When I think of how I can become a better presenter, I think of some of the TED talks that I've watched in the past that were simply incredible. Some of the smartest people in the world, who are brilliant, funny, articulate and educate you as a champion of their field in less than 20 minutes. I admire their passion. I think what makes a great presentation is practice, practice, practice, but making it look spontaneous when it's delivered. I think when giving a presentation there needs to be enthusiasm and life breathed into it, but also hammering key content throughout the presentation with an element of entertainment attached to it.
I can become a better presenter by engaging my students more through a balance of humor and content. It's pretty easy to keep things dry and hammer content, but getting the ball rolling on core material and maintain an element of fun is something I think all teachers can work on. When it's in a different language, some jokes just don't translate and I would like to be better at that.
Their are several ways that 'Digitizing' the classroom is going to help make the classroom more engaging. Creating a more stimulating class with multi-media and animated programs is a critical part of the students in the digital age classroom. Students are bombarded by media everywhere they turn in order to grab their attention and in the classroom, the projector, computer and assignments need to be equally as stimulating to maintain their attention. 'Digitizing' is also going to help with organization in a number of ways. Either for the teacher to have all the classroom materials in one place - ie - computer folder, USB or on the desktop - going from one media platform to another can be seamless with the right skills in the classroom. In addition, using a social platform (facebook, schoology, etc.) for a class can also help with communicating assignments, changes to the class, as well as, having an open platform for questions outside the classroom when students are working independently. 'Digitizing,' the future of the classroom, is now, and used effectively, it can be a tool to streamline the class with multi-media platforms and communicate more effectively with students.
I feel the passion just from reading this post alone. I couldn't agree more with you when you talk about engaging students through enthusiasm, passion, drive and a balance of humor and content. Practice makes perfect with absolutely everything in life, if not just to give confidence, and develop for the future. I like the way you deliver this message with clear, precise and definite language. Nice one man, I look forward to future posts.
ReplyDeleteThird time's a charm, I've lost my two previous posts :( Both amazing, no doubt!
ReplyDeleteI like how you talk about enthusiasm and life in presentations for presentations! Those are two elements that I think are very important in the classroom. If we, as educators, give off a confident and enthusiastic image to ours students, I believe they will be more motivated and give more back during classes.
Like you, I look forward to being able to use more digital content in my classes. Definitely using it as a way to stimulate students is something I am eager to implement into my lessons.
Keep developing! Constant improvement!