oral presentation rubric harvard

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• Oral Presentations

With some thoughtful reflection and minor modification, student presentations can be as valuable online as they are in person. In deciding how to modify your assignment for remote teaching, it is key to reflect on what you hoped to assess about your students' learning through their presentations in the first place. Were you looking to evaluate how they make an argument in a new form, conduct research, work together in a group, and/or learn to use visuals? You may have had many objectives for your assignment. You still might be able to fulfill all of them; however, you may need to consider modifying or removing one of them if it would be difficult to include all of them in one assignment. (E.g. given that it is difficult for students in disparate locations to present together, it may be worth asking whether it is more important for students to demonstrate their ability to work together to prepare the presentation, or to make an argument on the spot. If you want to assess both, do you need to modify your assignment to have some individual components and some group components?)

Below we suggest three ways to incorporate student presentations into a remote class: (1) live via Zoom ; (2) pre-recorded via Zoom ; and (3) narrated slide decks . (It is also possible to have students submit pre-recorded presentations via Canvas’ media recording function, but we find this option to be less effective than the other three options presented here.)

Live Presentations in Zoom

• courses in which all students have reliable access to the internet and are comfortable with Zoom functions such as screenshare.
• attempting to reproduce the interactivity or spontaneity of live presentations in a classroom.
• assessing/providing feedback on students’ ability to present (and possibly field questions) "live."

Pre-recorded Presentations in Zoom

• presentations that do not rely heavily/exclusively on slides (although a student can use Zoom to record a presentation that includes a slide show).

Here's one way to have students give pre-recorded oral presentations (with or without accompanying visuals) using Zoom. If students are presenting using a slide deck, it may be easier to have them record their presentations directly into Powerpoint and submit those.

1. How to record a student presentation

Students can use Zoom ( harvard.zoom.us ) to create a permanent link that can function as a sort of "private video studio"; any time they go back to their Zoom account and click on the link, it will start a solo "meeting" that is recorded until they either stop the recording or leave the meeting. This is a great way for them to record themselves giving a presentation which they can share with others, in any of their courses. Your students will have all of the capabilities that any Zoom meeting host has—for example, they will be able to share a slideshow or other piece of media from their screen while they talk. Here’s how they can do it:

• Navigate to harvard.zoom.us and login. They should see the button to “Schedule a new meeting” right near the top of the screen. They should select that option. 
• They can name the meeting anything they like—maybe something like “My personal recording studio”—and leave the description blank.
• Continuing onward, they should ignore the “When,” “Duration,” and “Timezone” prompts, and skip right to the checkbox for “Recurring meeting.” They should turn that on.
• In the “Recurrence” dropdown menu, they should select “No Fixed Time,” which will cause all of the date and time information to disappear—that’s good, and means they have succeeded in creating a link that they can re-use again and again.
• Skipping further down the page, they can ignore many of the other options, but they should make sure that “Video” is set to “on” for the host, and that “Audio” is set to “Both.” (These are probably their default options.)
• Finally, make sure that they check the last checkbox, “Record the meeting automatically,” and choose “In the cloud."
• After making their selections, they should click “Save.”
• Now, whenever they visit the “My meetings” page within harvard.zoom.us , they’ll see “My personal recording studio” at the top of the list and can use it to record themselves for any reason, including your presentation.
• While recording, they can speak to the camera, share a slideshow or other media while they talk, etc. Whenever they are sharing something on your screen, the resulting recording will capture what they are sharing fullscreen and overlay the student as a talking head in a small window in the upper righthand corner. Encourage your students to try a quick dry run and then watch the video (see the next step, below) to think through how they want to use (or not use) slides/images/sound in your presentation.
• Whenever they make a recording, the resulting video will automatically appear in their account within a few minutes to an hour after they finish, and they’ll be able to access it by clicking on “Recordings” in the left-side menu in harvard.zoom.us . They can watch it there to make sure they are happy with it; if not, they just need to go back into their “studio” again and re-record. They can delete recordings they don’t want to use (or just leave them there—there’s no penalty to having lots of recordings in an account). (They can also change the beginning and ending time of their presentations using the editing tool in Zoom, though we would recommend that instructors not overemphasize these kinds of polishing touches in assessing the clarity/sophistication/creativity/etc. of the presentation itself.)
• When it comes time for them to share their videos, they will be able to do so through a secure link. More on that next.

