Part 4.3: Presentation - (Lamlash Bay No Take Zone) and Reflection

 As part of our course assignment we needed to complete a presentation to present to the class. Firstly we agreed on some criteria for marking each others presentations using a number system ranging from Poor to Very Good. (See Table 1 below). 

We also agreed that each presentation should be approximately three minutes long.

   

Table 1: Example of the marking criteria table used. 

Name:                                                                                Topic:

Criteria	1 – Poor	2-	3	4	5 – Very good
Speaking clearly
Professional format in the presentation
Body language – eye contact, smile
Content
Visual aids
Time keeping – 3 minutes
Total

 

The presentations could be on any relevant topic of our choice. I decided on Lamlash Bay No Take Zone as it is an area of conservation that I am particularly interested in and also one I have seen first-hand. I researched the topic online as well as using some of my own prior knowledge and experience of the area. I had some difficulty sorting out the most important points to include as the topic is quite large so spent some time sifting through to find points that would be interesting to people with no prior knowledge of the topic. I tried to keep the information in short bullet points so it was easy to read and follow. This meant that I could expand on interesting points as it was presented to the group.   

Presentation - (recorded on Teams)

Reflection

I felt that the presentation seemed to go reasonably well, I had issues at the beginning where I could not hear what the tutor was saying so started a bit too early. I felt quite nervous but managed to get most of the points across just slightly over the 3 minutes. There were some areas where I had planned to say more but left those points out as I was aware of the time. 

As part of my skills audit I felt that my presentation skills were an area I needed to practice and work on as it is not an area I have had to use for many years. I've never really learnt Powerpoint so had to spend a bit if time practicing with different methods for making the slides until I was happy with them. It was a topic I was interested in and had fist hand experience of when visiting the Isle of Arran so found the research quite easy. 

 To improve this presentation I would need to make sure my equipment is working correctly to begin with, as I had issues with my speakers. I would also move to a slightly darker area, not in front of the window, to make myself easier to see as it seemed too bright. I was happy with the PowerPoint slides themselves and feel that I got  the most important points across clearly. I had decided to use plenty of visual aids as well as talking through the slides. This approach has been shown to be more memorable for the people listening and viewing. (Bradbury, 2006). Some more practice beforehand would have helped  as I wouldn't have had to worry about the time limit and leave out parts as I spoke. Nerves made me repeat myself a few times so more practice may have helped me stay a bit calmer. 

The feedback was very good, the group commented on how helpful the pictures and images were, and that the presentation was clear and professional.      

References

Bradbury, A. 2006. Successful Presentation Skills. London, Kogan Page Ltd.