Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Reflection on Oral Presentation

Being an engineering student meant that I did not have to give presentations very often. And for those times that I did, having a script/outline/cue-cards were allowed. Though so, I probably have never written a full length script for any of them.

This was probably the first time that I wrote a proper script for any presentation. I normally do my presentations remembering the actual points that I have on my slides and then elaborating on them (almost) on the spot. However, I decided to try out writing a full script for it, just to see how it will work out. It didn't really work out for me because there were some places that I was stuck because I was looking for the word that I had "scripted". On the other hand, it reduced the "erm"s and "um"s during my presentation. I probably would need to start practising earlier the next time so that I won't get stuck with my words.

For the slides that were prepared, I could have made it more reader friendly by having the main points rather than having too many pictures and line texts on it.

Delivery wise, I felt that I should have been more enthusiastic. Though so, this is the first time that I took only a few glances at my slides. I think that not looking too much at the slides is a good practice as the audience would then know they are suppose to be paying attention to you rather than the slides.

Overall, I think this presentation was a good learning experience for me as I learnt to pay attention not only to how I communicate verbally to the audience but also about my hand gestures.


7 comments:

Brad Blackstone said...

Thanks, Hannah, for this critical review of your OP. As you describe it, the memorizing has some pluses and minuses. Like you, I was impressed by your ability not to rely on the screen. But a few times I sensed that you were combing through your memory for the script. Your pacing seemed really natural, then suddenly, you seemed to stall a bit. However, that was very slight. In all I feel you did a fine job.

kel said...

Hello Hannah,

As your groupmate, I have seen how much you have improved in your presentation.

I think that you have cut down a lot on your fillers and made the final presentation a smooth and pleasant delivery, save for a few forgivable pauses here and there.

Also, I think you held the audience's attention quite effectively as you made them aware of some of the potential issues. This is evident when the questions that they class asked were all related to your part.

Our presentation was fantastic! Thank you for being a wonderful group member.

dwayne said...

Hi Hannah!

Very interesting take on the dilemma of choosing to memorise a script or just elaborating them on the spot. I guess if one is really confident in speaking and thinking on your feet in front of a large audience, elaborating them on the spot might work well. If not, I feel it is better to have a 'script'.

Overall, I felt you presented confidently and professionally. I could easily follow the ideas presented. I personally think short pauses are appropriate. It allows some time for the audience to ponder about what you have just presented. However, at times there were longer pauses where your eyes were looking towards the ceiling. I guess you were trying to recall your speech. Although this is a minor issue, overall you successfully manage draw the audience attention to potential issues of your proposal.

Good job! See you on Friday:)

sofiealmqvist said...

Hi girl!

I enjoyed you and your group mates presentation. You were easy to follow, because your phase was good, you spoke clearly and was formulating yourself in a favorable way. Something that you can improve is, as you mentioned, your enthusiasm. Additionally, don't be afraid to use a bit more non-verbals.

Over all, your performance was really good. Your performance at the peer teaching (when we was in the same group) was also very good. Great job during this term!

I see you tomorrow if we don't meet each other in RC4 before ;)

Take care

Hannah said...

Hi Brad

I was actually wondering if my initial pace was too slow because I had feedback that I talk really fast and so I tried to slow down (though it became unnatural). For this issue, do you think it would be better if I have spoken at a faster pace rather than trying to slow down so that the audiences is able to catch what I was trying to bring across?

Hannah

Hannah said...

Hi Dwayne

Thanks for commenting! I do agree with your point on the confidence issue when trying to choose to remember a script. In fact I think I choose to remember a script for this oral presentation because I know it will graded. Maybe if I didn't know it is graded I might not have written a script. :)

Hannah

Hannah said...

Hi Sofie

Thanks for commenting. I definitely had fun with the peer teaching too! :)

And yes, hope to catch you around RC4 before you leave. :)

Hannah