2. How to share a presentation with teaching staff

You and your teaching staff will need to let your students know how you would like to receive access to their recorded presentation—whether by email, uploading to Canvas, etc. Your students will be able to share their presentations through any of those methods by sharing a secure link. Students can retrieve that link by:

• Navigating to the “Recordings” page in the left side menu of harvard.zoom.us , and identifying the video they’d like to share with you.
• To the right of the video, they’ll see a “Share” button. They should click that.
• In the dialog box that pops up, students will need to make sure to turn on “Share this recording” and select “Only authenticated users can view.” They should leave the other options turned off.
• Students should look for the link for their recording toward the bottom of the gray box. Once they find it, they should highlight it with their mouse, and copy it.
• They can share that link by pasting it into an email, Canvas, etc.—however you’ve asked to receive it. That’s it!

3. How to share a presentation with peers / generate asynchronous discussion

As the instructor, you can choose to give students individual feedback on the recordings they share with you. But you can also choose to share them with your class and to create opportunities for peer feedback by using the same link through which students shared their videos with you. You might, for example, create a Canvas discussion forum for each student presenter, paste the link for the respective student’s video in the prompt (which will lead Canvas to embed the video right in the page), and encourage their classmates to watch their presentation and leave feedback or questions in the discussion forum.

Narrated Slide Decks

• Projects where students were already asked to create slide decks.
• Presentations where the slide deck matters more than seeing the student talk about the slide deck (this format can be helpful for students who have had difficult participating synchronously and/or using their camera).

It is relatively easy for students to record over a PowerPoint presentation. They can insert an audio file on each page by selecting the “Insert” tab and then the “Audio” icon. Students can also create narrated presentations that include slide transitions. Microsoft offers useful advice on how to record a presentation with slide transitions and narration. (N.B. Students could use Google Slides, but they would have to pre-record the audio, which they could do using their phone or Quicktime if they have a Mac.)

If your students are creating a presentation with transitions, here are some tips for recording:

• To pause recording, use the option from the menu bar
• To record narration on your last slide, you need to advance to the black screen that tells you the slide show has ended before ending the recording
• PowerPoint will not record while slides are transitioning so it can be helpful to build in a pause before transitioning to the next slide
• If you have transitions between the slides, you may need to change them so they do not truncate your audio recording

You can use similar strategies to those described in the section on pre-recording presentations in Zoom to share the recordings and create discussion.

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strategies, techniques, and tools for strong slide design, and maximum presentation quality.

Prior to delivering a talk, it is important to prepare and set yourself up for success with a strong slide deck. Depending on the nature of your presentation, the type of speaking engagement, your institution, and other factors and considerations, there are different kinds of approaches and priorities when it comes to slide design. This section includes some tips that will assist you with designing your slides to prepare for your presentation.

Slides drive home the main ideas of your research and play an important role to deliver a strong presentation. After reviewing the Fundamentals of Slide Design , use these resources to create and assess your slides to ensure that you have considered and included important components that make for an effective presentation.

Qualities of Strong Slide Design

Use this self-assessment checklist to design and review your slides. Check all boxes that incorporate key qualities of strong slide design. In addition to focusing on the style, typography, and layout, consider thinking about your use of visuals and color along with other elements to enhance the design of your slides.

Checklist for

Assertion-evidence slides.

The assertion-evidence slide structure is one effective technique to designing effective slides. In conjunction with the webinar on “Better Than Bullets: Transforming Slide Design” by Melissa Marshall, this checklist was developed as a resource for assertion-evidence slides but can be applied more generally to other types of slide designs. Consider the style, typography, and layout of your slides and what it might look like to incorporate these elements with an assertion-evidence slide structure in mind.

Research Presentation Rubric

The format of research presentations can vary across and within disciplines. Use this rubric to identify and assess elements of research presentations, including delivery strategies and slide design. This resource focuses on research presentations but may be useful beyond. 

Templates and Examples for

Check out tips, templates, layout suggestions, and other examples of assertion-evidence slides on  Rethinking Presentations in Science and Engineering by Michael Alley, MS, MFA, from Pennsylvania State University. Download the Assertion Evidence Presention template for Microsoft PowerPoint.

