1. Presentation Skills

2. Presentation: Definition
Something presented : as
a : a symbol or image that represents something
b : something offered or given
c: an immediate object of perception, cognition, or memory

3. Presentation Skills: What, where, how
PowerPoint Slides
Rules and guide to good presentation
Examples of good and not so spectacular slides
What makes a good scientific presentation
A word about Handouts
Conclusion

4. Making PowerPoint Slides
Avoiding the Pitfalls of Bad Slides

5. Tips to be Covered Outlines Slide Structure Fonts Colour Background
Graphs
Spelling and Grammar
Conclusions
Questions

6. Outline Make your 1st or 2nd slide an outline of your presentation
Ex: previous slide
Follow the order of your outline for the rest of the presentation
Only place main points on the outline slide
Ex: Use the titles of each slide as main points

7. Slide Structure – Good Use 1-2 slides per minute of your presentation
Write in point form, not complete sentences
Include 4-5 points per slide
Avoid wordiness: use key words and phrases only

8. Slide Structure - Bad
This page contains too many words for a presentation slide. It is not written in point form, making it difficult both for your audience to read and for you to present each point. Although there are exactly the same number of points on this slide as the previous slide, it looks much more complicated. In short, your audience will spend too much time trying to read this paragraph instead of listening to you.

9. Slide Structure – Good Show one point at a time:
Will help audience concentrate on what you are saying
Will prevent audience from reading ahead
Will help you keep your presentation focused

10. Slide Structure - Bad Do not use distracting animation
Do not go overboard with the animation
Be consistent with the animation that you use

11. Fonts - Good Use at least an 18-point font
Use different size fonts for main points and secondary points
this font is 24-point, the main point font is 28-point, and the title font is 36-point
Use a standard font like Times New Roman or Arial

12. Fonts - Bad CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. IT IS DIFFICULT TO READ
If you use a small font, your audience won’t be able to read what you have written
CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. IT IS DIFFICULT TO READ
Don’t use a complicated font

13. Colour - Good
Use a colour of font that contrasts sharply with the background
Ex: blue font on white background
Use colour to reinforce the logic of your structure
Ex: light blue title and dark blue text
Use colour to emphasize a point
But only use this occasionally

14. Colour - Bad
Using a font colour that does not contrast with the background colour is hard to read
Using colour for decoration is distracting and annoying.
Using a different colour for each point is unnecessary
Using a different colour for secondary points is also unnecessary
Trying to be creative can also be bad

15. Background - Good
Use backgrounds such as this one that are attractive but simple
Use backgrounds which are light
Use the same background consistently throughout your presentation

16. Background – Bad
Avoid backgrounds that are distracting or difficult to read from
Always be consistent with the background that you use

17. Graphs - Good Use graphs rather than just charts and words
Data in graphs is easier to comprehend & retain than is raw data
Trends are easier to visualize in graph form
Always title your graphs

18. Graphs - Bad

19. Graphs - Good

20. Graphs - Bad

21. Graphs - Bad Minor gridlines are unnecessary Font is too small
Colours are illogical
Title is missing
Shading is distracting

22. Spelling and Grammar Proof your slides for:
speling mistakes
the use of of repeated words
grammatical errors you might have make
If English is not your first language, please have someone else check your presentation!

23. Conclusion Use an effective and strong closing
Your audience is likely to remember your last words
Use a conclusion slide to:
Summarize the main points of your presentation
Suggest future avenues of research

24. Questions?? End your presentation with a simple question slide to:
Invite your audience to ask questions
Provide a visual aid during question period
Avoid ending a presentation abruptly

25. Making Presentations That Audiences Will Love

26. Use a Template Use a set font and color scheme.
Different styles are disconcerting to the audience.
You want the audience to focus on what you present, not the way you present.

27. Fonts Choose a clean font that is easy to read.
Roman and Gothic typefaces are easier to read than Script or Old English.
Stick with one or two types of fonts.

28. Font Size The title should be no smaller than 28 points.
Bulleted items should be no smaller than 22 points.
The title should be no smaller than 28 points.

