you are trying to convey.  Try to think of the images that will advance your message before you even start looking for images. 

Places to find image Pecha Kucha images: 

Tips for Designing the actual Pecha Kucha in PowerPoint 

  • Avoid most PowerPoint templates as they are cluttered and difficult to digest when working with twenty seconds per slide. 
  • Text should be kept to a minimum.  If you need text, use brief keywords or phrases, as you only have 20 seconds per slide.   If using text, use a Sans-Serif font, such as Helvetica or Arial. 
  • Avoid using Sound clips or videos.  
  • Set the slides to automatically advance after 20 seconds. 
  • Don’t use slide transitions.  The slides advance so rapidly that the viewer will find transitions distracting.  You don’t need sounds or video clips. Your voice will carry the presentation. 

Rehearse your Delivery of the Pecha Kucha 

Practice what you are saying.  This rehearsal is critical to being able to be polished while delivering the Pecha Kucha.  Listen to your delivery. Do you have too much to say?  Remember to breathe as you present.   If the timing is tight, edit your presentation.  You don’t want to sound rushed while delivering the Pecha Kucha. 

Additional Resources:  

Baker, T. J. (2014). Pecha Kucha & English Language Teaching: Changing the Classroom. Amazon Digital Services LLC. 

Shank, Patti (Ed.). (2011). The Online Learning Idea Book, Volume 2:  Proven Ways to Enhance Technology-Based and Blended Learning.  San Francisco: Pfeiffer.  

Official Pecha Kucha Website: http://www.pechakucha.org/faq  

Templates 

Word Storyboard Template:
Use this storyboard to plan out your Pecha Kucha before developing the PowerPoint:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/fblgorja9au7ymu/Word_Template.docx?dl=0  

Blank PowerPoint Template:
20 Slides, 20 seconds per slide.  Use this template to bring your Pecha Kucha Storyboard to life:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/uov59mwivpgg8yg/Pecha_Kucha_PowerPoint_Template.pptx?dl=0  

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