The report
In no course of study can you avoid giving a presentation at some point. Every beginning is difficult - but it is not impossible. How should you approach the challenge?
Preparation
Teachers often give you a topic or, if necessary, a thematic focus. It is important that the lecturer's expectations are clearly defined so that you are heading in the right direction. This also includes quantitative points such as length of time, volume of literature, handout design and type of lecture. If the lecturer hasn't said anything about this, ask him about the relevant guidelines.
time planning
In order to adequately prepare for a presentation, you must ensure that you plan and carry out all steps well, from the literature research to the (digital) presentation. To avoid being under time pressure, you should start at least 14 days in advance.
literature
Your lecturer will usually give you a reading list or references for your presentation. You are then responsible for reviewing the literature accordingly and preparing it according to appropriate content criteria. The SQ3R reading technique will help you with this. You should also look in the library for other sources of literature that will round off or deepen your presentation. To start, you can simply search for relevant keywords on your library's online website before searching through the literature.
Contents
Once the literature has been prepared accordingly, you should define the content of the presentation precisely. What content should be conveyed, what should be particularly emphasized. This results in an outline. Please note that you round off the presentation accordingly by dividing it into an introduction, main part and conclusion.
Introduction
The introduction should serve as a start to the presentation. For example, you can use a concise example, a quote or an anecdote as a “hook”. Furthermore, you should lead to the main part and embed your presentation in the seminar context.
Bulk
The aim here is to bring your developed knowledge to the public in a systematic and structured manner. You can and should even raise open questions and share things that you didn't understand so that a discussion can arise later. You should structure your approach in terms of content, e.g.: chronologically, inductively (from example to general rule, causally.
Ending
The final part is intended to summarize the presentation and should present any ambiguities and open questions. If you manage to get your fellow students excited about a discussion, your presentation will be well received.
media
What is important for your presentation are the means of communicating your content. Here you should try to create a PowerPoint and prepare a handout for your fellow students. The following applies: less is more! If you write down everything you present, the presentation will be unexciting and there will be no incentive to listen. Therefore, only write down concise content and give space for notes etc.
Lecture technique
You should prepare a manuscript in which you put together some kind of instructions for your presentation. This can be done, for example, in the form of index cards. These will guide you through the presentation and help you if you ever lose the thread. You should inevitably learn from the first presentation to speak freely and not to read entire sentences from your manuscript. The goal here is also to maintain eye contact with your audience and convey that you have prepared accordingly.
feedback
Before you start your presentation, you should make it clear how you want to deal with feedback. If you are a very nervous person, it is advisable to ask the audience to ask any questions at the end of the presentation. If you can deal with questions very flexibly, you can also answer questions during your presentation.
Every beginning is difficult - but it is not impossible. How should you approach the challenge of a presentation?
