LECTURE NOTES 3 (WEEK 7) The topics included in this lecture notes are: • • • • Analysing the audience Choosing a topic - Deciding on a focus Deciding general and specific purpose of the presentation Organising ideas and structuring the text - Outlining the content – main points and supporting points 1 LPE2301 ACADEMIC INTERACTION & PRESENTATION SEMESTER 2, 2019/2020 Introduction to Presentation Skills 1. Analysing the Audience Knowing the audience It is essential for you to know the audience when deciding on a topic and preparing a presentation. The audience will be more interested in listening and accepting what you say if the topic is relevant and relatable to them. There are several aspects that you need to consider in analysing your audience: 1. The audiences’ interests - What does the audience interested to know? 2. The audiences’ knowledge and feelings on the topic - What do the audience know and feel about this topic? 3. The demographic factors of the audiences - What is the age group, genders and educational backgrounds of your audience? 4. The objective/goal of the presentation - What do you want to achieve with this presentation? Information gathered from analysing your audience can help you to determine their interest and prior knowledge, gauge their response, and identify the best way in delivering the presentation. This will in turn help you to prepare a presentation that caters to the audience’s needs. There are two ways to analyse the audience: a) Demographic audience analysis b) Situational audience analysis Demographic Audience Analysis • • focuses on demographic factors such as age, gender, religion, group membership, race, ethnic and cultural background helps the presenter to gauge the audience’s interests, values and beliefs and give clues on how the audience will respond to the presentation Situational Audience Analysis • • focuses on situational factors such as the size of the audience, the physical setting for the presentation helps presenter to analyse audience perception towards the topic and speaker 2 Activity 1 Interview your classmates to find out about their interests using the following questions. 1. Who are your audience? 2. What are their academic backgrounds? 3. What topic are they interested in? Based on the responses, how will it affect the choice of your topic? 2. Choosing a topic After you have decided on the target audience of your presentation, the next step is to choose a topic. Choosing a topic is an essential step in preparing a presentation. A presentation topic can be divided into two categories: Familiar Subject Unfamiliar Subject Topics that you have prior knowledge on • Topics that you may already have some Experience to help you talk about the knowledge on but not enough for a topic presentation Topics that you have learnt in class or in • Topics that you want to explore for the your field of study first time • Topics that you want to do a further research on • • • Brainstorming for ideas related to the topics • • • Brainstorming – a method to generate ideas for presentation topics by freely associating words and ideas. There are several brainstorming procedures that you can follow: I. Clustering II. Free-associating III. Listing You can jot down as you think of the points or words or phrases that related to the topic, and these items may become the main headings or key words for your presentation. i. Clustering • Also known as mind mapping or idea mapping • It is a strategy that allows you to explore the relationships between ideas. Clustering the ideas let you see them visually in a different way so that you can more readily understand possible direction your topic may take. • The cluster begins with a central idea. Then, new ideas are written and connected to the central idea. • You then select one branch of the clusters or series related ideas to use a writing topic. 3 Example of topic: Climate change causes greenhouse effect and global warming ii. Free-associating • Free-associating is created by spontaneous response to the trigger word without any restrictions. This method gets creativity flowing when you do not want to overthink on how words are related. • It begins with a trigger word and continues with a flow of words that come into your mind. • Each word triggering the next, ultimately reaching a potentially useful one. Example of topic: The different types of financial plans Financial plan – saving accounts – investment – life insurance – dividend - …. iii. Listing • This technique requires you to list possible topics and then sublist ideas you could say about each topic. • It enables you to generate ideas more quickly than clustering as the ideas can be written in any order. Example of topic: The negative effects of processed food artificial ingredients junk food addiction added sugar low in nutrients risk of cancer Activity 2 In a group, choose one of the brainstorming methods and brainstorm for ideas for a presentation topic. 4 Topic Simple Tips to Make Your Diet Healthier Eat the right portion Drink plenty of water Find alternatives for unhealthy food Less oil and salt in cooking Eat the right portion Have healthy snacks Consume more protein than carbohydrates, increase protein intake Have more fibres Carbohydrate is not that bad Avoid sugary food and drinks Choose weight-loss friendly food Narrowing down ideas Once you have brainstormed the general ideas, narrow down your ideas and organise them in logical groups. This will give clear view on how you divide the central ideas into main points. For example: Topic Central idea Main points : : : Eating breakfast Three major benefits of eating breakfast to university students I. Kick start metabolism II. Perform better in study III. Maintain a healthy weight 5 Gathering materials related to the topics • During the brainstorming process, it is useful to start gathering materials related to the topic. These