Oral Presentation

Why Should I Care?

The most universal method of learning is to hear someone talking. People still love to hear others talk, even if information is available on the Internet, or in books. Think of stand-up comedy: it is really low-tech, but people love it more than ever. Whether you would LOVE to present or you absolutely HATE it, we've got some pointers to help you succeed on stage.

This lesson has 2 parts

• 10 Step Preparation
  
• Oratory Considerations
  

What is an Oral Presentation?

An oral presentation consists of an individual or group verbally addressing an audience on a particular topic. The aim is to educate, inform, entertain or present an argument. Oral presentations are seen within workplaces, classrooms and even at social events such as weddings. An oral presentation at university assesses the presenter’s ability to communicate relevant information effectively in an interesting and engaging manner" (UOW, 2023).

Although some people are naturally gifted in public speaking, it is a skill that most students can acquire. In a college setting, oral presentations are also an occasion to diversify the type of assessments imposed on students. Some students do well on tests, having a great memory. Some students do well on essays, having a knack for argumentation and storytelling. Some students may have more trouble with written assessments, so it is wise for instructors to use other formats, such as oral tests, and oral presentations.

Being an effective speaker may also be useful for your career, although there are lots of people who do just fine and stay far away from PowerPoint and conference stages. 

Self-Assessment for Anxious Presenters

How apprehensive are you about public speaking?
Respond to the following statements using the ranking system below.

1 = Strongly Agree, 2 = Agree, 3 = Neutral, 4 = Disagree, 5 = Strongly Disagree

•             I have no fear of giving a speech.
•             Certain parts of my body feel very tense and rigid when I am giving a speech.
•             I feel relaxed when giving a speech.
•             My thoughts become confused and jumbled when I am giving a speech.
•             I face the prospect of giving a speech with confidence.
•             While giving a speech, I get so nervous that I forget facts I already know.

If you feel very anxious about public speaking, it's worth discussing this with your professor, teammates, and even a school counsellor or therapist. It gets better if you ask for help.

Mostly, speaking is a great way to master the material, and a great way to help others learn. Whenever new media technology comes around, like the radio, television, and the internet, public speaking has managed to remain. Humans love to listen to people talk.

The 3 Magic Ingredients of Amazing Presentations

• 10-Step Preparation
  

To help you prepare an awesome presentation, here is a 10-step preparation program proposed by well known psychology professor Joseph DeVito (2020). We are assuming that you have already done the background research, and may even have a paper written up. These steps relate only to the presentation.

1. State the topic
   The topic for your presentation may differ from that of a research paper. It's often times better to modify the topic a little. Write the topic out in a way that interests you.
   
   
2. Know your audience
   

   Why should we care about your work? Think in terms of interest, but also in terms of consequences. This topic might fascinate you, but does this issue have an impact on other people? This is a great way to get people's attention, and get them to care about the topic.
   

3. Sort through your research
   Oral presentations are not the best time to present a thorough literature review of everything that's been said about the topic. When people speak to each other, it's better if they get to the point. Your job is not to show every detail. Your job is to sort the information so that you get to the most critical aspects. Get to the point. Always critically evaluate your information. Is it current, fair, logical, objective? If someone disagrees, are you ready to respond? Integrate research into your speech, but always avoid plagiarizing someone else’s work.

   
   

4. Collect supporting material
   Your presentation should have a clear purpose. In academic papers, this is called the "thesis". Make sure you know why you are doing this project. As you work on your presentation, collect sources and learn more about your topic, you may find that the focus is changing.  That is okay and expected. At some point, however, you must have a clear purpose. To help you decide which sources to use, you can turn to lecture called Performing a Search for Literature to help you decide which sources to keep or discard. It is also essential to note that there are two mediums in an oral presentation: the audio (oral) and also the visual content. The audio is you talking. You've got to have something to say, and that means good research. Your voice does not need to be loud and booming. It simply needs to be interesting and compelling. So does the visual content. Look for compelling images that tell your story. This is will take some anxiety out of the 'speech' aspect. Let the audience see a great photo, an incredible graph, or a very telling map.
   
