Common Mistakes When Making A Class Presentation

by mit-admin

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A class presentation is a vital skill that helps students develop many adjoining skills crucial to brave the real world and the job market of various diverse industries worldwide. 

The various skills that one can hope to develop while preparing for a class presentation are – 

  • Communication Skills
  • Presenting Skills
  • Leadership Skills
  • Research Skills
  • Listening Skills
  • Drafting Skills 
  • Public Speaking Skills & more.

 

All the skills mentioned above make a powerful combination that students can equip themselves with during their early learning days to face the challenges they might face during their progressive educational days or early career days. IB board schools in India, like MIT Gurukul, help students develop presentation skills from a very young age. 

The teachers and the board aim to groom students to face the challenges of advanced communication and presentations that require skills that take years to develop. The teachers at MIT Gurukul understand that mastering school presentations takes time, so they prompt students to present their projects to the class and then help them improve on their areas of weakness. 

This article focuses on the most common presentation mistakes that students commit while presenting their projects to the class in front of their peers and teachers. Let us now understand the various presentation mistakes and how we can help students correct themselves – 

  • Not Making Proper Introduction – This is the first mistake we make while starting our presentation. The nervousness tends to take the edge off us, and we dive straight into the project without adequately introducing ourselves. This mistake lingers throughout the presentation, making the stakeholders focus only on the negative aspects of our presentation. After stepping into the presentation area, we advise you to take a deep breath and start by introducing yourself, your role and your project to make a better impression.

 

  • Overcrowding Your Slides – Too much information can be bad information as it can be overwhelming to the presenter and the readers. It would help if you designed the slides simply yet elegantly and presented information that might seem relevant to the project. Another trick that makes your presentation more attractive is to explain to the viewers more information on the topic that might not be present in the slides but is relevant.

 

  • Reading From Presentation Slides –  Ensure that you explain the points in the slides more effectively and in detail and not just read what is written on the slide. By reading from presentation slides, one can signal that they are not prepared for the topic as adequately as required or prescribed, which can lead to the deduction of points.

 

  • Poor Body Language – Poor body language can lead to a poor presentation. Everyone expects the presenters to be passionate about their project to attract more attention and value to the things they explain. Always keep your shoulder straight and your chin up and face the audience directly to make more impact.

 

  • Complicated Data Visualisation – School presentations can be overwhelming, which can lead to stuffing your projects with data that might not even be relevant. Always keep the presentation simple and use data visualisations that are easy to understand and relate to. This will help hook the readers and listeners to pay more attention to the presenter and enjoy the process.

 

  • Lack Of Hierarchy On The Slides –  Always organise your slides in a manner that connects one slide to another. The lack of hierarchy on the slides can lead to confusion and result in the listeners losing interest mid-way. A proper hierarchy will also help the presenter perform better as they can guide the audience to the following slides and subsequently to the following topics.

 

  • Lack Of Preparation For The Presentation – By not preparing for the presentation in advance, it is very likely that you will stumble while presenting your slides, which can lead to negative remarks from the stakeholders. For a more positive impact, ensure that you practise your words and reading skills before presenting the project.

 

  • Not Asking For Questions Or Feedback – A class presentation aims to ensure that all the stakeholders, in this case, students and teachers, understand the topics. For this to happen, ask peers if they would like to ask any questions to clear their doubts. Asking feedback and questions is a mark of confidence and will indicate to the teachers that you are confident in how you’ve presented and prepared the project, which will attract better grades.

 

  • Going Off Topic – This is a ubiquitous presentation mistake and can lead to trouble while presenting an important topic. To avoid this mistake, equip yourself with all the relevant information.

 

  • Not Doing Your Research – Not doing adequate research can make the presentation go off-topic, derailing the entire project and leading to poor grades. Always research thoroughly on all the aspects of your topic, which will boost your confidence and make you a better presenter.

 

  • Not Using Eye Contact – To appear confident in your project, maintain eye contact with your peers. Look around the class and explain the topic to people while looking at them; this will help establish your rapport with your class, which will come in handy while answering their questions.

 

  • Speaking Too Fast Or Too Slow – This is one common mistake that all of us make. Speak at your regular pace, and do not panic. You need to talk at your average pace to maintain listeners’ attention, which will invite poor feedback.

 

  • Not Being Engaging – Make your presentation more interactive, ask your peers a few questions, and soak in their feedback; this will help make the class more alert and fun.

 

  • Not Being Confident – Always look confident in your body language and speak clearly. By not being confident, your presentation will look dull and meek and will fail to grab the attention of your teachers and peers, which can result in poor performance.

 

  • Ending On A Negative Note – Ending your presentation on a negative note can negatively impact the entire project. We advise you always to end a presentation optimistically, which will invite more positive questions and constructive feedback. 

We hope this post has helped you realise the most common presentation mistakes and how the best CBSE schools across India in Pune and IB board schools help tackle and avoid these mistakes! We also hope you understand how to improve your presentation by avoiding these mistakes for better grades and prospects!

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