Spheres of Influence: Ventures and Visions in Educational Development

3-6 July, 2002
The University of Western Australia
Perth, Western Australia

Guidelines for Preparing and Making Presentations to an International Audience

Download these guidelines:

These guidelines are to assist you in the preparation of your proposal and your presentation at the conference. The guidelines have been developed so that presentations will exemplify good practice in educational development thereby making the conference sessions more accessible and useful for all participants. Many presenters will be familiar with the suggestions that follow.

Audience

Remember that participants in the ICED conference will come from many parts of the world. English will be the presentation language for the 2002 conference. English may not be your first language and English may not be the first language of many of those who attend your presentation. Where possible avoid using written or spoken statements that have meaning in ordinary local conversation but may be confusing to people from other parts of the world. Where such statements (colloquialisms) are a necessary part of your presentation, be sure to explain their meaning to your audience.

Structure of Presentation

Seminars and Symposia

Each session has a time limit assigned to it that includes time for introductions of presenters. Each seminar is assigned 30 minutes. You should aim to present your material in 15 - 20 minutes with the remaining time for audience discussion. Symposia are 120 minutes, allowing for a number of brief presentations and a lot of discussion.

Structure your presentation so that you present the main points and allow sufficient time for audience questions and discussion. There will not be enough time to go into all the details of the material you are presenting. Summarise your material in order to communicate the most important points to the audience. Direct them to your paper or handouts that contain the details. Decide which parts of your material are the most important and limit your main points to two or three. Keep your audience in mind when prioritising the material. Ask yourself what they might be most interested in, what they might want to know, and what they might want to discuss. Ask yourself what your audience is likely to know already. Check this with them at the beginning of the session. Don't take up valuable time in telling people what they already know.

Prepare the presentation with an Introduction, Body and Conclusion. It is often better to prepare the Body of your presentation first, using the two or three main points. Then prepare an Introduction that will gain the attention of your audience and inform them of the goals for your presentation. Your Conclusion should summarise the main points and present insights and interpretations that have emerged during the session.

Do not present data or research findings without adding your insights and interpretation. You might consider providing the detailed data as a handout and then speak to the main findings and interpretations.

Workshops

Workshops are designed for the active involvement of the participants. Provide the audience with learning objectives or intended outcomes, that is, what they will learn or be able to do by participating in the workshop. Also describe the activities in the workshop. Provide materials for the participants. Ensure there is sufficient time for participants to ask questions and seek clarification and complete any learning tasks. Wherever possible attempt to provide a flexible structure that can be adapted to suit the needs of the workshop participants.

Posters

Posters should be self-explanatory. Limit the amount of detail you include on the poster and support it with handouts and other resources. Ensure that the print on the poster is legible. Use diagrams, charts and pictures to illustrate your material. If you use symbols or abbreviations, it may be necessary to explain these on a 'Key' in a corner of the poster.

Visual Aids and Technology

Support your presentation with appropriate visual material (e.g. overhead projector transparencies and/or handouts) to reinforce and clarify your verbal presentation. It is likely to help your audience if they can hear and see your presentation.

Consider these suggestions when preparing overhead transparencies.

Use a high quality print and at least 16-point font.
Limit the number of points or lines of text on each transparency to no more than five or six.
Use a diagram or a picture to illustrate your material. Avoiding lots of detail.
Don't copy text directly from a book or your paper onto a transparency.
Limit the number of transparencies. Constantly changing transparencies is likely to distract your audience.

The Presentation

Some suggestions for an effective presentation:

Before the session, check the location of your room and that it is suitable for your presentation.
Before the session, check that your visual material (e.g. overhead projector transparencies) will be legible to your audience, follows a logical sequence, and that you do not have too much.
Remember that you have limited time for your session. Don't go over time.
Speak slowly and clearly.
Allow time for questions.
Check with your audience that they are able to understand what you are saying.
Recognise that presentation style and the expectations of audiences from different countries may not be the same.
Use some visual presentation (e.g. an overhead projector transparency) to give an outline of your session.
Explain to your audience how you would like them to be involved and be sure to invite their participation.
Attempt to identify the diversity in your audience (e.g. diversity of gender and nationality) and try to be inclusive of all people attending your session.
Practice your presentation to judge whether all of the activities are possible in the time.
Engage your audience by speaking to them, and with them, rather than just reading from your prepared text.
Enjoy your session as much as you can. If you enjoy it, your audience is likely to enjoy it too.