Aspects of presentation Essay Example

Stewart et al. (2000), and Griffin (2003), the outcomes of reflective practice for educators are invaluable.

This essay is a reflective account of a ten-minute micro-teaching presentation that was part of the author's academic requirements as a third-year undergraduate in the department of nursing and social work studies (learning disabilities). The Gibbs reflective cycle (1988) will be used to facilitate critical thought and relate theory to practice where possible. The Gibbs model of reflection includes description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and an action plan.The topic I have chosen for my micro-teaching session is promoting personal hygiene among people with learning disabilities. I am motivated by the belief that good personal hygiene is crucial to a service user's physical, psychological, social, and emotional health and well-being. Unfortunately, this is often overlooked by professionals and service users themselves. As joint practitioners, it is our duty to promote personal hygiene among service users. The aim of this teaching session is to enable my colleagues to understand the importance of personal hygiene habits in promoting present and future health of service users, while achieving my set learning outcomes. Choosing this topic was challenging for me as I had to research and present it in a way that would increase learners' knowledge. According to Knowles (1990), adult learning is life-centered compared to children's subject-centered orientation to learning. This micro-teaching session serves as an assessment of my skill acquisition, and the lecturer will assess my performance during the presentation based on a standard.The "task model" of standards assessment, as described by Gearing & Coleman (1996), outlines the steps necessary for an individual to demonstrate competence. In my preparations and planning, I assessed

the group's learning needs and considered their differing learning styles, as recommended by Miller and Byrne (2002). Using questions, answers, and quizzes, I gathered information to involve the students in their own learning. To help students identify areas for development and correct negative behavior, Oliver et al (1994) suggest teachers must maximize strengths and minimize weaknesses. Throughout my planning, I prioritized the ability to manage time and meet deadlines, develop communication skills in writing, speech, vocal modulation, gestures, non-verbal cues, and clarify explanations and examples.In addition to enhancing my organizational skills, I focused on improving various aspects of my presentation including session structure, effective opening and closing, smooth transitions between sections, clear learning objectives, optimal use of time, engaging student participation, maintaining eye contact, and incorporating real-life examples. To achieve this, I spent considerable time planning and preparing for the session. My efforts paid off as I believe my objectives were well-suited to the materials I had compiled. Although I was initially nervous when presenting, attending other sessions helped me gain valuable insights into effective teaching practices. As an observer of my peers' presentations, I was better able to focus on evaluating their teaching competencies in detail and comparing them to my own. Additionally, I effectively utilized teaching aids such as handouts and powerpoints to enhance the learning experience.Performing better during my turn to present was the most valuable lesson I learned, as observing my peers allowed me to recognize important aspects I tend to overlook. According to Hammerless-Teacher and Orisons (2005), peer observation can provide an objective view of a teaching session and inform future practices. Having a peer in the classroom provides an

additional dimension, especially compared to personal journaling. Despite initial nervousness and anxiety, self-exploration helped me bring awareness to myself as a therapeutic tool used by nurses, stabilizing my self-concept and elevating my self-esteem for the presentation. Teaching for 10 minutes exposed my strengths and weaknesses as an instructor while revealing the realities of students in a classroom. This teaching experience taught me a lot about public speaking, an issue I have always had difficulty with.When I start speaking, I tend to build up anticipation so much that it consumes me. My voice often shakes and I speak slowly at first, but eventually become comfortable and actually enjoy the experience of interacting with the audience. Encroaching has many benefits, such as sharpening specific teaching skills and correcting errors, as well as helping teachers understand important classroom behaviors. Encroaching also increases the confidence of learner teachers. However, I noticed that after presenting, my voice was dry and scratchy due to the amount of speaking required in a class period. My pacing was slow and I made mistakes, such as using "THEE" too often and forgetting to mention important cultural beliefs about personal hygiene. Despite these challenges, I believe that I did my best. Managing time in a speaking class can be difficult, and it is easier for me to lead reading or writing classes. My peers' performances made me reflect on how to become a better presenter. Ultimately, I believe that experience is the best teacher.The presentation taught me that teachers must encourage students to be more enthusiastic and active. As a teacher, it is important to create appropriate teaching materials that suit the students' level. I

remembered my peers' advice to teach from the heart, which helped me to overcome my initial concerns about the difficulty of the presentation. Through practicing from the heart, I found micro-teaching more interesting and gained confidence when I saw my peers' concentration and increasing interest in the subject matter. In future micro-teaching sessions, I would speed up discussion, project my voice, control my nerves, and carefully choose my language to make presentations more effective for the audience. Feedback from my peers and lecturer identified my areas of strength such as a good introduction, aims and objective, link to practice and policies, knowledge of the subject, and a quiz. Reflection is an important skill for both students and teachers in their professional development.