   
5. Develop your main points
   You want to tell your audience about this purpose early on in your presentation. Focus on 1 or 2 take-away messages, and work these angles. When your coverage is too broad, your audience may feel unsatisfied and overwhelmed. Think about the following question: "what 3-5 key points do I want an audience member to remember a week after my presentation?"
   If your audience was surveyed a week later, and remembered some of your key points, you probably did a good job, but if they remembered three completely different points, your emphasis during your presentation was probably off. A good way to find some hidden gems, is to discuss the presentation with a friend, and ask them what they have kept, or taken away, from your talk. Another common mistake is to try and say too much. Less is more. What you know about the topic will be best expressed through a simple and concise presentation, and when you find successful ways to engage your audience with you. 
   
   
6. Organize the slides
   Think of your presentation as a story. Start by getting your story down, then design the slide to make the most out of that story. Choose the software you prefer, and organize your slides. Keep the slides clean, using large font sizes, and large images.
   
   Once you have written up the slides, you can re-order them according to the strategy of your presentation. You don't have to follow the same organization as a scientific paper, or a thesis-based essay. There are many ways you can organize a presentation.
   
   
   1. Time pattern: based on some temporal order of event - past, present, future
   2. Topical pattern: based on subtopics or components 
   3. Problem-solution pattern: often used for persuasive speeches
      
7. Word your speech
   A common language, regular-person vernacular, style will help audience members with comprehension and understanding. Shorter, simpler sentences are often preferred. Some people, like US president Barack Obama, prefer to recite a carefully written speech. However, you might not have a teleprompter, so reciting a speech means lots of memorization. It's not always a good idea to write the whole thing out and read it. But it is important to write. Now is your opportunity to write in a vivid, spoken form, where grammar and punctuation do not follow the same rules as on the white paper page. Try to include catch-phrases, metaphors, irony, puns, alliterations, and any other fun expression that your audience will appreciate. 
   
   
8. Construct the introduction and conclusion
   You should put some thought into the first minute, and the last minute of the presentation. Think of flying an aeroplane, it's the take-off and the landing that are the most critical. How do you want to start things off? Do you want a quick bang and get right into it? Would you rather ease people into the topic? How do you want to end, with a question, a hint of hope, or a laugh?
   
   The introduction has two goals: gain the audience’s attention, and orient the audience to who you are and what the topic is. Be strategic here. Your introduction should be clear, concise and memorable. Whether you are speaking in person, or online, make sure your target knows who you are, what you do, and what you expect of them.  It's the best way to begin a healthy relationship with your audience. Grab your audience's attention right away, and try to maintain it throughout the presentation. Some ways to gain attention include: 
   
   - Start the talk with a shocking statistic, a series of little-known facts, a puzzle, a question, a dramatic or humorous quote, a paradox, a picture, or cartoon or brief video clip to focus on the topic.
   - Start with an interesting story or a recent news event to establish relevancy.
   - Give a pre-test on the topic
   - design questions to pique interest.
   - Provide early on the rationale for talk  (brief justification -- why you feel the students need to learn this topic) and/ or expected outcome. Answer the questions: “Who cares? And “So what?” Show the audience why they should listen; connect your topic and purpose to their motivations. Involve the audience directly in your presentation; ask them questions; refer to their experiences. 
   
   The second thing you want to do during the introduction is to give your audience a general idea of who you are and the purpose of your talk. To do so, provide an overview of your talk and/or the goal(s) you hope to achieve. Most professional presenters give visible structure at the beginning of a presentation by posting their names, the title of their talk, and a brief outline, either as an overhead or as a handout. It will help your audience keep track of where you are in the presentation.Speaking engagements should always start with thank yous. Acknowledge and thank the people who invited you, and the people who helped you in this project. Show appreciation for the people who are sitting in front of you. It is always a privilege to have an audience. 
   Now for the conclusion. Be sure to end the talk in a way that your audience knows it is the end. You can summarize your main ideas. Do not introduce new material in the conclusion. Use non-verbal communication. Clearly conclude, by some word or gesture (e.g., by stepping back, smiling and saying “thank you”). Don’t race away from the speaker’s stand or show signs of relief that the presentation is over. Rather take in the applause, and ask if there are any questions- wait at least 10 seconds. Don’t worry too much about tough questions: they almost never come. And in the event a tough question does come, it’s okay to say “I don’t know”. Or “Hmmm, good question; I haven’t thought about that”. 
   Some ways to give your presentation a crisp and definite end: 
   - use a quotation that summarizes your thesis, directly relates to your purpose, or offers a interesting perspective on your point of view 
   - pose a challenge or question (E.g., “So, what do you plan to do with the company’s refusal to increase wages?”)
   motivate your audience to do something (“Next time you go on-line, visit some of these websites”)
   - thank the audience. Try to include some purpose (e.g., “I really appreciate your attention and hope you’ll join us in Sunday’s protest”)
   
