Presentation Skills

I was afraid of speeches and public speaking while in middle and high school.  It gave me an exhilarating shot of adrenaline like (I would assume) running with the bulls in Pamplona would do.  For the most part, I'm still fearful of public speaking, but it's not nearly as bad.  In fact, I think I have learned to use this adrenaline to my advantage. 

After realizing I had to present often (and not just to students) within my career choice, I thought that it would be prudent to investigate "best practices" in regards to presenting.  As I searched the Internet for information, there were several websites and more importantly several tips for presenters.

One suggestion by Jerry Weissman that stood out for me was to never ask, "does that make sense?"  Even if it doesn't make sense, people automatically just answer yes.  This was a question I used to ask all the time.  Now, I try to have the students apply the concept and demonstrate an understanding of the concept.

Alexei Kapterev, authored Death to by Power Point, detailed some great points on developing unified presentations.  He argues against the listy-style associated with Power Point slides and mind-numbing facts.  At this link Alexei provides three 3 guiding principles rather than following lists of presentation rules.

1. Focus
2. Contrast 
3. Unity

Click the above link to find out what Alexei meant with each principle.  

Additionally, there was a book that I read several years ago kept showing up in my searches.  I never thought of Brain Rules by John Medina as a guide for presenters because I read it with a different mindset.  I was thinking merely as a teacher.  Even though I promote student-centered pedagogy, we, teachers, are really presenters, and we need to learn to keep our audience engaged for brief periods of time.  I don't know why, but it was only recently that I began to compile information on effective/engaging presentations.

 

My Suggestions

Use images that relate to the presentation.  Don't just put in generic images that are unrelated to the presentations main focus.  Instead, make connections for the audience members.  They will be more likely to recall a few main points.

Unify the presentation with a story or metaphor. Tell a story but also make a point.  Stories are easier to recall than unconnected facts and statistics. 

Change or switch the medium.  Connect to the Internet, watch a short video, and/or bring up a readable infographic.  It could cause problems with linear need for some presentations; however, I like switching to various media.  Hypermedia is becoming a norm and presentations can become more connected to more than one resource. 

Involve the audience.  I hate sitting in the audience without being involved.  As a teacher, this is a must for students and it should be the cause for adults also.  Ask questions and allow people to discuss the answers with their neighbors.  Provide the audience with an activity.  Ask the audience to share.  Encourage questioning.  (HINT: Before doing this give the audience their cue to focus attention back on the speaker.  Little cues or a keyword/key phrase)

Follow whatever rules work for you.  There are several rules out there for your slideshows design and layout.  There are also several rules being suggested for your presentations.  I think everyone needs to develop their own style and reflect on what worked and what didn't.    The rule of six (no more than 6 lines and no more than 6 words per line) shows up a lot.

All in all, find out what works through experimenting.  Sometimes all the tips and suggestions in the world won't help.  Planning for a run with the bulls will only someone so far. 

 

Resources

The following list of resources provides information on Of course, all these resources aren't inspirational, but I found many to be at least slightly informative.

• Presentation Mistakes
• 5 Ways to Start your Presentation off Strong
• Presentation Tips
• How to Create a Presentation
• Secrets of Compelling Presentation Design Guidebook
• 3 Incredibly Simple Ways to Brilliant Presentations
• My Diigo Bookmarks on Engaging Presentations

Effective Presentation Example

Now, I want to share a great presentation.  I think Ken Robinson is an outstanding presenter, and his TED talk.  Watch his presentation and see if you agree with me.  It definitely isn't perfect but it is unified with an overarching goal.

The next video doesn't show facial expressions or body language, but Taylor Mali's presentation of the poem What Teachers Make demonstrates his passion.  In my opinion, he presents the poem well and I get a little scared that he is going to punch me in the face.

Flipped Classroom Sounds Like One of Them There Fancy Teaching Words

The term flipped classroom sounds so hoity-toity, right?  Well, maybe not really, but it is a term that reminds me of hybrid courses taught within many universities.  Hybrid courses are a mixture of traditional class time and online (distance) learning. A blending of face-to-face and online instruction.  It is considered flipped because homework (applying skills) is performed within the classroom, while lecture (content) is taught outside of the classroom, which is a much more effective model.

Who knows the content better the teacher or the parents?  I don't mean to offend anyone, but I have gotten notes, emails, and phone calls from confused parents.  "If you don't use it, you lose it."  When you are dealing with a certain concept every year, it is easy to think that content is the most important thing for students to learn.  But, the focus is on teaching the content and not the students.  When the classroom is flipped, it is easy to focus classroom attention on student-needs.  Their misconceptions can be seen through their active participation in the learning process.  Rather than asking "Does this make sense," a teacher can witness a student's understanding.

