When you have found out the material you need, digested it all into a synthesis, then the time comes to communicate the results of your hard work. You will present them in some form.
There are many forms this might take, but the common ones are:
- essay
- talk
- poster
More exotic ones might include:
- blog/vlog
- wiki
- research proposal
We are going to call all of these a presentation: you are presenting the results of your study.
In all these cases, there is an underlying set of principles. If these principles are grasped, then it is easy enough to apply them in different situations.
Preparation counts
The key to preparing a presentation is to make sure that you fully understand your material as a story. We are all, without exception, naturally gifted story-tellers. Often we tell stories without thinking about it – blethering with friends over a drink or a meal. The trick to doing an academic communiction is to set things up so that you can use this natural ability. So, we are going to treat the presentation exactly as if it’s a story, not more.
Establishing the story
A story always has a starting point – a set of things people need to know in order to follow what happens in the story. A story usually has a tension at the start – something unknown or unresolved. By the end of the story this tension has been sorted, or at least replaced by another one.
In practical terms, work out what the starting point of your story is, what the issue you’re going to explore is and finally what the outcome will be.
The steps in the story between the start and the finish are then just the steps that take you from the beginning to the end, not more. Then, for each step you need to understand what contribution this makes in getting you from the start to the end.
Identify your audience
Whatever you are producing, it is for someone else. It will work best when it is designed for them, not for you. No matter how tempting it is to write for yourself, it is ultimately a vanity you don’t need and are well advised to avoid.
What does your audience/reader want from you?
Stick to your purpose: They want their time to be used well: they expect you to be relevant, to be focussed and to be easy to understand. Usually an audience/reader wants to find out something new as their reward for their effort.
Show them what you have studied: If your reader/audience is also assessing you, then they will expect you to demonstrate what your study has produced. You may be telling them something they already know, but they will want you to explain it to them as if they didn’t.
Telling the story
Establish in your mind exactly how you are going to start the presentation and how you are going to finish it. This latter is so important – just like driving a car – you need to know how to stop. The start and the finish frame everything else.
Think carefully about your material and split it into manageable steps on the route from start to end.
Be very selective about the intermediate steps: irrelevant material is easy to include but is always a distraction.