Presentation Skills for Economics Students Judith Piggott Oxford

Presentation Skills for Economics Students Judith Piggott Oxford Brookes University 1

Aims l l 1) 2) 3) l Improve presentation skills of Economics Students Why? - 3 reasons Assessment – poor quality presentations. Often content was reasonable but it was difficult to “dig it out” from the presentation. Feedback from Alumni – presentation skills were one of the most useful learned but more help was needed to improve the skill Employability – increasingly the job market requires confidence in presenting ideas Most videos were management training and inappropriate 2

Background Answer? l Bring in professional actors l 1 hour workshop last year – effect? l Significant! l General skills improved but big factor was some imagination was used. l l But this is not always feasible – eg money and size of class…. so… 3

Website l l l l Answer: Draw on the actors’ skills in presentations Bringing in Economic content eg Balance of Payments Using students as main “actors” So…. On the website will be: a) A film – based on “Sliding Doors” movie eg a good and bad presentation by the same set of people, cut in together. This is 17 minutes long and can be used either complete for a seminar/lecture (on a DVD or from website direct) 4

Website…. l b) Together with the DVD will be powerpoint slides highlighting the key features which can be used by lecturers with/instead of the DVD (and can be used into handouts of course). c) The slides and the powerpoint will also be put together in a way that highlights the points whilst the DVD plays. Something to use either in a lecture or for students to look on their own. l A sample…. l 5

Structure of the Presentation l The Introduction Sets the scene l Defines the terms l “What is the Balance of Payments? ” l l Then…. http: //uk. youtube. com/watch? v=IObxv 0 L_ZPE 6

Powerpoint l Check with lecturer first l l Is Power. Point Keep it simple l l l allowed? Don’t let it detract from the presentation Don’t put too much information on the slides Keep it relevant and necessary http: //uk. youtube. com/watch? v=l. IYv. OYv. SQAY 7

Presentation content 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Introduction Key points to think about in a presentation (actor’s workshop) Group preparation Data Preparation/presentation Powerpoint The Presentation itself a. The start b. content c. Group behaviour/mobile phones! d. Voice projection e. The ending f. Questions 8

Other elements l 10 Top tips for presentation skills l Frequently l Any asked questions (with answers) other ideas? 9