Class design for developing presentation skills for graduate research students

Abstract

A one-day workshop was designed to develop graduate research students’ presentation skills. It comprised three components for cultivating competencies in constructing (i) a logical story, (ii) helpful slides, and (iii) an engaging conversation. Each component had three steps: instruction of key points, comprehension checking by analyzing an example presentation, and application of learning to own presentation. In addition, at the end of the workshop, students had an opportunity for self-reflection. To assess the usefulness of this workshop, students were asked to make pre- and post-workshop presentations. Evaluation of those presentations revealed that their quality significantly improved in terms of logical flow, usefulness of visuals, and audience engagement. Transfer of skills to a different kind of presentation was also evidenced.