Leicester Award: Preparing Presentations

Learning Development

www.le.ac.uk/slcwww.le.ac.uk/succeedinyourstudies

Leicester Award:Preparing Presentations

Marta Ulanicka01.03.12

http://www.le.ac.uk/slc



Structure of workshop• Presentation, discussion, exercises



Problem reversal exercise: You have been set the task of giving a ten minute presentation outlining your work-related skills. What could you do to ensure the presentation was a complete disaster from start to finish?



What are you being asked to do?



How will you be assessed?



Stages involved in giving a presentation:• Structuring the presentation• Designing the materials• Delivering the presentation






Structuring a presentationA presentation has three main parts:• introduction• body• conclusion



Structuring a presentation

Tell them what you are going to tell them

Tell them

Tell them what you told them

adapted from Drew, S. and Bingham, R. (2001) The Student Skills Guide, 2nd ed., Aldershot: Gower



Tell them what you are going to tell them: the introduction

Ideas:• Greet the audience• Introduce yourself• Outline the content of your presentation• Make the format clear (e.g. questions during versus questions

at the end)• Grab the audience’s attention:

• a question• a provocative statement• an anecdote• a quotation adapted from Drew, S. and Bingham, R. (2001) The

Student Skills Guide, 2nd ed., Aldershot: Gower



Tell them: the body of the presentation

What will be the structure of your presentation?

A + B = CAre you explaining a concept where one step follows logically on from another?

Explanation: Chronological order:Are you telling a story which progresses through time?Is the order of events important?

Arguments:Are you examining arguments for and against an issue?Do you need to decide on a particular point of view?

Aspects:Are you examining various aspects of an issue? For example: • psychological, social, economic• scientific concept, applications, implications

for society• qualifications, work experience, skills gained



Possible signposts of structure• Outline of structure used as a visual aid throughout the

presentation• Verbal cues:

“I am now going to look at...” “Let’s move on to...” “The next point to consider is...” “Having looked at X, let’s look at Y.”

• New audio-visual aid• Change of speaker (in group presentations)



Tell them what you told them: the conclusion

Ideas:• Provide a summary of your main points• Provide an overall assessment• Thank the audience• Invite questions and further discussion (if appropriate)






Designing the materials: a range of tools

from http://capl.washjeff.edu/3/m/1693.jpg


http://prezi.com/index/


Exercise: Find a partner…



How to (hard) boil an egg• The number one rule is to use eggs that are at least five days old

from their packing date.• Place the eggs in a saucepan and add enough cold water to cover

them by about ½ inch (1 cm).• Bring the water up to simmering point,

– put a timer on for 6 minutes if you like a bit of squidgy in the centre,– 7 minutes if you want them cooked through.

• Then, the most important part is to cool them rapidly under cold running water.

• Let the cold tap run over them for about 1 minute, then leave them in cold water till they're cool enough to handle – about 2 minutes.

http://www.deliaonline.com/



How to (hard) boil an egg

http://www.joyfulabode.com/blog/2007/06/05/hard-boiled-eggs/





My over the top presentation



Ideas for remembering what to say

Slide 1• In this presentation, I am

going to talk about X• The first point to cover is Y• Y is important because of its

involvement in the processes a and b, not mentioning its influence on c

The main role of the slides is to benefit the audience. You might want to consider using additional material to prompt your memory:• PowerPoint notes facility• your own notes• postcard-sized cue cards (it might be useful to number these)



Dealing with questions



Option A:Say that you don’t

understand what the questioner is talking

about.

Option B:Answer the question

you thought the questioner probably

asked.

Option C:Clarify with the

questioner what they meant by the question

Somebody asks you a question you don’t understand

Phrased in this way, your response might be interpreted as impolite.

... a bit risky This ensures that you answer the question asked and provides you with additional time to think about your answer.



Option A:

Ignore the comment

Option B:Try to justify your

point of view through the use of evidence

and logical arguments

Option C:

Tell the person that they are wrong

Somebody makes a comment you don’t agree with

Not a good idea, as some kind of a response will be needed.

By far the best way to convince your listeners!

Will this really convince your listeners that yours is the more valid point of view?



Option A:Try to prevent the

situation by predicting in advance the kinds of questions which

might be asked

Option B:

Waffle your way through

Option C:

Admit ignorance, put on sackcloth and

ashes

Somebody asks you a question you don’t know the answer to

Not a good idea, as it might well be obvious you don’t know the answer!

A good solution, although might not be appropriate if you are being assessed.

Option D:Say that you’re not

sure, but it’s an interesting point that you will investigate

Option E:Ask the questioner what they think, or

open the question up to the audience

Option F:Tell the questioner as

much as you know and suggest ways of

obtaining further information

A good way of avoiding the situation altogether!

No need to despair, you can’t be expected to know everything about a subject!

This might be appropriate, although probably not if you are being assessed!

Another possible solution, this might also be appropriate during assessment.



‘On the day’ tips

+ +

+ +



PowerPoint tips: some shortcut keys…

Blacks the screen

Shows slide showPF5

PB

PHome Returns to the first slide

PF1Shows other shortcut keys



Presentations: useful resourceswww.le.ac.uk/succeedinyourstudies


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Design and deliver a presentation…Pick a topic:• Your experience of teamwork and what you think makes an effective team• Explain a concept/topic within your subject area• Pitch ‘Parfum la campagne’ (the new countryside smells perfume range)

to a buyer from a well known chain of department stores• Explain the working principles of ‘Timex’, the time travelling machine you

recently invented• Another topic of your choice

Your task:• Plan the presentation• Design at least one slide• Share the presentation plan with your partner and deliver the slide(s) you

designed. They will take notes and provide you with feedback.

Your task: Devise a structure

You have 10 minutes for this


Documents

Leicester Award: Preparing Presentations