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UNIT 6 - How to give a Good Seminar

Study Skills

Unit 6 - How to give a good seminar

Leading a seminar

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Introduction

Seminars are an important part of the academic programme you are studying. They provide an opportunity for a group of students to discuss some new material related to a topic, concept or practical that has recently been introduced. During your time at UWIC you will be encouraged to 'lead' a seminar.

Although the exact format may vary depending on your course, usually you will be asked to give some kind of presentation to the group about a particular topic or aspect of your subject and then 'manage' the discussion that takes place after it. An assessment of the presentation is often made.

You should see this as a valuable opportunity to practise your organisational and presentational skills.

This unit will help you prepare so that you will feel confident when it comes to leading, or participating in, a seminar.

Learning Outcomes

If you work through this unit, you will better be able to:

  • explain the purpose of seminars
  • prepare yourself to lead a seminar
  • identify what your assessor will be looking for in your presentation.  

What are seminars for?

A seminar is part of your timetabled academic activity. In at least one of these, you will be asked to give a presentation and lead a group in discussing a theme or topic given to you by your lecturer. Usually the presentation will be based on something like a journal article or other text chosen for its relevance to the module you are studying.

The purpose of the seminar is to give you an opportunity to explore and examine a theme or topic in reasonable depth and then to give a presentation on it to the group. This provides you with the opportunity of practising presenting to other people. After giving your presentation you will 'manage' the discussion that follows - by asking and responding to questions, controlling the group - to practice your critical, creative, organisational and managerial skills.

You, the group members and your tutor may then assess your presentation.

How should I prepare to lead a seminar?

The key to giving a good seminar is thorough preparation beforehand.

Whichever course you are on, you will always be given guidance before being asked to present and lead a seminar. If you feel unsure and feel you haven't been given enough advice on how to go about your presentation, ask for help.

Your lecturer will give you specific instructions on the way s/he wants you to present to your group. Make sure you follow them.

The following are general guidelines to give you an idea of the type of thing you will be required to do. 

General Guidelines

You will probably be given an article from a journal and asked to make a presentation based on it to the other students in the seminar group. To do this you might be given the following guidance:

The student should present their article to the group using the following format.

  1. Provide a full reference to the source of your presentation:

    The author's name and initial, the date, the title of the article, the title of the Journal, the volume and part number, and the page numbers, e.g.: 

    Churcher, J. (1990), Evaluating the effectiveness of in-service education and training. Education Today, 40 (2), 37-41.
  2. Structure the presentation as follows:
    • The problem 
      - what is the problem?
    • Introduction 
      - what does the literature survey tell you about the author's frame of reference? What are the author's hypotheses? What major references are cited?
    • Method 
      - What techniques are used? How adequate are they?
      - Are they obvious measures of reliability/validity?
      - What are the major dependent and independent variables?
    • Subjects - how was the sample size/ bias /matching arrived at?
    • Results - what statistical techniques were used? How are the results analyzed?
    • Discussion and Conclusions - summary of findings - major and subsidiary
    • Evaluation of the article  
      - strong points/other points 
      - things you agree with /disagree with. 

Once you have been given your brief (guidelines) you need to go away and work on it (them).

You might like to look at the following SEMINAR PRESENTATION SELF ASSESSMENT CHECKLIST to help prepare yourself and get a better idea of the things your preparation and presentation needs to consider. 

Stage

Things to consider

Preparation (of handouts, visual aids, overheads)

Are they necessary?

Quality

Clear and useful

Introduction

Gain interest

Too long/short

Are objectives clear?

Language

Natural

Appropriate to audience

Speech

Clearly articulate

Voice audible

Enthusiasm

Use appropriate intonation

Correct speed

Audience contact

Any?

What kind (questions, activities, use of names, eye contact with whole group)?

Mannerisms

Are they distracting?

General presentation

Confident

Clear

Use of appropriate humour?

Response to feedback

Sensitive

References

Provide in a clearly presented way

Don't overdo.

Links

With other course

Previous papers in same course

Conclusion

Good summary of major points

Make applications/implications clear where appropriate

The Evaluation

After you have given your presentation and led the seminar, you will be given an assessment of how well you dealt with the content and how well you presented it.

An example of the type of assessment you will get is given below:

Assessment of seminar performance

Name of Student:

Topic:

The Report

Introduction to the Report (interpretation of the subject and the nature of the report).

 

 

 

 

Development of the Report (logical sequence; ability to address points in the brief in depth; insight originality; relevance; evidence of research; understanding of subject; well referenced sources; constructive critical analysis).

 

 

 

 

Conclusion to the Report.

 

 

 

 

Other features (terminology, style of writing and presentation; research techniques).

 

 

 

 

The Presentation

Use of audio-visual aids (impact, imagination, innovation).

 

 

 

 

Structure of the presentation (introduction; development; conclusion; logical sequence; identification of research methods and sources; depth of evidence of research). 

 

 

 

 

Clarity of speech.

 

 

 

 

Level of interaction with the audience.

 

 

 

 

Ability to control distracting mannerisms.

 

 

 

 

Adherence to time limit.

 

 

 

 

Peer assessment of the Group.

 

 

 

 

Peer assessment of the Presentation.

 

 

 

 

Specific aspects of your Presentation and Report that the marker likes.

 

 

 

 

Specific aspects of your Presentation and Report that require some attention.

 

 

 

 

Overall Grade

 

 

 

 

Summary

If you have worked through this unit you should have a clearer idea of

  • the purpose of seminars
  • why you will be asked to ''lead" one
  • how to prepare for a seminar
  • how your performance will be assessed.

What Should I Do Now?

Remember to ask your lecturer what s/he wants from a seminar before you prepare for it.

When you come to prepare for a seminar, run through the checklist of things to do.

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This page last updated 28 Apr 2005