Blog 1 Anhelina Muravska

 The first assignment for Introduction to Public Speaking involved giving a group presentation based on chapters from the book. In my opinion, this assignment was very interesting since it gave me an insight into how various groups delivered a similar type of assignment in various ways. Every group had its own method of organizing the information, using the slide designs, and giving presentations in class. This made the assignment more interesting and gave me different examples of how a presentation can be organized.

I learned quite much from listening to all those presentations. It was interesting to see how the groups differed in their approach to delivering that particular kind of assignments. There were groups which concentrated on visual effects, while some groups were impressive because of the way they spoke. All this was despite the fact that all groups were delivering presentations based on the chapters in one textbook.

My group presented first. This gave me a chance to reflect more about our flaws and weaknesses. One thing we did well was speaking clearly and confidently. It was easy to understand what each person was saying. We all stayed focused on the information from the chapters. I also liked the video we included in our presentation, because it kept the audience engaged, connected well with the topic, and helped the audience understand the information better.

My group also had some weaknesses. The biggest problem was our slideshow. Each of us made our own slides, so they looked different and were not well organized. This made the presentation look less professional and more distracting. In case, we planned this presentation prior to its demonstration, I am convinced, that it would look much better and attract audience's attention. I learned from this experience that presentation looks as well as it sounds because its appearance influences people's perception of its content.

Speaking about the second group, I should admit that it delivered an outstanding presentation. Its smoothness and clarity made it pleasant to listen to. Also, the speakers showed themselves to be ready and confident in what they were telling people, thus keeping audience interested in the presentation. Moreover, I appreciated the choice of videos which corresponded perfectly to the topic.

There is only one thing that could have been improved by this group while preparing the presentation. They needed to include charts, diagrams, or any other statistical data because sometimes they were able to explain certain facts very well; however, adding something like that would emphasize some concepts even more. Charts and diagrams help make a connection between the information told by the speaker and seen by the audience. Overall, I think that they presented their chapters effectively and clearly.

Finally, I want to talk about my favorite group, which is the third one. I thought they balanced organization, confidence, and audience engagement well. Their presentation felt natural and well-prepared. The group members transitioned smoothly between topics. It was very easy to understand what they had to say because all of them were comfortable while presenting and knew their subject very well.

Another point I liked about their presentations was that they were confident. The manner in which they spoke was captivating and clear and helped us understand what they wanted to convey. Overall, their presentation was by far the best for me. Seeing them make me realize that one must be ready and confident before he can start his speech. Their teamwork was another impressive factor as each one of them synchronized well with their fellow presenter.

The fourth group also had a great presentation. One of their strengths was their speaking. Each speaker explained their ideas clearly and confidently. The delivery of their information was done professionally and comprehensively. I could tell they had practiced and were comfortable presenting in front of the class.

A major drawback in terms of the group’s performance was in the visual elements that were employed in the slides. Some of the text was hard to read because of the colors they used. Since visuals are an important part of presentations, it is important that the audience can read the text easily. Even though the speakers presented their chapters very clearly, improving the visual design would make the presentation even stronger.

Finally, I want to mention our managers of the class. Their job was to introduce each group as well as give the conclusion at the end. In my opinion, they were well-prepared and spoke very natural as part of every group presentation. Their task was harder than ours because they had to stay involved during the entire presentation and make sure everything transitioned smoothly. They also helped create a more organized environment in class. At the end, they pointed out the advantages of each group, which made it clear that they were playing close attention throughout the presentation and noticing details. I think they did a really good job helping connect everything together and keeping the class organized.

The other important factor was the influence of confidence on the attention of the audience. Being ready, people managed to keep calm enough to give information to the listeners. However, the lack of confidence sometimes influenced negatively the way students presented. It is interesting that even when students were not sure in their knowledge, if they were prepared, they could manage to continue their speech and inform people of everything. Some small nuances, such as eye contacts, pacing and the way of speaking also had an effect. The process of watching everyone presenting helped me realize what should be paid more attention to when giving my presentation.

Thus, reflecting on the process of watching presentations helped me realize the significance of preparation and communication skills in general and in particular. In addition, it became clear to me that visual presentation is as important as oral one, since it also has its purpose. Evaluating our presentation, I realized some weak aspects of it which we should improve in future and work hard on. Thus, it is evident that this task was quite productive for me personally.