Sunday, July 6, 2014

Visual images for oral presentations

I realized that I am a very visual person... I used to think I was more a verbal person because I like reading but now I think I'm more visual than verbal, because I am more creative with images than with words.

I told you I struggled to do that presentation, to even start making the powerpoint slides... But you know what prodded me on? It was the process of searching for images on istockphoto and purchasing them and using them to frame my presentation. As I picked the images, I felt what I wanted to say!

The images evoked the things I wanted to express. I don't think many people are like me. I noticed many people use images as an afterthought, rather than using it to drive the process. But images are so integral to who I am and what I want to say.

Oral Presentations

I will need to present my conference paper: Critical patriotism in Singapore: An exploration of two teachers' understandings of patriotism and how they teach social studies at the citizED conference in Birmingham on the 17th of July. I wrote the paper in May but am having some inertia presenting for the presentation now. So I scheduled to first have a trial run before fellow graduate students and colleagues on the 9th of July. That's in 2 days. So now I must prepare for that. I'm referring to this book called "A Short Guide To Writing About Social Science" by Lee Cuba to hep myself with preparations.

"Your audience is there to learn something; your task is to education, not to impress. It is often best to assume that your audience requires background information rather than leaving them possibly adrift." (p. 155)

"Whenever possible employ some sort of interaction, questions, or informal votes, for example, between you and the audience to give you hints of their interests and make your talk even more personal."

"Selecting examples that are familiar to your audience does not exclude the possibility that your talk may elicit a response of "I hadn't thought of it in those terms before." On the contrary, ironies or counterintuitive interpretations initially unanticipated by the audience are often the major strengths of a paper or presentation. Relevant examples lay the foundation for these surprise endings." (p. 156)

"First, good talks usually make fewer points - and they make them with more elaborate illustrations of each point - than papers make... Don't hesitate to purge such extraneous material; you will either have enough remaining material for the talk or you can add material (e.g., definitions of concepts with which your audience may not be familiar or extra examples to illustrate an important point) not included in your paper." (p. 158)

"Introductions and the rest of the presentation follow a maxim handed down to countless students of public speaking: "Tell 'em what you're going to tell 'em, tell 'em, then tell 'em what you told them." Such an elaboration of the major points of your thesis might be tiresomely repetitive in a piece of writing, but it is imperative when your audience can look only to you for direction. Reiterating the major points of your talk helps your audience grasp what you consider to be the heart of your presentation.." (p. 159)

"Be conversational... Oral presentations, however, have to be caught on the wing, so you should avoid complicated language, concepts, and results that need a lot of explanation. Try to use language that can be easily grasped the first time around. Don't hesitate to use first-person pronouns. In searching for models of effective presentations, think about what you liked or disliked about talks or class lectures you have heard. Consider the idea of "teaching by delight" and occasionally incorporate humor and vibrant examples, anything to stimulate your group. There is always a balance between indulging the audience and recounting complicated ideas; it is your job to find that key point." (p. 160)

"Above all, make sure you know your subject. Again, practice your talk at least two or three times before you deliver it formally. Try giving it without your notes. Anticipate questions and weaknesses in what you are reporting. And remember, in just a few minutes, it will be all over. One way I reduce anxiety is to have the courage of my convictions - I believe in what I have to say and that I am worth a listen!" (p. 161)

"Although you should know the major points you will raise in your presentation, try to adapt your delivery to the audiences reaction. Watch what they are doing as you speak. Look directly at the faces of audience members.
Do they nod approvingly at an observation you just made? (Elaborate on this point.)
Do they look confused? (Clarify your point, or ask for a question.)
Do they appear to be falling asleep? (Consider cutting short your discussion of the point.)
Fine-tuning your presentation in ways such as these requires that you know your material well." (p. 161)

"Make sure your listeners know exactly where you are in your presentation at any given moment. Begin by giving a direct, summary statement of your conclusion, and follow it with an outline of the issues you will discuss to support this conclusion. About two-thirds of the way through, it may be appropriate to say something like, "I want to devote the remaining few minutes to.." As you near the end of your talk, let your audience know you are about to end - for example, by saying, "In closing, I would like to make two broad observations about these data." (p. 162)