Making the most of oral presentations
What is an oral presentation?
Oral presentations usually take place in tutorials or seminars. An oral presentation is a talk given to a group in which you present your views on an issue or topic based on your readings or research. The oral presentation may be associated with a written assignment or
it can lead to one. There may be specific requirements you may need to meet and these will be detailed in your course outline or study guide. Your presentation may be as an individual or as part of a group.
You will need to prepare for your oral presentations in much the same way as you would for a written assignment. This will include:
- analysing a topic closely
- developing a point of view in relation to that topic through research and thought
- persuading your audience that the point of view you have developed is well supported by the ideas and information you present
Oral presentations, like written assignments have three main parts or stages:
- the initial statement of the point of view that you have developed in response to the topic (sometimes called the thesis statement). This part of the oral presentation is the introduction.
- the argument and evidence which are presented to support this point of view. This part is the body of the oral presentation
- the summary of the arguments and the restatement of the overall point of view that has been developed. This part of the oral presentation is the conclusion.
The structure and purpose of the presentation could be like a spoken essay where you develop a point of view supported by ideas or information you present. It could also be a spoken practical report or an analytical report. (Refer to Learning guides 6 and 7 when preparing the structure of your oral presentation.) Although your preparation is much the same as for a written assignment, the kind of language you will use will be different. Written language is more formal and therefore better suited to reading. On the other hand, spoken language is less formal and uses more words to say the same thing which makes it easier to listen to and understand.
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Before the oral presentation
Prepare
In preparing for an oral presentation you undertake a number of different activities:
- think about the audience and their background knowledge to help you choose the content and style of delivery
- estimate the time available for your presentation to help you decide on how much information you will need
- select appropriate resources
- collate all the information and ideas and organise them in a logical sequence
- finalise your choice of content keeping your audience and their background knowledge in mind
- decide on what and how much content to include:
- decide on the main points, then select explanations and examples to go with them
- provide clear links between main points, explanations and examples
- use key words several times to emphasis their importance
- work out the logical connections between the main points and then choose words to best express these relationships. Check that your key points are linked eg "One way x occurs…" "Another way …". Or you may use "Firstly…”, “secondly …” to link the ideas.
Practise
- develop your first set of notes which you will use in your presentation and practise your delivery
- use key words and phrases in your notes rather than sentences. This will prevent you from reading your notes
- time the presentation
- modify the notes to suit the time and make and number a set of cue cards
- develop relevant and effective overhead transparencies (OHTs)
- use key words and phrases only in any OHTs or PowerPoint slides you use
- limit the main ideas to 4 per OHT
- use size 16 font as the minimum
- use clear font styles such as Palatino , Times New Roman or Arial
- use one and a half line spacing
- number all OHTs
- ensure that charts, tables and graphs are simple and clear
- anticipate any questions that could be asked and prepare possible responses. Prepare for questions that you may not be able to answer and know how you will respond to them
- practise with an audience or in front of a mirror – check that you are standing up straight, using appropriate gestures and looking at your audience
- practise, practise and practise again. This will help you to overcome any nervousness by making you more comfortable with the content
- if your volume is too soft, practise in an open space and try to project your voice
On the day of the presentation:
- arrive early to make sure that the room, equipment and lay-out suit your needs. This will allow you time to make any necessary changes.
- check that your overheads are clearly focussed on the screen and that your body does not block anyone’s view of them
- warm up your voice by talking out loud and do some relaxation exercises such as deep breathing
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During the Oral Presentation
Perform
During an oral presentation:
- greet the audience and look confident and relaxed
- wait for the audience to focus their attention on you before you start
- state the topic clearly and give an outline of what you will cover
- use your visual aids to indicate the main ideas as you progress through the presentation
- look at your audience and establish eye contact with most people at some stage of your presentation
- face the audience as you speak and take care not to turn your body away from them
- use your voice by changing volume, pitch and by using pauses to indicate to your audience that you are moving on to a new point. Vary your intonation for statements, questions and emphasis.
- summarise the main points in your conclusion. You may also suggest future questions or research directions that could be taken in relation to the topic
- hand out material either before or after the presentation so that you don’t lose your audience’s attention.
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After the Oral Presentation
There are many ways in which you can learn from your oral presentations. Some ways include:
- reflect on what made your presentation successful and what detracted from it
- ask for feedback from your lecturer and fellow students and use this feedback to improve future oral presentations
- identify one area of improvement
During your program you may be involved in many oral presentations both as a presenter and as a member of the audience. Speaking before a group of people involves skills which you will develop and refine with practice. As an observer you will be able to identify strategies which effective presenters use and adopt or adapt them to develop your own skills as a presenter.
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Sources
Adamson, G & Prentice 1987, Communcation skills in practice: Workbook 1 Speaking and Listening, Nelson Wadsworth, Melbourne, Victoria.
Burdess, N 1991, The handbook of student skills for the social sciences and humanities, Prentice Hall, Brunswick, Victoria.
Cook, G 1989, Discourse, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Day, EJ 1995, How to perform under pressure Daybreak Publishing, Lower Plenty, Victoria.
Halliday, MAK 1988, Spoken and written language, Deakin University, Victoria.
Hay, I, Bochner, D & Dungey, C 1997, Making the grade, Oxford University Press, South Melbourne, Victoria.
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