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DELIVERING
EFFECTIVE
PRESENTATIONS
Francesca Scandellari and Massimo Tagliavini
Academic Basecamp
IMaHS
Bertinoro 17-19 February 2016

Keep your audience awake!

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Keys to effective presentations

• Balance content
• Be logic
• Use, not abuse, slides

Stay on time

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Do not speak too fast

The generally accepted rate for easy hearing and

understanding is not more than 120 words-a-minute

Know your audience

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Organization of the presentation

• Say what you are going to say
• Say it
• Say that you said it

Important aspects

1. Attitude
1. Outlook
2. Body language
3. Interaction with audience

2. Language (Lexis and Grammar)

3. Structure and Skills of the Presentation

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ATTITUDE

Outlook
• Capture listeners’ attention
• Let’s listeners know what to expect next

• Be confident
• Be prepared
• Be enthusiast

• Stay calm. Nobody is going to bite you!

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Body language

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Use supports

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Engage and interact with audience

• Elicit response
• Ask questions (es. Rhetorical/open)
• Check comprehension
• Request confirmation

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LANGUAGE

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Language
• Adequate level of English
• Use academic English
• Invest in improving your English!!!

Language
• Check the pronunciation of keywords
• Pronounce them correctly, clearly, slowly
• Define new terms
• Try to avoid acronyms

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Language
Academic English:
http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk/

Pronounciation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOcbSeqp6OE

Pronunciation
• Management
• Yields (jiːld)
• Pause (pouse)
• Joule (dʒuːl)
• Schedule (ˈʃɛdjuːl)
• Research (USA) or research (UK)
• Outline
• Contageous
• Advantageous
• Profitable
• Harvest

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Prepare yourself
• Get ready
• Write it out and read it aloud:
• Practice it over and over
• If necessary, record yourself and listen to how you sound
• Practice with video
• Employ your friends and relatives

Don’t Fill the Void

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Connect!
Signal!
Link!

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…
I’d like to look at the structure of a successful presentation.
I will discuss about how to introduce the topic. I will highlight the
importance of proposing a clear and sound hypothesis, and I will
mention some of the techniques to discuss understandable
results.

…
Now, I’d like to look at the structure of a successful presentation.
I have divided this part of the talk in three parts. Firstly, I will
discuss about how to introduce the topic. Then, I will highlight
the importance of proposing a clear and sound hypothesis, and
finally I will mention some of the techniques to discuss
understandable results.

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At the beginning of your presentation, you should introduce the

topic. I assume that you know the type of the audience: you can
tailor the depth of your introduction. In the introductory section,
you present the state of the art, that is, what is already known
about the topic. When you present the results, you should talk
only about your own work. You can present actual data.

At the beginning of your presentation, you should introduce the

topic. I assume that you know the type of the audience, thus you
can tailor the depth of your introduction. In the introductory
section, you present the state of the art, that is, what is already
known about the topic. In contrast, when you present the results,
you should talk only about your own work. Here you can present
actual data.

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Tables can be used in oral presentations. It is better to transform them

in graphs or schematics. Both tables and figures should always be
clear and concise. A clear structure of the presentation is essential.
Using a proper language has almost the same importance. Being
proficient in the language is important to be understood by your
audience. Being proficient in the language is important to have the
confidence to keep your audience interested and engaged.

Remember that, although tables can be used in oral presentations, it is

better, if possible, to transform them in graphs or schematics. In
addition, both tables and figures should always be clear and concise.
Here I’d like to return to a point I made earlier. We mentioned that a
clear structure of the presentation is essential; nevertheless using a
proper language has almost the same importance. For instance, being
proficient in the language is important not only to be understood by
your audience, but also to have the confidence to keep your audience
interested and engaged.

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Well-organized and clear slides offer a great support,

especially if your level of language is not too high. It is
absolutely necessary to have an adequate knowledge of
the topic. This helps to feel confident during the
presentation; it is necessary to answer to possible
questions.

Additionally, well-organized and clear slides offer a great

support, especially if your level of language is not too high.
On the contrary, it is absolutely necessary to have an
adequate knowledge of the topic. On the one hand, this
helps to feel confident during the presentation; on the other
hand, it is necessary to answer to possible questions.

