We (Hillary and Melis) were new to BPL 5100 during the Fall 2008 semester, and both felt that there was a lot to process once it had ended. After a semester of working with BPL student groups to prepare them for their capstone presentations, we wanted to find a way to use the blog to share our experiences. We came up with the idea of recording a videochat, thinking that it would be an experiment in having a public dialogue that would hopefully invite others to join the post-semester wrap-up.
We chose to focus on the theme of the ‘audience’ because we thought this was an important aspect of how students prepare for their presentations, and because it’s also the topic of the Spring symposium. We discussed the different ideas of the ‘audience’ that we found while rehearsing BPL presentations, as well as different aspects of what audience means for us as Communication Fellows, for our students, professors, and in the business environment.
Video chat is something we had often used for personal purposes but its usefulness for sharing ideas and communicating in the work environment is something we hadn’t fully explored. We’re including a short clip from our chat below, which will give you a glimpse into our conversation. We are looking for your comments and hope that this will help to generate new ideas about the role of the audience in student oral presentations as well as the potential use of video chat in increasing communication.
* Update January 19: A response from Agnieska:
May I say “brilliant” without offending anyone?This video conversation by Hillary and Melis comes at a very opportune time relative to my teaching at Maritime.By in large we (especially students, but professors are also a bit lax here) do not give adequate consideration to the audience. Hilliary and Melis have provided superb commentary that deserves thought by us all.I will be directing my students to this clip.However, let me return to four critical words, “conceive of an audience.” Professor prompts in class may not be enough to help students do what we wish them to do in this regard.I participate as a “member of the senior management team” during presentations by our capstone students. Now I have had some real life experience in this area so I think I’m fairly representative of the ilk to which the presentations are being given. Yet the students miss the mark in understanding what should be presented and how for, I think, many of the reasons mentioned in the video clip.This is an area of teaching opportunity. Video clips from actual senior management meetings would be useful, but likely difficult to get.Anyway, there is always more to do.Hillary and Melis, thanks.
Thanks much for your response, James. Your idea of utilizing video clips from actual senior management meetings is an interesting one, and it underscores your point that merely prompting students to conceive of their audience in a particular way isn’t enough to get them to go the distance. It’s maybe akin to certain acting philosophies that suggest that personal, lived experience (living as a coal miner before playing a coal miner, say) is crucial to portraying the role. But if the students have never had the experience of facing the audience we want them to imagine, how can we simulate this experience most effectively? Your real life experience in the area no doubt helps to close to gap here, and the teaching opportunities it opens up are plentiful…
You may wish to contact the Executives on Campus at Baruch for ideas on bringing the realty of senior management into the classroom.
It seems we can’t embed video into comments, so here is a link to my Video Response