Reference no: EM133682492

Instruction:

Students are required to make 15 min presentation and then use 5 mins for must cover:
- Background and significance (brief)
-Research gap, questions and objectives
-Research methodology (brief)
- Results and discussions
-Conclusions and recommendations

First Step
As with any assignment, the first step is to find and read all of your relevant assignment documents. These documents will tell you important information about completing the task.

For presentations, this may mean the format of the presentation (duration or total number of slides) and any criteria you need to cover in that time.

It's always a good idea to start by analyzing your task, as you would do for any other assessment. Analyze the task and think about what you need to say (the content) and who you will say it to (the audience).

Now that you know your audience and you know your content, you need to organize your presentation in the way that best conveys your main message(s) to your audience.

You can structure your presentation a bit like you would an essay, with an introduction, a body, and a conclusion, although remember that speaking requires different language patterns to writing.

The purpose of a presentation is tied to its structure. You need to organize any presentation that you give in the way that best communicates your messages.

Consider these questions when planning your structure:
- What is your main 'take home' point? [relevant to your audience]
- What will be your opening move?
- What will be the body of your argument?
- How will you conclude?

It is vital to structure your presentation in a logical way so that the audience can follow your argument. Just as any written assessment requires several drafts and editing, writing an oral presentation requires you to draft, redraft, and edit your work.

There are several ways to structure a talk but an easy and simple way is by dividing the conclusion, just as you would an essay.

Introduction
In the introduction of the presentation, you introduce the topic and preview what you will say.
It's important to give a preview so that the audience knows what to expect - otherwise they might be confused and lose the thread of your argument.
Some people also like to start a speech with a joke or a quotation to get the audience thinking.

Body

Present your main ideas in a logical sequence, following the outline you gave in the introduction.

Speak slowly, and leave pauses between each main idea so that the audience has time to take it in.
Use transitional language as you move between ideas. e.g. 'Now that I've explained the third policy recommendation, I'm going to discuss how practical and effective it is'
Use visual aids (PDF, 124 kB) to support your ideas and keep the audience interested.

Conclusion
Summarize what you've said and end with a strong closing statement or recommendation, just as you would in a written essay.
If required, invite the audience to ask questions or give comments - or you could even end by inviting the audience to answer a question of your own.

Step 1: Write draft
Firstly, decide on the overall structure, and the key points, visuals, examples, etc. that will be in the presentation. If working in a group, assign different sections of the first draft to different people, then compose the first draft of the content.
Some general tips for PowerPoint
presentations:
• Display one idea or topic area per slide
• Use dot points or something visual rather than text within the slides
• Do not read slides word for word
• Use large font, at least 18pt, ensuring it can be seen from the back of the room
• Stick to the same themes throughout your presentation (colours, fonts etc.)

So far we talked about writing your
presentation, but its important to remember that writing and speaking are two different language activities.
If you write your presentation in the language of a formal essay and read it aloud without changing anything, you'll sound overly formal and stiff. Not only that, but the audience will have trouble following what you're saying, because you designed your words to be read.
You'll need to adjust the words you use and the length of your sentences so that you speak in a more natural manner and your audience can understand you.

Think of your presentation as you explaining something to a friend: would you use lengthy, subject-specific words, or would you choose more simple words that you know your friend can understand?

Your audience is your friend, and your aim is to help them understand.

Instead of reading out your full speech you should try to condense the main points into notecards that you use to prompt your memory.
That way, your speech will seem spontaneous and interesting.