Many professors
throughout the university have begun to use the student presentation as a
course requirement in smaller classes. The quality of such presentations,
however, is often difficult to control or to judge, and their worth for other
students can be questionable when compared to lectures by the professor. While
presentations can be valuable and worthwhile and provide important opportunity
for improving students’ communications skills, more attention ought to be paid
to how they are controlled and treated as requirements, for which the following
suggestions are offered.
It is crucial that the
student making a presentation offers an argument, thesis, or topic, which can
be treated as a subject of discussion for the class, as opposed to a merely
informative presentation. Presentations should be treated like graduate
symposia, wherein an undergraduate is expected to form a thesis on the topic,
and not merely present factual information. The “informative” presentation is
often problematic for several reasons:
1.
A professor would
probably be better suited to present such information.
2.
Other students
cannot be entirely certain that the information being presented is correct.
3.
Such presentations
are often used to replace the input of the professor on subjects of his or her
expertise.
In terms of the worth of presentations for the
class as an audience, the second point above is very important. Frequently,
presentations are simply incorporated into an ensuing class discussion, and
feedback by the professor on the content of the presentation is not given. Thus, other students in the class place less
weight on the validity or importance of the information being presented by the
student. Professors should therefore feel free to argue with the content of
presentations, and to draw out the strengths contained within them.
An effective method for improvement would be to
judge undergraduate class presentations with the same standards as those of
graduate courses. For example, it is often the practice in English graduate
seminars to require students to give presentations before the class which are
accompanied by short papers that the student can choose to distribute, and to
afterwards defend the thesis of his or her presentation before rigorous, even
difficult questions posed by both the class and the professor. This model would
be useful for undergraduates in several ways:
1.
Requiring that a
short paper accompany a presentation would ensure that an actual argument is
being presented.
2.
Having short papers
for other students to read would make the student’s presentation easier to
follow.
3.
By challenging the
student’s thesis, the presenter and the class would gain a better understanding
of the subject.
The third point is particularly noteworthy. If in-class presentations are
to be as useful as other requirements in the course, students should be
expected to defend the arguments of the presentation, much as a professor would
question the validity of a thesis or the arguments made in a paper or in the
responses to test questions.
1.
Students should be
required to meet with the professor before finalizing the topic and content of
their presentations, in order to ensure the accuracy and validity of their
arguments.
2.
Presenters should
be required to distribute handouts which summarize the main points of their
presentation, if distributing papers to accompany their presentations is not
required. This is extremely helpful for the class in following the arguments of
the presentation.
3.
Professors should
give written evaluations and grades for the presentations, much as they would
for a paper or test, which place more value on the presentation requirement and
would give the student useful criticism.
When used effectively, student presentations can
be an excellent way to develop interaction among students and professors. If
professors choose to use them as a course requirement, these suggestions can
make them a more effective part of the class.