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How to get students to really engage with audiences!. Speaker: Philip Saxon (Formerly teacher at the Budapest Business School; now postgraduate student at Warwick University) IATEFL-Hungary Conference, Budapest Saturday 6 th October 2013. Introduction.
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How to get students to really engage with audiences! Speaker: Philip Saxon (Formerly teacher at the Budapest Business School; now postgraduate student at Warwick University) IATEFL-Hungary Conference, Budapest Saturday 6th October 2013
Introduction Engaging an audience in a second (or third) language cannot be easy for our learners! As an assessor of student presentations at the Budapest Business School, certain problems became apparent to me. Today’s talk will examine these – and suggest possible ways of tackling them.
Problems I’ve observed The following seem to occur quite often: • Incomplete structure; • Weak audience rapport; • No audience activities; • Slides are too hard to read! Today’s talk will attempt to address these issues.
Contents Introduction Main Body • Structure • Rapport • Activities • Visuals Conclusion
1) Structure – lessons learned Learners are quick to apply: • Advice on opening a talk. • Advice on concluding a talk. Learners are much slower to employ: • Signposting language. We can: • Use textbooks for opening and closing. • ELICIT signposting language from learners.
Problems with structure: Introducing the talk THE AUDIENCE NEEDS MOTIVATING!
Problems with structure:The talk itself AUDIENCES CAN FOLLOW THIS!
Problems with structure:Concluding (1) THE AUDIENCE MUST BE AROUSED AGAIN!
Problems with structure:Concluding (2) Question time will be dealt under “Rapport”! HELP THE AUDIENCE REMEMBER WHAT’S IMPORTANT!
2) Rapport – lessons learned Students know: • What rapport feels like! But they don’t know: • What exactly elicits rapport! We can: • Talk about classroom rapport first! • Examine techniques afterwards.
Why presenting is like teaching Classroom rapport is earned by displaying: • Authenticity • Openness • Active Listening • Respect Audiences: • Have very similar needs! • But insist on credibility at the start, too.
Problems with rapport (1) AN ACTIVE AUDIENCE IS AN ENGAGED AUDIENCE!
Problems with rapport (2) THE AUDIENCE WILL NEED TO SEE THE POINT!
Problems with rapport (3) EVERYONE REMEMBERS A GOOD STORY!
Problems with rapport (4) IF THE AUDIENCE PREFERS TO SPEAK TOGETHER, LET THEM!
The habits of effective speakers Remind students that effective speakers: • Smile and relax; • Pace themselves with their voice; • Deliver what the audience expects. The audience will engage if: • The speaker appears authentic; • The speaker appears trustworthy.
What effective speakers also do! An effective speaker will also: • Enter confidently, and be dynamic on stage! • “Find a friendly face fast” (F.F.F.F.)! • Close strongly! And accept applause. They also appear knowledgeable – and handle questions well.
3) Activities – lessons learned Students: • Initially lack confidence to introduce an activity! • But once they’ve been shown how, they embrace the idea! We can therefore: • Teach them how to run simple activities.
Problems with activities (3) KEEP THINGS LIVELY! AND CONNECT WITH WHAT FOLLOWS.
How to encourage students (1) At the end of the day, in class: • Students are in a safe environment! • They can only gain by taking risks! • The audience will be engaged! • It will boost their self-confidence! IF STUDENTS TRUST THEIR TEACHER AND EACH OTHER, IT SHOULD WORK!
How to encourage students (2) However, the following are all MUSTS: • The audience should be warmed up first! • The activity must add value! • This must be SHOWN by the speaker! • The instructions must be simple! PLANNING PAYS DIVIDENDS!
4) Striking visuals – lessons learned The best student presenters: • Already design eye-catching slides! • Appear largely to be self-taught… Some students: • Are at something of a disadvantage. We can: • Teach them all a lesson about visuals! • Ensure everyone knows the basics.
Problems with visuals (1) SIMPLE IS EFFICIENT!
Problems with visuals (2) KEEP THINGS LEGIBLE!
Problems with visuals (3) THE AUDIENCE NEEDS TO VISUALISE DATA!
Best practice – infographics This shows the spread of obesity in the US: US Adult Obesity Rates Since 1960 The benefits of using this technique: • The message is conveyed very effectively! • Not a lot of language is needed! Good designs can be found online…or created using sites such as visual.ly!
Best practice – static slides Striking visuals will: • Have a single message! • Reinforce it with pictures! • Apply basic graphic design principles. • Communicate balance via symmetry. • Communicate energy via asymmetry.
Basic Design Principles There are four: • Contrast • Repetition • Alignment • Proximity IN SHORT, WE WANT TO SEE “CRAP”!
“They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” ~ Carl W. Buechner
Conclusion Tell students to aim for this: • The introduction stimulates the audience! • The talk structure is easy to follow. • The talk feels like a “conversation”. • Activities add practical value! • The visuals are striking and memorable.
