Types of Presentation
All presentations, like any other kind of assessment, require planning, research, structure and revision before submission. Depending on your course requirements, you may be asked to submit work in a variety of formats. The following use images in different ways:
- Slide Presentations
- Posters (check here for more guidance on Poster Presentations)
- Leaflets
- Webpages
- Video Assignments
Each of these formats requires an academic response, using written and visual evidence which all needs to be referenced. As with any submission, analyse what are you being asked, along with the learning objectives. Looking at examples can be useful if you haven’t used this format before: be aware of conventions so you know what is expected.
Whether your presentation is live, static, or recorded, to get started, divide the project up into a series of smaller steps or parts: focus on purpose, structure and design.
Conveying Information
Visual presentations rely on a selective use of information, a concise use of words and a thoughtful use of visual materials, for example, pictures, graphs or tables. Having fewer words than an essay, it’s important to focus on the main message you want the audience to easily take away before they look at the detail. Titles are very important to frame the work and grab the audience’s attention, so spend time thinking about this.
With a slide presentation you need to explain your research in words and illustrate it with images. Think about how you can use any images as a prompt for the points you want to cover.
A leaflet, poster or webpage needs to be self-explanatory: a poster or webpage uses paragraphs, often with specific sub-headings; the text on a leaflet is more likely to be single sentences or words. All need to include illustrations which attract and inform the reader.
