“Effective Teachers Are Effective Presenters”
What are presentation skills?
Presentation skills are developed abilities used to communicate on a specific topic interestingly and enthusiastically. The word ‘present’ suggests, in and of itself, effectively explaining a particular subject matter to an audience. In the educational context, the presenter is usually the teacher and the audience is usually the student. Let’s examine some of the most guaranteed tips that can improve educators’ presentation skills in the classroom.
TP PRESENTATION DOCUMENT LINK
Tip 1: Prepare
“Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” – Alexander Graham Bell
The quality of your presentation is most directly related to the quality of your preparation. Rarely will you have difficulties in your presentation due to being overprepared. As a teacher, you should always be prepared.
- Whilst your lesson plan should also strive to incorporate the use of technology, have a backup plan for delivering the lesson if all of your audiovisual materials become unavailable.
- Do not rely on technology to work. Test all audiovisual equipment.
- Practice using your presentation slides and other visual displays before class time.
- If you are using a video, make sure it is set to the correct beginning point, at the appropriate volume and with captions turned on. If you need to adjust it during your presentation, practice the adjustments before you begin.
- Consider showing someone else how to make the adjustments for you.
- Have a bottle of water available for yourself. You can get dehydrated during a lesson, plan for that. Think about questions that might be asked by the learners and rehearse brief, clear answers to each.
Tip 2: Create a Comfortable Learning Environment
“More important than the curriculum is the question of the methods of teaching and the spirit in which the teaching is given.” (Bertrand Russell)
- It is important to create a learning environment that is comfortable and welcoming for all students.
- Arrive early and get a feel for the room, including its temperature, size, and overall set-up. Re-arrange furniture as needed.
- Warmly welcome students, use eye contact and a welcoming posture.
- Create a safe and non-threatening environment where students are not afraid to ask questions. Encourage them to share experiences and ask questions of you or their peers.
- Emphasize that everyone can contribute to the learning process.
- Clearly identify the objectives at the beginning of the lesson.
- Keep to the time schedule, but show that you value participant input by not rushing.
- Frame questions so that they are easy to understand by all students.
- Do not criticize or allow students to criticize other participants.
- Maintain confidentiality and ask the students to respect each other to create a free, comfortable but respectable space for ongoing discourse.
Tip 3: Create a Strong Beginning
“The greatest talent is meaningless without one other vital component: passion.” (Selwyn Lager)
- Keep your opening simple and exciting to engage your audience in your content.
- Consider using a short icebreaker activity. This must be appropriate for the age level of the audience.
- A tasteful, humorous commentary can be effective if related to the topic.
- Explain the purpose of your lesson in one sentence that is free of professional jargon and emphasizes what participants will gain. Eg. Today we will be learning all about fractions to understand how to better use them in daily life.
- Start off with a natural pace, not too fast and not too slow, to establish a strong, positive image. Make a strong ending statement that reinforces the objectives of the lesson.
Tip 4: Create a Dynamic Presentation
“It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.” (Albert Einstein)
If your students enjoy and remember your lesson, it is because you presented it in a dynamic or compelling manner.
- Talk to and with your audience, not at them. The ‘how’ matters in education.
- Project enthusiasm for the topic without preaching. The majority of communication is nonverbal, so how you look and sound are vital.
- Present your content in a well-organized manner. However, be flexible to adjust to your audience. Let students know if you wish to field questions during or after the lesson, that is allowed. The aim is to have them understand not to just cover your objectives.
- Speak to the knowledge level of your students. Define all terms they might not be familiar with. Be as clear as possible.
- Choose your major points carefully and illustrate them with examples or stories. Students love a real example that they can remember and use for future reference maybe on an exam or pop quiz, or some other discussion.
- Incorporate real-life experiences into your lessons. Ask students to share experiences and use these examples to illustrate key points or to answer questions.
- Role-play interactions between students and teachers.
- Use natural gestures and voice inflexion to add interest to your lesson.
- Address different learning styles by incorporating a variety of instructional methods that use a variety of senses (e.g., visual, auditory, kinesthetic).
- Repeat questions participants pose to ensure that the entire class hears and understands them.