   
9. Rehearse
   Find the room where you are going to present and rehearse the whole presentation. First, check the technology. Make sure the file opens up and that the projector is working. Check the font sizes. Sit in the back of the room and make sure you can read everything on the screen. Second, check your timing. Make sure you respect the minimum and maximum time limits. Third, check the outlay of the room. Walk around, feel the environment. Consider the following tips: 
   - Rehearse the presentation from beginning to end rather than in parts 
   - Rehearse in front of a mirror - or better yet, record yourself - so you can see how you will appear to an audience 
   - Incorporate changes and delivery notes between rehearsals not during them 
   - Rehearse at least three or four times or as long as rehearsal results in improvement
   
   
10. Deliver
    Think of the best presentation you’ve ever seen or listened to, and remember what made this presentation so great. Make a few notes of what you appreciate in an oral presentation. Once you've done all the preparation, focus on a few things: the take-aways, the tone you want to use- some prefer to be comical, some prefer to be serious and stern- and your style of delivery.  There are different methods of delivery:
    - impromptu method: this involves speaking without any specific preparation. In certain situations, this method cannot be avoided but it's not recommended when the audience expects a prepared speech.
    - Manuscript method: this is when the presenter writers out a speech word for word then reads or memorizes it; it often results in an unnatural presentation and allows no chance to adapt to audience feedback 
    - extemporaneous method: the presenter is thoroughly prepared and speaks from a brief outline; knowing the general organization of the presentation but not being overly committed to exact wording. This method allows for some flexibility in adjusting to audience feedback; the drawback is  is stumbling or groping for words. To overcome this disadvantage consider: 
    - memorizing opening and closing lines 
    - memorizing major propositions and their intended order    
    

• Oratory Considerations

Speaking in public is an art form in itself. You should consider that there are tricks to getting people's attention. Here are a few.

Speak about yourself

Make it about how you relate to the topic. It is very relatable for the audience to know and hear about your process. What did you learn that surprised you? Did you have pre-conceived ideas? Did you struggle with a particular part of the research process?

The audience loves to hear about how you managed the project.

Vary your tone and pace

Tone. You might notice that many announcers, radio hosts, and television anchors tend to exaggerate their speech. Practice some variations of tone to a degree you are comfortable with. The key is to match your tone with your intention. If something is exciting, use an expressive tone, if something is serious, use a strict tone. You can start with an assertive, louder tone, and work your way to a softer tone, forcing the audience to pay attention.

Pace. This is the speed of the speech. It usually helps to vary the speed of your delivery according to the moments of your presentation. Move between fast and slow to keep your audience hooked.

Identify and repeat the important ideas

Identify the important ideas. Use the following images and tag lines at will:
- the key to this problem is:
- the flagship concept is:
- the key stone idea is:
- the core variable is:
- the heart of the matter:
- the main bottle-neck, problem, critical issue, blockage:

Repeat the important ideas. Repeat the important ideas. Keep talking about the topic. And repeat the important ideas. Repeat the important ideas.

Move around

As you would vary your tone and pace, you can also vary your movements on the stage or the space you are to use. Any movement will engage the audience to follow you around, just as a normal response. You should not feel obliged to move in ways that make you feel uncomfortable. Presentations are not about doing everything, they are about curating elements so that you make yourself look good.

Some people love to move their arms, others need to walk around the room. Some people will point to the sky, or to their slides, or even to the crowd. Others feel they need to enact, or demonstrate, a concept, with a dance movement, or a karate move. Sometimes these are the things that help people remember the point you are trying to make.

Tell your audience what they need to remember

People appreciate being told what they need to take away from the presentation. Use the following tag lines at will.
- Remember this:
- Don't forget this:
- If there is one thing you need to know, it is this:
- When you leave this room, I hope you remember this:
- The important thing about this topic is:
- In a nut-shell:

References and Further Reading

De Vito, J. A. (2020). Essentials of Human Communication (10th ed.) Pearson. 

UOW. (2023). Oral presentations. University of Wollongong Australia. https://www.uow.edu.au/student/learning-co-op/assessments/presentations/