Making Effective Oral Presentations in English in an Academic Context What is Oral Communication?

Oral communication is a process whereby information is transferred directly face to face from a sender to receiver or between two or more persons. In oral communication, the sender and receiver exchange their thoughts or ideas verbally either in face-to-face discussion or through any mechanical or electrical device like telephone and visual aid. it is an important and effective way of communicating an ideas and plans to the target audience. It are often used to present information, thoughts, and lessons at an educational institutions, business organizations, government meetings, seminars, conferences and at scientific meetings, therefore, it is necessary to acquire some basic knowledge to be eligible for oral presentation to the target audience When it is face to face, the person conveying can ask questions or sometimes when the communication is not understandable in a proper manner, he can elucidate its meaning. Oral communication is generally possible where there can be either a direct contact or message to be conveyed is of impermanent nature. Meetings and conferences, lectures and interviews are some examples of oral communication. Oral communications brings advantages from a certain point of view where it has the distinct advantage of being quick and prompt and provides the opportunity to both the transmitter and receiver of the message to respond directly. Oral communication also facilitates close contact and thus promotes mutual exchange of thoughts, information, understanding and support. Under business senses, through direct contact undeniably be able to plant a sense of self-importance in the subordinates, which successively acts as an inspiring element to helps in by bringing a responsive and supportive morale among employees of an organization. Superior too are able to make a rapid evaluation of subordinates action as well as reaction to any message transmitted where obviously it could assists the superior to diminish and prevent differences and revamp plans and policies according to the need of time and conditions.

What is Presentation? Normally, as a general perception, it can be difficult to speak in front of a group and it is especially hard for the first time. There may be some mistakes which are part of the learning process. It should be kept in mind that any questions that you are asked by the listeners or audience are not meant to take personally. So, dont be afraid of questions, they are in fact intended to further the understanding of your presentation. The presentation should be organized in the best possible manner similar to the scientific reports, with general categories for example Introduction, Material and Methods, Results, and Discussion/Conclusion. In fact, a good oral presentation is an art that involves attention to the needs of your audience, careful planning and attention to delivery. Some basic questions to ask about an audience include: Who is target audience? What prior information they already have about my topic? What will they further want to know about my topic? What do I want them to know by the end of my presentation? In an effective presentation, the content and structure are adjusted to the medium of speech. When listening, we cannot go back over a difficult point to understand it or easily absorb long arguments. A presentation can easily be ruined if the content is too difficult and complicated for the audience to follow. As a general rule, expect to cover much less content than you would in a written report. Make difficult points easier to understand by preparing the listener for them, using plenty of examples and going back over them later. Leave sufficient time for questions within the presentation. Always give presentation a simple look and logical structure. Include an introduction in which you outline the points you intend to cover and a conclusion in which you go over the main points of your talk. There may be very few peoples having ability to speak confidently in public, but in usual, everyone gets nervous but in fact everyone can learn how to improve their presentation skills by applying a few simple techniques. The main points to pay attention to in delivery are the quality of your voice, your appearance, your rapport with the audience, use of notes and effective and attractive use of visual aids. Voice quality involves attention to volume, speed and fluency, clarity and pronunciation. The quality of your voice in a presentation will improve dramatically if you are able to practice before final presentation. Rapport with the audience involves attention to eye contact, sensitivity to how the audience is responding to your talk and what you look like from the point of view of the audience. These can be improved by practicing in front of one or two friends or videotaping your rehearsal or just standing in front of mirror like most of the actors

do. Good speakers vary a great deal in their use of notes. Some do not use notes at all and some write out their talk in great detail. If you are not an experienced speaker it is not a good idea to speak without notes because you will soon lose your continuity. You should also avoid reading a prepared text aloud or memorizing your speech, as this will be boring. The best solution may be to use notes with headings and points to be covered. You may also want to write down key sentences. Notes can be on paper or cards. Some speakers use overhead transparencies as notes. The trick in using notes is to avoid shiftg your attention from the audience for too long. Your notes should always be written large enough for you to see without moving your head too much. Visual aids help to make a presentation livelier. They can also help the audience to follow your presentation and help you to present information that would be difficult to follow through speech alone.

IMPORTANCE OF ENGLISH English language are important in the academic context because english is currently the most wide spread language in the world, it is second only to Mandarin Chinese in terms of the amount of people which speak it, but second to none in terms of the number of people learning it. It is currently the primary language used on the World Wide Web, in the political and in business arenas. It has even become the language of today's pop culture. Some studies have been made by the Health Science professionals from a large number of Higher Education Centers in Europe to evaluate the importance of English for academic development as one of the most relevant competences and a stepping stone towards international education in this field to show the importance of English in the academic context in Europe where studies has been made and the findings in Figure n. 5 strongly suggest that most (77 out of 80, 99%) of the subjects considered English language a VERY IMPORTANT or IMPORTANT tool (aLingua Franca) to communicate in the Academic/Scientific World. French and Spanish

languages are not considered as relevant as means of communication in this field as shown in the graph below.