29. Bullets Keep each bullet to one line, two at the most.
Limit the number of bullets in a screen to six, four if there is a large title, logo, picture, etc.
This is known as “cueing”
You want to “cue” the audience in on what you are going to say.
Cues can be thought of as a brief “preview.”
This gives the audience a “framework” to build upon.

30. Bullets (con.)
If you crowd too much text, the audience will not read it.
Too much text makes it look busy and is hard to read.
Why should they spend the energy reading it, when you are going to tell them what it says?
Our reading speed does not match our listening speed; hence, they confuse instead of reinforcing each other.

31. Caps and Italics Do not use all capital letters Italics
Makes text hard to read
Conceals acronyms
Denies their use for EMPHASIS
Italics
Used for “quotes”
Used to highlight thoughts or ideas
Used for book, journal, or magazine titles

32. Colors
Reds and oranges are high-energy but can be difficult to stay focused on.
Greens, blues, and browns are mellower, but not as attention grabbing.
White on dark background should not be used if the audience is more than 20 feet away.
This set of slides is a good example.
You can easily read the slides up close.
It is harder to read the further away you get.

33. Backgrounds A white on a dark background is used for slides if:
Most users will view the presentation on their own computer.
Having a dark background on a computer screen reduces glare.

34. The Color Wheel
Colors separated by another color are contrasting colors (also known as complementary)
Adjacent colors (next to each other) harmonize with one another. e.g. Green and Yellow
The color wheel below is simplified for easy use

35. Clashing Colors
Colors that are directly opposite from one another are said to clash.
These provide readability - e.g. yellow on blue.

36. To make a slide stand out, change the font or background
Attention Grabber
To make a slide stand out, change the font or background

37. Illustrations
Use only when needed, otherwise they become distracters instead of communicators
They should relate to the message and help make a point
Ask yourself if it makes the message clearer
Simple diagrams are great communicators

38. Flipcharts Make letters at least a 1/4 high
Flipcharts with lines are much easier to write on

39. Aspect Ratios for Media
Overhead Transparency 4:5
Video 3:4
35mm Transparency 2:3

40. Overhead & 35mm Screen Size for Readability
1/4 inch ’ ’ ’ ’ ’
3/8 inch ’ ’ ’ ’ ’
1/2 inch ’ ’ ’ ’ ’
Examples:
1/4” type shown on a screen size of 6’ can be seen 30’ away (20 point Times Roman equals 1/4” type)
1/2” type shown on a 10’ screen can be seen 75’ away (40 point Times Roman equals 1/4” type)

41. YOU Do not use the media to hide you The audience came to see you
The media should enhance the presentation, not BE the presentation
If all you are going to do is read from the slides or overheads, then just send them the slides
Remember, only you can prevent
“Death by PowerPoint”

42. Scientific Presentations: Do’s and Don’ts

43. Scientific Presentation
1) Prepare your material carefully and logically. Tell a story. The story should have four parts:
(a) Introduction (b) Method (c) Results
(d) Conclusion/Summary.
"Tell'em what you are going to tell'em. Tell'em. Then tell'em what you told'em."

44. Scientific Presentation
2) Practice your talk
3) Don't put in too much material
4) Avoid equations
5) Have only a few conclusion points

45. Scientific Presentation
6) Talk to the audience not to the screen
7) Avoid making distracting sounds like “ uuuhhh” and “mmm”
8) Polish your graphics
9) Use humor if possible, but don’t go overboard
10) Check your viewgraphs before you give the talk
11) Switch off your cell phones if possible.

46. Scientific Presentation
12) Be personable in taking questions.
First, repeat the question.
If you don't know the answer then say "I don't know, I will have to look into that."
If the questioner disagrees with you and it looks like there will be an argument then defuse the situation.
Never insult the questioner ( S/he may have contacts you don’t know about!
13) Thank you Slide

47. Handouts: Few Tips

48. Printing handouts

49. Handouts Passing out Handouts: Can pass it out during presentation
If flow interrupted, pass out before start
If more than one, can give out “package”

50. Conclusion Use of properly formatted slides
Use of basic effective presentation skills
Effective use of presentation skills in scientific presentations
Handouts

53. Thank you; Any questions? vksathyajit@gmail.com