Conferencing and Presentation English for Young Academics

Michael Guest is an Associate Professor of English at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Miyazaki, Japan, where he has lived and worked for over 20 years. His academic interests include medical English discourse, presentation skills, testing, discourse analysis, English as a lingua franca, Asian Englishes, classroom methodologies, and culture in second language acquisition. He is the author of a number of textbooks and guidebooks, one novel, over 60 academic papers on applied linguistics and English education, and is an award-winning speaker who has presented papers and led seminars and workshops on over 200 occasions in nearly 20 countries.

• 1 Introduction.- Part 1 The external framework of academic conferences.- 2 An 'Age of conferencing'.- 3 The TED factor.- 4 Affective factors influencing conference presentation performance.- 5 'Native' vs non-native English speakers (NES/NNES) and English as a lingua franca (ELF) at Academic Conferences.- 6 Implications of ELF for ESP/EAP teachers, learners, and international academic conference discourse.- Part 2 The conference and the structure of its core speech events.- 7 The academic functions of conference discourse.- 8 Genre and mode in the discourse community.- 9 Engagement and narrative.- Part 3 Academic conference discourse: The research background.- 10 Investigation process and research focus.- 11 Social and environmental factors.- Part 4 Practical ideas and suggestions for effective conference performance.- 12 Academic tenor and formulaic academic phrases.- 13 Conference presentation introductions and openings.- 14 The management of conference presentation outline slides.- 15 Effective conference presentation summaries, conclusions, and closings.- 16 Transition phrases in the conference presentation.- 17 Managing discussion sessions (Q&A).- 18 Intonation, visuals, text, and narrative.- 19 Managing conference presentation and discussion session breakdown (Repair).- Part 5 Academic conference agnates and extra-textual considerations.- 20 Poster sessions.- 21 Symposia, colloquia, and workshops.- 22 The attendee as a conference participant.- 23 Chairing discourse.- 24 The academic conference social dimension.- Part 6 Practical preparations for the conference presentation.- 25 Final-stage tips.