materials help you to be clearer on the main points you want to present. It also helps you to develop and support your points. • Once you have a topic, you have many options to find information. All the materials can be gathered from: ▪ library research (books, journal etc.) ▪ the Internet (e-books, online journals etc.) ▪ interviews (interview a professional or paid researcher) Activity 3 Based on Activity 2, organise your central idea and main points by completing the flow chart below. Provide sources to support your main points. Topic: Simple Tips to Make Your Diet Healthier Central Idea Simple tips that can make a regular diet healthier. Main Point 1 Consume protein more than carbohydrates Main Points (Key Words) Main Point 2 Eat the right portion Main Point 3 Drink plenty of water Sources: i) https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/maintain-weight-loss ii) https://www.self.com/story/20-ways-to-eat-healthier iii) https://www.everydayhealth.com/weight/weight-management.aspx 6 3. Deciding general and specific purpose of the presentation When choosing a topic, it is important for you to identify the general and specific purpose of your presentation. This will affect the amount of information you want to share with the audience and the way the information is shared. For example, if the purpose is to give exposure, the presenter needs to share as much information as possible with the audience. If the purpose is to make comparison, the presenter needs to present different point of views on the same issue to the audience. This is to ensure the message will reach the audience successfully. The general purpose of a presentation refers to the overall objective of the presentation. The specific purpose of a presentation refers to the focus of the presentation. For example: Theme Topic Central idea General purpose Specific purpose : Health : Breakfast : Three major benefits of eating breakfast to university students : To expose the audience to the importance of eating breakfast : To share with the audience the benefits of eating breakfast for students Activity 4 Based on the topic that you have chosen, write the general and specific purposes in the blanks provided. Topic : Consume protein more than carbohydrates Central idea : The reason of eating proteins more than carbohydrates General purpose: Why should we cut down on carbohydrates? Specific purpose: The benefits of protein when consume in the right amount 4. Organising ideas and structuring the text Once you have narrowed down your ideas, they need to be organised into one cohesive structure. This is not only to help you to plan your presentation but also to ensure that your audience will be able to follow the flow of ideas of the presentation. The ideas can be organised into main points, supporting points and supporting details. Main points The main points are the central features or main focuses of your speech. Supporting points Supporting points contains further elaboration and explanation of the main points. This represents your own voice and point of view. 7 Supporting details Supporting details contain evidence that can strengthen the supporting points. It can be in the form of statistics, examples, illustrations, factual data, quotations and testimony taken from credible sources. For example: Topic : Gardening Central idea : Three major benefits of gardening Main points : I. Physical fitness II. Mood enhancer III. Healthy food I. Physical fitness (Main point) A. Improve ability to do daily activities (Supporting point) • Encourage the use of all motor skills through walking, reaching, bending and digging. (Supporting detail) B. Strengthen bones, muscles and joints (Supporting point) • Exposure to sunshine increases production of Vitamin D which is important for strong bones (Supporting detail) II. Mood enhancer (Main point) A. Connected with family and community (Supporting point) • Create a fun and nurturing environment through social activity (Supporting detail) B. Reduce stress (Supporting point) • Reduce the hormone related to stress which is cortisol. (Supporting detail) III. Healthier food (Main point) A. Get to eat fresh vegetables and fruits (Supporting point) • Let you control when to harvest your food (Supporting detail) B. Safer food (Supporting point) • No harmful additives and preservative are added to the food. (Supporting detail) 8 Activity 5 Complete the table below with supporting points and supporting details on The Benefits of Eating Breakfast to University Students. Compare your notes with a partner and then share your answers. Topic Central Idea Main point 1 The benefits of eating breakfast to university students Three major benefits of eating breakfast to university students Kick start metabolism Increase energy Supporting Point 1 Supporting Details (i.e. statistics, examples, explanation) Supporting Point 2 Supporting Details (i.e. statistics, examples, explanation) Main point 2 Increase cognitive, or thinking, speed and problemsolving skills. Provides the glucose body needs for energy to get through the day. Provides the necessary energy that students need to perform well in class. Perform better in study Better concentration. Supporting Point 1 Supporting Details (i.e. statistics, examples, explanation) Focus task on hand better, less distracted. More positive reaction. Supporting Point 2 Supporting Details (i.e. statistics, examples, explanation) Main point 3 Fewer signs of frustrations. Maintain a healthy weight Avoid overeating during lunchtime. Supporting Point 1 Supporting Details (i.e. statistics, examples, explanation) Consume suitable portion of lunch compared to student that do not have breakfast. 9 Supporting Point 2 Supporting Details (i.e. statistics, examples, explanation) Provide essential nutrients. Provide essential nutrients that can be stored into energy to feel productive for the rest of the day. 10