- Redirect the discussion if it strays from the topic at hand.
- Postpone questions related to resolving specific or individual problems to private discussions later. Do not get locked into an extended dialogue with one student; move on to questions from other participants and offer more time to talk after the lesson.
- If students ask questions that you cannot answer, say that you will locate the answer and get back to them (and then do!), suggest appropriate resources that will provide the answer, or ask for suggestions from members of the class.
- Give demonstrations.
- Never read your presentation word for word.
- Talk clearly and in well-modulated tones. Avoid speaking too rapidly, softly, or loudly. Make sure that the ends of your sentences don’t drop off.
- Maintain eye contact. It conveys confidence, openness, honesty, and interest. It also lets you know how the students are responding to your lesson. In large groups, mentally divide up the room into sections, and then make eye contact with different people in each section on a rotational basis.
- Use hand gestures naturally, gracefully, and to emphasize points. When not gesturing, let your hands drop to your sides naturally. Keep them out of your pockets, off your hips, or behind your back. Avoid fiddling with clothes, hair, or presentation materials.
- Maintain good posture, but do not be rigid.
- Occasionally move from one spot to another, stop, then continue to speak. Don’t pace.
- At the secondary and tertiary levels, remember that older learners have a wealth of experience; are goal-oriented and appreciate outcomes more than process; have set habits, strong tastes, and little time to waste; have strong feelings about learning situations; are impatient in the pursuit of objectives, and appreciate getting to the point; find little use for isolated facts and prefer the application of information; and have multiple responsibilities, all of which draw upon their time and energy. Do not waste their time.
Tip 4: Make Your Presentation Interactive
“It is better to know some of the questions than all of the answers.” (James Thurber)
- Avoid simply lecturing to your audience. The ‘chalk and talk’ concept is not as effective in the 21st century. Engage your students in an active discussion.
- Listen attentively before responding to questions.
- Encourage interactions among students.
- Allow plenty of time for questions. Address all questions within your presentation or direct participants to appropriate resources.
- Demonstrate or provide hands-on experiences with assistive technology.
- Give useful or entertaining prizes for responses.
- Involve the audience in a learning activity. People remember more of what you teach them if they are able to learn it via an activity.
- Ask students how they have used specific accommodations or worked with students with specific disabilities. Ask questions like, “Has anyone done this? How did it work for you?”
- Stimulate group interaction and problem-solving.
- Promote discussion to help students integrate themes and key points from the lesson
Tip 5: Address Key Points – Use the 5E Model and the 4C’s of Teaching
“Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic, be enthusiastic, and faithful, and you will accomplish your objective. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
Be sure that your presentation covers the most important content for your students. Stay on track with your lesson plan. Ensure you follow the 5-E Model and the 4C’s to guarantee a successful execution of the lesson.
Tip 6: Provide Resources for Participants to Keep
“The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point, however, is to change it.” (Karl Marx)
- Make sure that you provide your class with information on which they can follow up after your lesson.
- Provide written materials of key content for future reference.
- Provide contact information and invite participants to contact you with questions after the lesson if needs be.
Tip 7: Conclude with a Strong Ending
“The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches but to reveal to him his own.” (Benjamin Disraeli)
The most important and remembered words you speak are the last ones.
- Summarize key points.
- Consider concluding with examples that show the importance of the overall lesson.
- Empower your students to explore new materials for future lessons. Encourage them to use the information they leant in daily life so it is applied for a greater appreciation and for reinforced retention.
Tip 8: Improve Each Lesson/Presentation – Reflective Journalling
“I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.” (Oscar Wilde)
Take steps to gain feedback about your lesson that will lead to improvements.
- Practice your presentation with colleagues or friends and ask for their feedback.
- Record your lesson for self-analysis.
- Evaluate your lesson through your supervisor.
- Incorporate suggestions into subsequent lessons.
In summary, to give effective presentations where students gain valuable information in a dynamic way, make sure to:
- prepare well in advance
- incorporate universal design principles
- facilitate interaction, sharing of experiences, and creative problem-solving within the session and
- promote a welcoming and non-judgmental learning environment
