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Giving Presentations

This guide will help you design and deliver an effective presentation. It's full of tips for both beginners, who need to learn the basics of delivering a presentation, as well as students who want to perfect their presentation skills.

Planning Group Presentations

There are both pros and cons to having to deliver a group presentation. On the plus side, you can share the workload and might feel more comfortable speaking within a group than being in front of the class alone. But, problems can arise in group presentations.

Group presentations are less successful when: 
  • Group members don't work together to make sure their component parts of the presentation flow smoothly together, resulting in what feels like 2 or 3 separate presentations
     
  • Group members don't practice or know what other group members will be saying
     
  • Group members don't plan ahead of time and certain parts of the presentation are stronger than others
     
  •  Some group members don't adhere to an agreed upon time limit
To ensure a successful group presentation:

  • Divide up responsibilities 

  • Decide how you want the presentation to flow together. Will each member be covering a different point or subtopic, or will you alternate speaking between members? 
     
  • Plan to meet frequently and set deadlines for the group
     
  • Set aside time a week in advance of the presentation to practice and edit the presentation together
     
  • Communicate with your group members about any changes you want to make to your portion
     
  • Look for and eliminate overlap. Avoid having group members repeat what was already said before. 
     
  • If you are using presentation software, make sure you stick to a consistent theme. The presentation should look like one presentation.
     
  • Add transitions between group members. For example, "Next, Jaspreet will discuss how x relates to y."