The first step is to figure out how to create or find video lessons.  Next, the videos will need to be shared for each lesson.  I would start by looking at Educreations app for the iPad or Screecast-O-Matic for you computer.  A regular video camera could also work, but the "talking head" model in online learning isn't engaging or effective.  For already made videos, search YouTube, Vimeo, or Khan Academy.  If you haven't already, check out the Khan Academy website.  There are thousands of instructional videos there for free.

So, research this teaching concept and attempt to use technology to benefit your instruction.

• Content reviewed at home 
• Application in the classroom. 

Here is a video and infographic to help explain the concept behind flipped-classrooms.  This web-based content will probably do a better job than my blog post.  This teaching strategy would work well within 1:1 schools.  For students without the Internet at home, I can see issues with this strategy. 

After viewing the content below, what do you think of this concept?  How have you flipped your classroom?  How will you flip your classroom?






Created by Knewton and Column Five Media

National Poetry Month

I wanted to create a post to describe what I will be doing in April for poetry month.  In addition, I wanted to share my Scoop.it account for Poetry Month.  At this link, you can find several resources that I use to develop a thematic poetry unit.

First of all, let me say that I don't just teach poetry in the month of April, but this is when it receives the most attention.  I also like to encourage reading and writing poetry throughout the year, which can be completed during student's free choice reading time and writer's workshop time.  I can usually hook a standoffish reader/writer with poetry because of the shorter nature of the reading/writing.  Then, we meet to discuss how to develop their writing. 

So, now for how I will be teaching poetry for the next few class sessions.  Each day, I like to read a few examples and provide students with mini-lessons regarding poetry features.  I also introduce rules associated with certain types of poetry (i.e. Haiku, Cinqauin , or Limericks).

Because I love music and my students usually enjoy the latest pop star, I incorporate songwriting as poetry, which I think is an overlooked genre.  Students like to here me read the song as if reading a poem.  Then, I play the song for them.  The students always like to here that meaningful connection to their world. 

I then have students construct a poetry project, which is usually a book, blog posts, Glog O' Poems, poem podcasts (using Audioboo, Voicethread, Photo Story 3, or Audacity), and .   Here is a teacher's requirements for a poetry Glogster. 

Short post but I wanted to at least share something for National Poetry month.   What do you do for National Poetry Month?

Social Media for Social Learning

Common Craft's Video on Social Media

Change? Top Down or Ground Level?

 "Leaders," how do you change education?  Merit pay?  Are teachers just salivating dogs waiting for a treat?  It seems like Pavlov is attempting to entice teachers to produce higher test scores.  Let me tell you what this will do for test scores...wait for it...wait for it...nothing.  What will it do for politicians?  Save money?  Gain votes?  Merit pay and disbanding unions is the 'reform a la mode' spreading from state to state, which seems to place blame on teachers more than reward them.

Their ultimate goal is to see test scores rise.  I think pushing tests scores does little to improve teaching and learning.  The top down approach doesn't work for two reasons.

1. First, teachers don't trust people outside of the teaching. (for good reason)
2. Second, teachers don't like to be told what to do.

I'm sure there is research out their that supports the ground-level approach to improving school systems (not just their test scores). 

A ground-level approach will work much better when attempting to spread "best practices."  To borrow from TED talks, "ideas worth spreading" are being socially transmitted every minute online.  These teaching ideas-shared from teachers-are going to change education for the better.  This approach, if used effectively, can improve and motivate great teaching.  Meeting with my grade level improves our teaching as we engage in authentic discussion about teaching practices. 

I think teachers should be encouraged to connect with Personal Learning Networks, reflect, collect, and develop worthwhile lessons to facilitate meaningful learning.  Teachers need to meet more often with a goal to discuss and improve their teaching.  Isolation is a teacher's worst enemy.  In order to improve, we need to network with other like-minded professionals.  PLNs, eLearning Coaches, and Mentor Teachers are the way of the future. 

State tests are making schools depressing.  Students and teachers dislike this content-driven curriculum.  In addition, I feel sorry for students that struggle with these standardized tests.

"Schools are supposed to be places of learning, not prisons of content. Content and information live everywhere now and the impetus is upon us to create opportunities to connect that content, not continue to limit it." -Mike Fisher via http://digigogy.blogspot.com/2011/10/ditch-internet-filters.html

With the push for state testing, students begin to hate school.  I enjoyed school especially the social aspects associated within the classrooms.  When I was able to interact with the teacher and my peers, I was learning the most.  I can even remember certain classroom conversations 14 years later.  It was the quiet-class-and-listen classrooms that made me feel like I was in a prison of content.  I think the push for testing started at the end of my high school career, and I remember how unimportant those tests were for me.  I filled a couple tests with ABACADABA (abracadabra).  These tests weren't used to gauge students' ability, but first they have to care about their performance.  

