Author: Tom Hayton, Teacher, Business Trainer, British Council Kuala Lumpur Why I get students to do presentations Syllabus fit Planning a presentation lesson Aims Classroom Management Assessment Conclusion Why I get students to do

Planning a presentation lesson
Normally a presentation lesson will have an outline like this:

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  Revision of key language areas
  

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  Example presentation, which could be from a textbook or given by the teacher
  

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  Students are given a transcript or outline of the presentation
  

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  Students identify key stages of the example presentation – greeting, introduction, main points in order of importance, conclusion
  

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  Focus on linking and signalling words ('Next…', 'Now I'd like you to look at…', etc.). Students underline these in the transcript/place them in the correct order
  

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  Students are put into small groups and write down aims
  

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  Students then write down key points which they order, as in the example
  

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  Students decide who is going to say what and how
  

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  Students prepare visuals (keep the time for this limited as too many visuals become distracting)
  

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  Students practise at their tables
  

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  Students deliver the presentations in front of the class, with the audience having an observation task to complete (see 'Assessment' below)
  

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  The teacher takes notes for feedback later
  

It is important that the students plan and deliver the presentations in groups at first, unless they are extremely confident and/or fluent. This is because:

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  Shy students cannot present alone
  

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  Students can support each other before, during and after the presentation
  

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  Getting ready for the presentation is a practice task in itself
  

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  When you have a large class, it takes a very long time for everyone to present individually!
  

I find it's a good idea to spend time training students in setting clear aims. It is also important that as teachers we think clearly about why we are asking students to present.

Aims
Presentations normally have one or more of the following aims:

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  To inform/ raise awareness of an important issue
  

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  To persuade people to do something
  

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  Form part of an exam, demonstrating public speaking/presentation skills in a first or second language
  

I set students a task where they answer these questions:

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  Why are you making the presentation?
  

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  What do you want people to learn?
  

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  How are you going to make it interesting?
  

Let's say I want to tell people about volcanoes. I want people to know about why volcanoes form and why they erupt. This would be an informative/awareness-raising presentation. So by the end, everyone should know something new about volcanoes, and they should be able to tell others about them. My plan might look like this:

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  Introduction - what is a volcano? (2 minutes)
  

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  Types of volcano (5 minutes)
  

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  Volcanoes around the world (2 minutes)
  

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  My favourite volcano (2 minutes)
  

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  Conclusion (2-3 minutes)
  

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  Questions (2 minutes)