The oral presentation

So this time last week I did the final part of module 3- the oral presentation. I really enjoyed this experience as it was nice to finally be able to talk to a group of people about my inquiry and all that I had discovered and achieved. I thought it might be beneficial for anyone that has this part of the module to come to read my reflections on the experience.

* Make a clear, nice visual powerpoint, the fewer words the better!
I found that the powerpoints that weren't hugely descriptive and were used to bullet point the essence of the presentation were clearer than ones that had endless paragraphs. It was a struggle to read long quotes or sections from the inquiry. I also thought that pictures and photographs were also very effective where appropriate as it added an extra dimension and something else to look at.

* Stick to the 10 minute guidance time!
This was something a lot of people struggled with. With so much to say it's really hard to cram it all into 10 minutes. I think we were all surprised at just how short 10 minutes is! However, while I genuinely enjoyed listening to every individuals presentation, once it went over 12 minutes it was very difficult to not start clock watching. Shorter is better as it engages the audience for just the right amount of time.
I took my phone up with me so that the pressure of the stopwatch helped me. Mine was 10.31.

* Practice your presentation before hand!
About 3 days before the presentation I practiced and it came in at 23 minutes! I panicked! However, through a strict method of cutting and practicing I was able to edit my presentation down to the absolute essential points. I believe brought a clarity to my work and gave me more confidence in delivering it. I then pretended I was a final candidate in The Apprentice where you have to present your final business plan! This actually really helped to completely ingrain the presentation into my mind, but also meant I was well rehearsed and not as nervous for the real thing.
I also wrote down bullet points that I could follow during the presentation to help me stay on track.

* If you're struggling with how to structure your powerpoint then look in the handbook
In the final handbook of this course it gives you a suggested structure for your oral presentation. It is as follows:

Introduction

Methods of research

Evaluation of findings

Critical Review

Not everyone stuck to this structure and I don't think it mattered. I really enjoyed the variety of presentations and it was great to see different ways of talking about the various inquiries. However, myself and a few others in the room used this structure and for me personally it really worked . It was nice to have a guide that kept me on target and hopefully made my presentation clear and easy to follow.

*Believe and enjoy what you are talking about!
The presentations that stick out in my mind a week on are the ones where there was a real passion behind what was being said. I think above all you should have total confidence in what you are talking about as that will translate over to the other people in the room.

Overall I really enjoyed that afternoon of presentations. Here is the link to my powerpoint presentation . Nothing special but it worked alright for me!