Giving Academic Presentations provides guidance on academic-style presentations for university students. A goal of the text is to make presenters aware that giving an effective academic presentation requires mastery of a broad range of skills. The presentation genres addressed in the book are: making introductions, describing and comparing objects, explaining a process, defining a concept, and giving a problem-solution speech. Among the many academic skills and concepts addressed in the book are:Examination of major speech types and the accompanying organizational strategies Discussion of speech overviews and suggestions for designing them and creating visuals to accompany them Suggestions for speaker-listener interaction including checking for understanding, soliciting questions from the audience, preparing for and responding to questions, and interrupting the speaker to ask questions or request clarification Discussion of the importance of using evidence in academic speaking and the advantages of using certain types of evidence Suggestions of ways to qualify claims and strategies for making weaker or stronger claims Strategies and practice to improve pausing, stress, and intonation Practical advice about preparing and practicing speeches Opportunities for presenters to evaluate their own and others’ work The Second Edition includes many new tasks and additional speeches; more attention to working with and using visuals; information about computer projection and using PowerPoint; and new sections on presenting biographical information, referring to handouts, and giving research presentations.