By the ASCD Click here for a PDF version

Promote Creativity and Higher Order Thinking Skills

Check out the following Prezi about Developing Creativity in Your Classroom. In addition, there is an amazing Prezi on incorporating 21st Century Skills.  Promote Tony Wagner's 7 Survival Skills and incorporate Project/Problem-Based Learning.  Have students find their own problems (Ewan McIntosh's Problem Finders) to research and solve.  Nevertheless, while promoting higher-level-thinking skills, provide students with the proper 21st Century web-based tools.  Socialize and collaborate with the work they are passionate about online. 

The use of social media and information/communication tech within the classroom can be an invaluable tool; nevertheless, there is little time to engage students with 21st Century skills and technologies.  Instead, many educators are focused on developing students' ability to regurgitate content.  I say teach students the process of creating a worthwhile product and allow student choice in terms of content. The test makers and states are only concerned with content regurgitation. 

Social media is becoming necessary for engaging students in learning.  Students utilize tech tools, cell phones, and social websites with ease, but these tools and sites are used to interact with a limited world.  With teacher guidance, students can develop skills and learn from these social websites.  At the same time, they will be developing the digital literacy skills most companies want and/or need. 

With social media and information/communication technologies, teachers can put learning into the students hands.  My students want to socialize through their blog posts.  Why force feed students content?  Instead, provide students the tools and skills to locate relevant information.  Then, analyze and assess student work.  From this, teachers can plan needs-based instruction to improve the student performance.  For instance my students love to comment on blog posts, but their posts are limited.  So, I am going to address this issues and other convention related issues in class.

Overall, teachers need time to work together within their district and across the nation (via Twitter or other forms of social media).  Effective ideas need to spread from teacher to teacher.  Beg, borrow, and steal ideas for the classroom.  Then, reconnect and share experiences.  Evaluate the teaching process and reflect on what works (or doesn't work).  We, as teachers, need to change education for the better.  But, let's take the credit for its improvement and discredit politicians' involvement.  After all, who is really doing all the work?

Dean Groom via http://deangroom.wordpress.com/2011/11/15/steve-collis-must-pay

List of Social Resources for Students and Teachers

• Twitter (Do I have to provide links?)
• Facebook
• EduBlogs
• EduPLN
• ClassConnect
• Edmodo
• Classroom 2.0
• Social Networking for Eductors Wikispaces

List of resources I have heard of but haven't used

• Wall.fm
• Storify
• Plurk
• Sofia
• Yammer
• We Collaborate
• 21st Century Teacher
• Who Teaches

What else should be added to this list?  Are there other social sites that educators and students should use?

TED Talk: Winning and Success

 
Teachers, we need inspiration from a pep talk. We need the drive to perform at our best.  We need a game face.  We need a "winning attitude."  We need support from those around us.  Who needs this the most?  Students need our collective best efforts.

"No written word.
No spoken plea.
Can teach our youth.
What they should be.
Nor all the books on all the shelves
It's what the teachers are themselves"

This was a quote from an inspirational TED Talk from Coach John Wooden.  He was a UCLA coach and he had many great thoughts that relate to teaching and learning.  In addition, I feel his words can inspire us, as teachers, to strive for success rather than winning.  Wooden (2001) stated that the final score didn't always determine the winner or the successful players. 
 


"Don't whine.
Don't complain.
Don't make excuses.
Just get out there and do your best."

Most people (including me) are guilty of whining, complaining, and making excuses; however, this merely impedes success.  I want to succeed, and I want my students to succeed.  Without adhering to the advice above, I don't know if it is possible to succeed fully or to notice your actual success. 

As a reflective practitioner, I have questions and I will continue to have questions. At the front of my mind, is how to boost student performance. However, I don't know if performance on a standardized test truely matters.  Yes, we are judged by these scores, but students can succeed without passing a norm-referenced testing.  Here are some questions on my mind:

• What should constitute success for a teacher?
• What is success in the education field?
• Is success to leave no child "behind?"
• Is success defined by American students to "winning" on their prescribed standardized tests?
• Will that cause America to gain control of the unstable economic issues and the border-less globalization occurring?
• Do all students have to succeed in school in order to succeed in life? 
• How can we suceed? 

To end, I wanted to post John Wooden's pyramid for success, which was found on his website.