5 – Academic Discussions and Presentations

Picture this: you sit down on the first day of the semester listening to your professor talk about the required assignments on the syllabus. Your ears perk up suddenly when the professor mentions that not only is there a final paper but also a group presentation required in front of the class during the last week of the term. You hate public speaking and dread the moment when you will have to nervously stand at the front of the classroom giving a detailed account of your research. What will you say? How will you stay calm and collected up at the front of the room?

The above-mentioned scenario is very common. Inevitably, almost all writers have to participate in some form of class discussion or presentation during the course of their time in college. You may be one of the many students looking for advice on how to prepare for that end-of-term presentation. Fear not – read on for further advice about how to participate or lead in a class discussion or presentation.

Part 1: Presentation Preparation & Techniques

Any good presenter comes prepared to lead a presentation. It is important to know what you will say and how you will say it. Just like drafting a term paper, a speaker should also practice before giving the final presentation. Below are some simple steps taken from Zachary Shore’s Grad School Essentials: A Crash Course in Scholarly Skills to prepare students for academic presentations.

Outlining the Process

1. Main Point or Thesis

Before creating any outline or notes, be clear about what your main point or thesis will be. Are you presenting research conclusions? Your opinions? Comparing two items or ideas? Your main point is the central idea that the rest of the presentation should focus on. This could also be thought of as your central argument depending on the type of presentation. The main point should be able to be stated clearly and concisely. Use a single, meaningful sentence to convey this idea to the listeners.

2. Writing It Out

Once the main idea is clear, create an outline of any content you will include in the presentation. Think about any introduction, main points, and conclusion you may have during the presentation. Remember that you likely have a time limit to present. Keep this in mind when writing an outline. It is okay if you have too much content for now as you will practice your presentation next.

3. Practice by Yourself

Next, practice what you have written in your outline. The first time practicing is your opportunity to see if there is too much content or too little. When practicing, never read the outline word-for-word. This will make the presentation sound robotic and scripted. The audience will be able to tell if you are reciting from memory; scripted presentations are more often than not boring and do not sound authentic. An outline is meant to keep the presenter on track with the presentation and allow for unscripted natural interaction with the audience. Do practice saying the presentation out loud. It may be helpful to record yourself so that you can listen back to it later and make changes.

4. Practice with Others

After practicing on your own and making any necessary changes to the presentation, get some friends or mentors to listen to it. Ask the audience to take a few notes while presenting; this will allow them to give better feedback at the end. Areas you may ask them to think about are presentation skills and understanding of the content. For presentation skills, think about the volume of the speaker, clarity of speech, any non-verbal communication or gesturing, eye contact, and any audience interaction. If the listeners are familiar with the content or subject area of the presentation, they may also be able to give feedback on specific ideas or concepts you present.

5. Review Feedback & Repeat Process

Finally, review the verbal and written feedback from your sample audience. Before you do, though, take a deep breath and get ready for both positive feedback and constructive criticism. Critiques can be hard to take for anyone. Keep in mind that your audience of friends, peers, or instructors is only trying to help you grow as a presenter. The goal is to clearly and easily communicate your ideas to the intended audience. Think about how this can be done based on the feedback. Make any necessary revisions and repeat these five steps as needed.

Presentation Techniques

No matter what sort of discussion or presentation you have in a course, the goal is to engage your audience and keep their attention. Think about any great teacher or presenter you have heard of before. How did they engage the audience with their words and actions? They probably followed some of the below advice.

Create an Engaging Hook 

Think about any good commercial or YouTube video. What do they do well? They are all good at grabbing the watcher’s attention within the first several seconds of the video. These videos do this by having a carefully crafted hook. You are a fisherman trying to reel in a fish. By having an appealing hook, the audience will bite the hook and want to hear more information. A poor hook will mean few if any bites by the fish (or in your case the audience!)

There are several ways to create an engaging hook. One is by using an impactful quote from someone respected, famous, or an expert on the topic. The audience will be familiar with this person or, if not, at least may understand that this is someone who knows something about the topic. Second, a story or analogy may make a great hook. This could be personal to you or a story about someone else that relates closely to the presentation. Keep it concise though. Another technique commonly used is to ask a question or series of a few questions to stimulate audience interest. Well-crafted or interesting questions will create a desire in the audience to find the answers. Another technique is to use shocking or strongly worded facts to draw interest. Something like, “9 out of 10 Americans admit they don’t floss their teeth every day, according to Dental Weekly,” may catch the listeners by surprise. Think about which hook approach is best suited for your topic. Be creative!

Engage the Audience

Allowing the audience to respond in some way during the presentation creates a more welcoming and lively presentation. Presenters who simply “lecture” through the material will find that they may start to lose the audience’s attention at a certain point, especially during longer presentations. A good presenter allows interaction at times by asking questions, providing audience members space to give answers or feedback, and even sometimes allowing audience members to participate in mini-group discussions or small activities when applicable.

Use Humor

This will vary according to your own comfort level, but humor creates interest and draws attention. Throwing in a joke or two during the presentation can make the difference between a presentation that seems boring and one that is lively and interesting. Feel free to make fun of yourself a little if you feel comfortable doing so. Sharing a short story can help to create humor as well. Just keep the humor relevant to the presentation topic and relatable to your target audience. Remember that it should also be appropriate for an academic audience! Humor can make a presentation more memorable and even fun for your audience members.

Here is a video that you might find helpful:  https://youtu.be/vMSaFUrk-FA

Part 2: Class Discussions

Purpose of Discussions

In most modern American university classrooms, discussion has become a key way in which instructors have students learn content and express opinions about the material. It is important to familiarize yourself with how a discussion works and its purpose. Participating in classroom discussions is essential in many courses. Be brave. Be bold. Be okay with making mistakes or being unsure how to answer. It is okay if you do not fully know how to express yourself or know the “right” answer. Hint: Often there isn’t just one right answer or way of responding in a discussion!

How to Participate in Discussions

One mistake students often make when thinking about discussions is that they must supply their own opinions or the “right” answer to the instructor. Most of the time this could not be further from the truth. Discussions are also a chance for students to express ideas, questions, and voice any doubts. Below are some ways to contribute to a discussion. It can be a lot easier than you might think.

1. Ask a question: Are you uncertain about the material covered in a class? Do you have a question to clarify some of the content?
2. Voice support or disagreement: Let the class know you agree or disagree with the previous speaker. Remember to state why and be polite.
3. Add detail to a previous comment: Perhaps another student mentioned something that seemed important or you have more to share. Add on to this previous idea.
4. Summarize a previous comment: Is there something you did not fully understand about the last speaker’s comment? Or maybe you want to make sure you fully understand. Phrase the comment in your own words to see if it makes sense.
5. Contribute your own ideas and opinions: Was there something about the content covered in class that struck you? Is there an idea you want to emphasize or an opinion to share?

Shore, Z. (2016). Grad school essentials: A crash course in scholarly skills, (pp. 78-96). University of California Press.