Not done this before, I’m comfortable presenting in front of a large audience but never “students” before. Any good tips?

Check any slides for typos/grammar.

Remember most of them will be hung over or asleep.

Yup….. Spell-Check everything. Good luck.

Most of them will be in Starbuck’s discussing how they should totally take a year out as no one understands how hard it is studying.

Mackem – Member
Check any slides for typos/grammar.

🙂

Tell them lots of really funny jokes.

Make sure you tell them how hip, cool and down with the kids you are. Use slang wherever possible.

Write your name on the blackboard, explain how to say it correctly and make them all repeat it. Twice.

Call a register

Make more funny jokes

Tell anyone off who tries to leave early

Pick out the most hung over person and bombard them with questions to ensure comprehension.

That should do for starters…

Don’t make bad jokes.

Resist the strong urge you get to shout ‘concentrate, listen and appreciate what I am doing for you, you lazy, disinterested idiots’. You are likely to get it around 10 minutes in when you realise you are wasting your time and they really don’t care.

Edit: When one of them inevitably picks up their mobile halfway through the lecture, you ARE legally allowed to rip the skin off their face.

Don’t stare at the fitties, for too long anyway!!

start with a rap?

Thanks guys, been over my presentation with a fine tooth comb and its sorted. I just don’t really know how to deal with student.

Any tips? Yup, when you ‘give’ the lecturer make little mewing sounds, bound to get you an A.

About to give a lectureR at a uni for the first time, any tips?

There’s still time to fix it 🙂

I suspect you’ll have nothing to “deal with” – just remember you know more than them so be confident with any questions. If you dont know the answer dont bluff it, admit it and promise to get back to them.

I read that as “About to give a lecturer at a uni one for the first time, any tips?”

😀

BTW, my missus is a university lecturer.

fine–tooth comb

😆

Students are just people too. The only difference is they go to a LOT more lectures than most people, far more frequently. So they’ll be/look more bored.

Just be prepared for a disinterested audience.

Don’t stare at the fitties, for too long anyway!!

Must. Resist.

They used to advise imaginin :-)g your audience without any clothes on, but it could get you into trouble these days….

Good point about not bluffing, its very tempting to try and answer a question you dont know.

BTW I am not a lecturer just a guest speaker on a technical subject.

Cartwheel on to the stage ,then in to a handstand .
At the same time ,use the laser pointer to trigger a switch for some top tunes .
This will all go a long way to cancel out any power point induced coma .

HTH 🙂

had a lecturer who was pretty nervous once, his microphone was playing up so he held it….to the amusement of everyone all you could hear when he held it was the booming extremely rapid heart beat from his thumb!! poor bloke was in a state!

dry lectures are dull, try to make it at least interesting rather than an hour of information overload.

If it’s a smallish class, <20 say, then try for some engagement by asking questions, speaking to individuals etc.
You can do this with larger classes as well, but it’s far harder to get results.
If it’s a large class, then delivering a good, effective lecture is difficult. Giving an OK one is easy, though, as you just give your presentation, try your best to make connections, and don’t get put off if you’re getting nothing back.

by asking questions

When no-one answers, have a ‘typical’ question/answer lined up ready. For example, say ‘I am often asked…’

If their normal lecturer is there, they *should* at least help by asking some questions.

Dont take your colleague’s word for it when covering his class and go to the room they said and then have have to sprint across campus to the correct room to deliver the lecture to the entire year in a sweaty, gasping mess

Random thoughts…

Students (actually most people) have a short attention span when in a lecture. That means you need to shift how you present as the lecture goes on. Slides and talking at students will turn them into passive learning mode and it is easy to switch off, so have some interactive bits which force them to think. Ask questions. If you don’t get an answer either pick someone to answer or give clues until they all know the answer. Once you’ve had someone answer a question, get their name, and for the next question ask them to pick the person who should answer it.

A short video also helps keep attention as it moves the focus from you to the screen.

Don’t have too much writing on your slides. Add images with writing as these are easier to remember. Start with an introduction where you give the structure of the lecture, and signpost as you go along (e.g. recap the previous section and say where you’re going next). Don’t make the slides your lecture notes.

Lectures, whether you like it or not, are a performance (hence lecture theatre) and it is much easier to be yourself than to take on the character of a lecturer. The best advice i got when i started lecturing was to be yourself +10%. You enthusiasm for a topic will transfer to the students, but if they aren’t convinced you know what you’re talking about they’ll switch off.

Last and no means least, lecturers who treat a lecture as a conversation/dialogue are always better than those who stick to their pre-determined script/plan. Read the body language of the audience and adapt.

Remember that there is only so much someone can learn from a lecture. What are the main ‘take home’ messages which you want the students to leave with. Repeat these a number of times. From experience, this is appreciated.

Don’t have your entire lecture transcribed on the slides, hate it when people do that, you might aswell just start the powerpoint slideshow and sit down and have a coffee while we read it.

Had to do a few lectures to students (safety stuff) ignore the odd couple of people chatting/texting aslong as they aren’t taking the piss, you’re not going to get 100% silence/obedience and their rapt attention so don’t even try.

what are the main ‘take home’ messages which you want the students to leave with.

And as the old adage goes….

Start by telling them what you are going to tell them.

Tell them it.

Finish by telling them what you have just told them.

We had some lecturers who read from powerpoint slides and made them available to download. It was great, there was no need to go to most lectures.

We had some lecturers who just stood up and talked with the occasional bit of chemistry on the whiteboard. IT was really annoying as you spent all your time furiously writing and not really taking much in. Get a balance so people can actually think about what you are saying but still leave with the right information

We had one guy who went off on a tangent about 5 minutes in to his first lecture. When he cam back for the second one we realised it wasn’t a tangent but the course content. So give a good introduction so people understand where you are going.

We had a physical chemistry lecturer who’s letters all looked the same, his v, n, u, w, mju etc. it was a nightmare. Make sure if you handwrite things that people can read them.

If you want their attention tell them it is likely to be in the exam.

Depends on size of group but be interested in what you are saying, ask students questions and give examples. I don’t see them as a place to deliver information, but as an opportunity to awaken students’ interest and explain the contours of a subject. Students should (and do) go and find and digest the details themselves.

Also, tell bad jokes.

Make stuff up and see if anyone notices

One person once wrote something i made up in an exam paper 😳

If any of the students are disruptive, i.e. they talk or whatever, throw something at them. You will be known as a hardass and will have the respect of the entire class.

I had a lecturer like that…although he did once get put up against a wall by a student apparently (the student was chucked out of the uni after that).

If there’s a fit one in the front row…spend an inordinate amount of time talking to her whilst ignoring the rest of the room. Then at the end of the lecture write your number on the projector and tell the students that they can contact you at anytime if they have any questions about anything…then look directly at the fit one and say “anything” in a suggestive manner.

Send facebook friend requests to all students after the lecture, and then repeatedly message the fit one.

You should probably watch Dead Poets Society and incorporate most of that into your lecture.

Check your fly is done up before you go in the room/lecture theatre.

If there are any mature students in the audience then they are your best hope for people who stay awake, pay attention and maybe even ask questions. But they won’t be fitties so you’ll need to divide your attention carefully.

Went really well, had some very engaged questions and some that I couldn’t answer so will email them. No one even yawned!!

so will email them

Rookie error – have them go and find out and tell you. Glad it went well 🙂