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I have discussed the skills to successfully present a topic in

an oral event. I mentioned the importance of language
skills. You will tell a good and “complete” story. Your
audience will remember you.

To summarize, in the last few minutes I have discussed the

skills to successfully present a topic in an oral event.
Furthermore, I mentioned the importance of language
skills. By applying these tips, as a result, you will tell a good
and “complete” story, therefore your audience will
remember you.

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Connect!
• I’ve divided my talk into 3 parts
• I’d like to make 3 main points
• At first/secondly, I’ll define some terms
• Next/than, I’ll suggest some of the main causes
• Finally/lastly, I’m going to make some recommendations
• To summarize/in summary, I’ve detailed a number of
problems and outlined possible approaches

Signal!
• Now, I’d like to turn to/move on to/talk about/llok at, the
process….
• Here I’d like to return to a point I made earlier

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Link!
• Additionally /in addition/moreover/furthermore
• On the one hand/on the other hand
• However, nevertheless
• In contrast
• On the contrary
• As a result/therefore
• Thus /in this way
• For example/for instance

Avoid jargon and slang

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Avoid difficult and unknown words

Check spelling and grammar

I ave bed
zbellinng

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Presenting is like acting

Vary the tone, pitch and volume

Video

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VISUAL AIDS

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Why using slides

• It has been said that we remember 20% of what we hear,
30% of what we see, but between 50% and 75% of what
we see and hear

(Sorgi and Hawkins, 1985)

Why using slides

(Sorgi and Hawkins, 1985)

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How to prepare slides

• Dedicated softwares
• Powerpoint
• Openoffice
• Prezi (https://prezi.com/gallery/)
• Other…

Slide structure

• Common mistake is to try to put too much on one slide

• Golden rule  6 x 6
• Be consistent
• Animation

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• Speak clearly, neither to fast - nor to slow; usually a slide is done in 2 minutes

• Use pauses in your talk to underline key moments; don’t stop every time you change a slide: this is terrible for the audience

• Prepare yourself carefully, repeating and repeating the days before your
presentation. You must respect the time (usually 15 min). Even old professors
used to speak to public prepare themselves

• Don’t put tables: just figures, text or small (SMALL) tables

• Be careful with animation: automatic can be dangerous, manual may be dangerous

• AS POSTERS, USE CLEAR FONTS AND GOOD AND QUITE BACKGROUNDS

PROGRESS HAS NO DEFINITE AND

UNQUESTIONABLE MEANING IN OTHER FIELDS THAN
THE FIELD OF SCIENCE

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Progress has no definite and unquestionable meaning in

other fields than the field of science

Progress has no definite and unquestionable meaning in

other fields than the field of science

Progress has no definite and unquestionable meaning in other fields than the field of science

Progress has no definite and unquestionable meaning in other fields

than the field of science

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Progress has no definite and unquestionable meaning in other fields than the field of science

Use of colors in the text and as

background
Progress has no definite and
unquestionable meaning in other fields than
the field of science

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Progress has no definite and

unquestionable meaning in other fields than
the field of science

Progress has no definite and unquestionable 
meaning in other fields than the field of science

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Progress has no definite and unquestionable 
meaning in other fields than the field of science

Progress has no definite and unquestionable 
meaning in other fields than the field of science

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Progress has no definite and unquestionable

meaning in other fields than the field of science

Tables and graphs

 Graphs replace tables where possible
 No more than seven lines (including title)
and four columns

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This is a very important table.

Read it in a minute!

Fruit number
+ Nitrogen - Nitrogen % difference
Apple 562 ± 129 256 ± 58 46
Pear 657 ± 24 265 ± 54 40
Peach 1355 ± 55 455 ± 45 34
Apricot 1752 ± 23 2253 ± 25 129

NB: these numbers are absolutely fake

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Fruit number
+46% +40% +40% -28%

Fruit number
+46% +40% +40% -28%

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Acknowledgments and References

• Part of the material presented has been taken from the
course «Academic Teaching Excellence» organised by
the British Council and delivered at the Free University of
Bozen-Bolzano in 2015

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THAT’S ALL, FOLKS

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