DEFINITION OF SPEAKING From the dictionary, we can find that speaking means to utter intelligible speech, to talk to some one about something or just having a conversation and speech just means a talk especially a formal one given to a group of people. While we are speaking in English , it is wise if we practiced correct pronunciation and intonation in giving a speech or just daily used because it can affect the meaning of the word that we are about to say. For example, She sells the seashells at the seashores. SAY IT RIGHT OR IT WILL MEANS SOMETHING ELSE. DO WE NEED SPEECH IN OUR DAILY LIFE? There are some who would argue that the power of the press and the new venues available to the media today have minimized the importance of speech in modern life. After all, who needs public speaking skills when all they have to do is put their thoughts on a billboard or a newspaper headline and display it for the whole world to see? The widespread accessibility of television, radio and, perhaps most significantly, the Internet, coupled with the proper presentation, has made it so that the most awkward of public speakers can inspire and make their voice heard. These individuals would be wrong. The spoken word, properly presented and supported with strength and conviction, still holds sway in every aspect of life as strongly as it did when the nations weren't connected by the World Wide Webperhaps even more so, because international relations are now as commonplace as sitting down in the morning to a bowl of cereal. Imagine a treaty or a trade agreement in the League of Nations being conducted by men and women without any ability in public speaking. It would be a nightmare! No one would be able to sway the conviction of anyone else to their point of view. The arguments would go on for hours with nothing being accomplished.

CHANGE THE WAY YOU THINK Taking the concept of the importance of speech and public speaking skills one step further, imagine a doctor, a lawyer or a businessman without the ability to give dictation. Their letters and charts would be a jumble of half-finished thoughts and poorly formulated ideas. The ability to speak clearly to a single individual or, in many cases, into a tape recorder is an acquired one, and often more difficult that standing up in front of a large but still largely anonymous crowd. The selfconsciousness that stands between the speaker and success still exists, perhaps more acutely because there is nothing to draw the focus of the speaker away from the words he is speaking and onto the passion and the motivation behind them. These interactions cannot be done with a piece of paper or a cleverly designed website. These mediums, while unarguably useful for presenting ideas on a wide scale, don't allow for the interchange of ideas that is so vital for progress. Yes, the Internet has chat capability. Yes, the telephone and the fax machine are marvelous inventions. There is still nothing like a conversation held face to face, looking into the eye of your ally or adversary as you state your case. It is far more difficult to deny a well formatted argument spoken in a clear, passionate voice than a screen or a page decorated with the latest graphics capability. Speech is what gives these ideas the impetus that moves them from the mind out into society.

The importance of Public Speaking There are a multitude of reasons that public speaking is important. Some of them are listed down as below:

By learning how to effectively speak in public, you'll be able to increase your own self-confidence. Since public speaking is one of the most prevalent fears in the world, by enabling yourself to master this difficult skill you'll have the confidence that you need to meet and greet future challenges. Public speaking regularly tends to helps to make you feel more comfortable around other people, including strangers. Once you're capable of greeting and instructing an entire room full of strangers (or at least most of them strangers), it'll be nothing to smile and shake hands and meet new individuals in more personal and less threatening circumstances. Public speaking will help fine-tune your everyday verbal and non-verbal communication skills. This is especially true for people who spend a great deal of time working with the written word, and have forgotten how to properly vocalize their messages to get their points across best. It's important because at some point in life, just about everyone will be required to involve themselves in one type of public speaking or another. Accepting this fact quickly and preparing for it accordingly will help you wind up a step ahead of your competition at work or at home. For obvious reasons, the ability to dive into public speaking and related communication skills are a big winner among prospective employers. Public speaking ability is a true career booster. Using public speaking effectively will allow you to make a difference in your business, community and perhaps even the world. By sharing your information with others, you're better able to increase the impact of your hopes, dreams, desires and goals for your life and the world around you.

Because by the time you've learned to embody the importance of public speaking, you'll have learned another key principle. We can better persuade people when we are able to appeal to them as human beings that have emotions, desires and thoughts just like we do. This is the difference between distinguishing between simple an audience of bosses, employees or clients and transforming them in your mind into people with real problems, hopes, fears, dreams and desires. Public speaking is often a powerful way to make a good impression on others and to help bridge gaps in understanding, cooperation and set goals and objectives. Public speaking is by nature important because it's a primary and powerful avenue to give of your self and to share with others in a profitable way and is a perfect way for compelling give and take that is hard to match any other way.

PREPARING AN ORAL PRESENTATIONS