TIPS FOR GOOD ORAL PRESENTATIONS

Criteria for effective presentations

Content-related
Relevance of ideas to topic
(pertinent examples; no unnecessary details)
Overall coherence
(logical, natural flow of ideas)
Lexical range
(variety of words/phrases to suit the complexity of the topic)
Register
(appropriate choice and consistent use of either formal or informal level, depending on the
audience)

Organization-related

Effective introduction
(catchy opening: relevant joke/anecdote, statistics, quotation, rhetoric question)
Clear signposting
(statement of goals, indication of stages, emphasis on conclusion/results)
Emphasizing key points
(insisting on the main points to make the message clear)
Summarizing and concluding
(reviewing the main points and stating the presenters conclusion)
Length
(organization of material to fit the time limit)

Delivery-related

Clarity and pronunciation
Stress and intonation
Volume
Pace
Body language, eye contact, manner
Introducing the topic Summarizing Concluding
Id like to talk about Ill briefly summarize the main
issue.
Before I finish, let me just
say
Im going to present Let me just run over the key
points again.
Id like to leave you with the
following thought/idea
The topic/focus of my
presentation
To sum up, That covers all I wanted to
say.
Briefly, After concluding your
presentation with an
appropriate sentence, finish
with this sentence!
Thank you for your attention.



Plan for oral presentations
1. Introduction
State the general theme
2. Body
Develop the topic
Give examples
3. Summary and Conclusion
Refer briefly to the 2 or 3 ideas mentioned in the body
State your own conclusions/opinion about the theme
Flow of ideas
I ntroduction: The focus of my presentation is
Outline: Im going to discuss both sides of the argument/the reasons why I think
Body Part 1: Lets start with/The first point I want to make
Body Part 2: That brings me to/Id like to point out another aspect
Body Part 3/4, etc.: Lastly, my final argument is/last but not least, Id like to point out that
Summary: Let me just run over the key points again.
Conclusion: Before I finish, let me just say

Signposting devices

To improve the cohesion of a presentation, use these expressions:

Sequencing/ordering: - firstly/secondly/thirdly
- Then/next/finally/lastly
- Lets start with
- Lets move/go on to
- Now we come to/that brings us to
- That covers
Giving reasons: - therefore/so/as a result/thats why
Contrasting: - however/on the one hand on the other hand
Comparing: - similarly/in the same way
Contradicting: - in fact/actually
Highlighting: - in particular/especially
Digressing: - by the way
Giving examples: - for example/for instance/such as
Generalizing: - usually/generally/as a rule



Emphasizing key points
You can emphasize important points in your presentation in the following ways:
1. By using certain common expressions:
On top of everything
Most of all/above all
Especially/particularly/in particular
Id like to stress
Id like to point out
Id like to bring to your attention

2. By using strong intensifying adverbs:
Absolutely
Totally
Completely
Extremely
Entirely
Example: This argument is totally unconvincing.
3. By pausing just before the idea you wish to emphasize.

4. By using emphatic constructions:
What I want to emphasize is that
It is (not) my intention to
It is this very aspect that

5. By stressing particular words or word groups. In presentations, it is acceptable to
exaggerate stress.

Example: The key to understanding this problem is historical, not purely political.


6. By using the appropriate intonation. Listeners also get information from the pitch of the voice
and you should vary the pitch of your voice to achieve emphasis in your presentation.