COMS12303: Information on Presentations

All students are required to produce and deliver a presentation on a topic from Origins of Computer Science in front of the class. You will be working in pairs.

The allocation of students to time slots is available here.

There are 30 pairs of you, and we have four 50 minute slots timetabled, so that works out at 6min40 per student. Therefore, the presentations are to be FIVE MINUTES long at the maximum (to allow for change-over time and questions) We will be very strict with the timing - we will cut you off at five minutes, and you will lose marks if you have not concluded.

You will need to have a structured and well rehearsed presentation to deliver information effectively in the time available.

You should include:

1. An introduction;
2. Historical background;
3. Your interpretation of the material;
4. A conclusion.

Please bear in mind two important points when creating your presentation:

• You have only 5 minutes, and this means that you will not be able to get through more than about 4 slides effectively. Further, any slide should not contain more than three or four bullet points.
• Please rehearse your presentation. This is the only way you will manage to keep to time; five minutes is not very long once you start speaking!

All students are advised to read the following guide to producing a short presentation. When reading the guide, please note that several of the slides (including the title slide) are intended to illustrate bad style, which is to be avoided. The guide is equally relevant whether electronic presentations are used or not.

Topic

The topic is anything of your choice from the course. i.e. pick a topic that has interested you from one of the discussion sessions, and create a presentation from that. The presentation may cover the same ground as one of your essays, but don't just give the same information - those details which may appear interesting on paper may not be interesting when included in an oral presentation.

Technology

Powerpoint/beamer etc. based presentations are catered for, but it is not compulsary to use such an approach (in fact, many good short presentations are produced without such technological aids). A whiteboard will also be available.

All digital presentations must be provided in .pdf format by submitting them via the online system by the midnight before the presentation slot. Please name the presentation as your UserID.

This will enable me to sew them together, so that we can fit the presentations in the slots provided. N.B. You need only submit one copy of the presentation per pair.

Marking criteria

You will be marked on your performance in three categories, which will be combined to form your final mark. Both members of the pair will receive the same mark (unless one member does not contribute properly). The categories are:

1. Content --- how much new and interesting information is being conveyed to the class.
2. Style --- how good is your presentation organisation and clarity of presentation.
3. Delivery --- how easy is it to understand the speaker(s), and has the presentation been practised beforehand to ensure the timing is correct.

Please bear these in mind when composing your presentation.