Maryjane.Goldenberg _Post#1

Maryjane Goldenberg 

May 22, 2023

SPC 2608

 

Blog 1: Group Presentations Reflection

 

During presentation week 1, we had three very different presentations in class. The presentations were meant to discuss the basic topics of public speech based on the « 2013 Edition iSpeak : Nelson/Titsworth/Pearson » class book. My group (Group 2) and I, along with our other peers, were tasked with a specific number of chapters. It wasn’t only an assignment; it was a form of study; it felt as if I had read the book twice. The book discussed the essence of the class perfectly as well as the presentation assignment. The chapters assigned to my peers, and I had tips about how to make engaging presentations, kinds of speech and different ways to make your presentation a memorable one. Our assigned section was chapters 5-9. The chapters helped me in a variety of ways. I learned about the correct language to use in all kinds of situations and how speech and writing are more different than we thought. I realized all of the different ways there are to engage  with my audience and how some of the things around me can be used as visual and sensory aids. I even changed some things in my notes as I read the chapters and learned some of the language I use might be too proper and blunt for my presentation. I decided to limit the content of my slides as well since I learned in the chapters; cluttering slides confuses the audience. 

 We were meant to teach our chapters assigned which I found to be the best way to truly learn a topic. I remember once hearing that if you can’t explain something to a six year old, you don’t understand it yourself. While I was preparing for the presentation I had in mind the word “teach” and decided this presentation would actually give one of my peers in the audience something to think about. As I prepared I kept in mind many of the concepts we had to review to create the presentation. Things such as how to speak concisely and not as one would write helped me feel more comfortable speaking in the way I would usually speak. I feel like this made me sound more natural and relatable to the audience as I didn’t have to use the more proper speech I prepared in my notes. Now I know that when I present it isn't about perfection, it’s about teaching the audience something new and engaging them in what you’re saying. I was proud of my other partners in the presentation assignment as they were able to maintain their main points when speaking. I couldn’t have presented it better myself. I admired the way they mostly spoke from their own knowledge and rarely had an unusual tone or stutter.

As I mentioned prior, there were three presentations in total. The other presentations were just as educative and had a lot of information. Although some of my peers were a bit verbose and talked a bit too heavily about the other chapters and topics, all our first attempts were meaningful as we all learned in the process. I thought group 1 had an amazing topic as they were presenting the intro to preparing presentations. Though there were many moments one may have felt overwhelmed by the heavy amount of information, the assignment was well done, nonetheless. Group 1 was able to brief us on how to prepare for future presentations and how to analyze the audience. I learned from their presentation along with parts on my very own chapters that analyzing the audience is often overlooked. When presenting one has to know and understand who their audience is. Whether they are educated, uneducated, young, or old, one must know their audience to present to them appropriately. Without this, you’d be presenting for yourself, not your audience. When presenting I’m sure myself and all my peers understood that the people we are presenting to are our generation and so the language we have to use must not be so formal as to bore them but mature enough so they can relate. Group 1 did a good job with this though many times while presenting the speakers maintained their speeches quite lengthy. 

Group 3 was just as informative and relatable as they presented topics we could all use in our lives. When we present we have to do as our professor implies in the writing of the assignment. “Teach.” I have already taken speech classes in the past, yet I have never been taught to teach. When I hear this word I hear freedom to speak as you feel others will understand and have an interest in. This goes along with one of Group 3’s other topics which was using persuasive messages when presenting. When I present I know now that I always want to try and persuade my audience with words and anecdotes rather than blunt statements and opinions of my own. To persuade I must also prove my credibility to the audience by statistics or anecdotes in order for my words to really impact the audience. My personal favorite section of Group 3’s presentation assignment was how to speak during special occasions as well as the types of special occasion presentations. When there’s a wedding or a funeral, a birthday or a bachelor party, it’s always nice to be able to put your 2 cents in and say something nice about the people or special occasion going on. Presentations to nominate or honor someone are often not thought of when a college student thinks “presentation.” But it’s all just the same. Just as we have to make a speech one day in class, the next we may be asked to speak at our best friends wedding. We just have to know how and when to use specific tones and language during speeches. We seldom realize how many times in our lives making a speech is necessary.

As I said every group presentation was great but not perfect, as I’ve learned so far, it never really must be. For now, we’re not presenting our thesis or making a presidential speech, we’re all learning. The information provided within the PowerPoints made much more of an impact on me than the “mistakes” my group and classmates thought they made. If anything, it was more relatable and nicer to hear that everyone can make mistakes.