Certificate in University Teaching Teaching: Presenting Material in - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Certificate in University Teaching Teaching: Presenting Material in the Classroom

 Allow some time immediately before class to review, prepare, and chill  Make sure that you have prepared roughly twice as much material (doesn’t have to be lecture) and activities as you need for the time available  Prepare notes, prompts, etc. as required, but do not EVER plan to READ ANYTHING VERBATIM (this includes PowerPoint Slides)

 And you SHOULD be nervous…..  Memorize the first couple of sentences….  Find a friendly face to start off with….  Start out speaking louder than is comfortable

 Don’t drink cold water right before a big speech, it constricts your throat muscles (warm tea/coffee/water)  If no liquid is available, chew lightly on your tongue or run your tongue across the back of your teeth.

 Everyone knows they should do it, few know how  Avoid “scanning”  Don’t talk to the back wall  Begin with a friendly face  5 SECOND RULE (not much longer)  Maintain until the end of a phrase or thought  Extended eye contact feels awkward, but…  It works for rock stars  Ask a friend to help practice

 Podiums are EVIL. Talking heads are just plain boring.  Use the podium to hold your notes, but get out from behind it.  Without a podium, you are exposed from head to toe (check your zipper BEFORE class)  Mirrors before class can save major embarrassment

 Your feet should be shoulder width apart (keeps you from falling).  Don’t lock your knees you might fall over.  Think about annoying body habits of others:  Don’t rock  Don’t pace, but change position as often as is possible  Finger churching and other affectations can be distracting if overdone (eensy weensy spider?)  Hands in pockets is generally not good.  If you tend to play with change in your pockets get rid of it—lose ANYTHING you play with.

 Ladies, lose the jangly bracelets and earrings, etc. (men too).  If you will tend to play with it, don’t wear it.  Don’t play with yourself….  Cher hair  Twirly hair  Ear mining  Hand wringing  Fingernail Olympics

 Be conscious of your speech  We all use filler words. Be aware of yours.  Slow down often…  Pauses make you look intelligent, not stupid  Checking your notes is normal  This does not hold for PowerPoint

 Fix the problem immediately. Leave the room if you must.  Laugh at yourself and they will laugh WITH you. This goes for slips of the lip as well.  Ignore it and you will end up with the “giggling in church” syndrome.  At some point in a long lecturing career, you probably WILL fall, be happy it’s over  A little forethought and prevention goes a long way…  Check your zipper  Don’t wear button-up blouses or dangerous heels

 Give 5-10 minutes’ warning the question period is about to begin.  No one wants to be first.  Put up your hand and wait for an uncomfortable period of time (10 seconds)  Have a previous question ready.  Repeat the questions, but don’t “twist” them.  Share the love (don’t keep answering the “discussion hog”).

 You can never prepare too far in advance  Students never tire of personal and professional anecdotes  Be organized and help them avoid excessive note-taking (but don’t do all of the work for them)  Lecture the material that is appropriate (yes, there really is some).  You are the salesperson, not the delivery person

Be yourself, they will like you!