Additional Resources

Create and deliver standout technical presentations, present your science.

Melissa Marshall’s website explores how speakers can transform the way they present their research.

"The Craft of Scientific Presentations: Critical Steps to Succeed and Critical Errors to Avoid" book by Michael Alley

By distinguishing what makes a presenter successful, this book aims to improve your presentation skills.

Want to learn more about how to strengthen your presentation skills?

Visit the delivery authentically page for more information.

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Oral Presentations

Rachel Gillett reports that in the History and Literature Sophomore Tutorials, students are required to do three oral presentations with the help of the instructors in order to hone their public speaking and critical thinking skills.

Prior to the presentations, students have to email an outline of their presentation.  The instructors provide feedback ahead of time.  For the actual presentation, students are required to provide some context for the readings, explain their main arguments and most interesting points, and kick off the discussion.  They are also required to submit the final copy of their outline. 

Below is a description of the assignment from the syllabus:

You will be responsible for 3 oral presentations during the course of semester. These presentations will allow you to practice three crucial skills: to cultivate your ability to succinctly and effectively present information to your classmates, to practice your public speaking skills in a small setting, and to give you experience leading off a classroom discussion by asking effective questions. Presentations should be at least 5 minutes but not more than 10 minutes. You will be expected to briefly summarize the main idea or argument of each source and to highlight what you think are each source’s most interesting effects or contributions. You may choose to highlight any relevant background about authors or their contexts. Above all, we ask that you “put the sources into conversation” and that you offer an interpretation of how and/or why the sources for the week are responding to one another. You will conclude by leading off our tutorial discussion with 2-3 questions of your own.

Oral Presentation Grading Rubric

Summary or Description. Be informative yet concise. 20%

Highlights of each source. Be persuasive. 20%

Connections among sources. Be persuasive again. 20%

Contextualization. What kind of source is it? When was it produced? Who produced it? How? What kind of contemporary responses did it receive? What is the history of its reception? 20%

Discussion questions. Stimulate productive discussion. 10%

Presentation style. Be prepared and well organized. Practice, speak clearly and with passion. 10%

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Goals for student learning:

• Distill and organize ideas
• Speak cogently and persuasively
• Understand importance of addressing a specific audience

Be aware that:

• Students may require extensive preparation and practice to give an oral presentation or speech that is more than a simple recitation of material.
• Performance anxiety is a real but not insurmountable obstacle.

To encourage active, deep, and honest engagement:

• Define the purposes of the speaking assignment for your students.
• Develop a grading rubric that evaluates form as well as content. Do you expect students to make eye contact with their audience, speak at a reasonable rate, use notes or PowerPoint, or adhere to a time limit, for instance?
• Request help from experts. Speaking well requires physical attentiveness to stance, breath, and volume; your students may benefit from the Peer Speaking Tutor Program (see below).
• Public speaking assignments are also occasions to teach your students how to be a good audience: to listen carefully and attentively, to ask appropriate, on-target questions, etc.

Assignment types and examples:

• Oral presentation
• Research presentation
• Role-plays, simulations

Resources for faculty:

Harvard College Writing Program Speaking Resources

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Assessing oral presentation performance: Designing a rubric and testing its validity with an expert group

• Education and Learning Sciences

Research output : Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to design a rubric instrument for assessing oral presentation performance in higher education and to test its validity with an expert group. Design/methodology/approach: This study, using mixed methods, focusses on: designing a rubric by identifying assessment instruments in previous presentation research and implementing essential design characteristics in a preliminary developed rubric; and testing the validity of the constructed instrument with an expert group of higher educational professionals (n=38). Findings: The result of this study is a validated rubric instrument consisting of 11 presentation criteria, their related levels in performance, and a five-point scoring scale. These adopted criteria correspond to the widely accepted main criteria for presentations, in both literature and educational practice, regarding aspects as content of the presentation, structure of the presentation, interaction with the audience and presentation delivery. Practical implications: Implications for the use of the rubric instrument in educational practice refer to the extent to which the identified criteria should be adapted to the requirements of presenting in a certain domain and whether the amount and complexity of the information in the rubric, as criteria, levels and scales, can be used in an adequate manner within formative assessment processes. Originality/value: This instrument offers the opportunity to formatively assess students’ oral presentation performance, since rubrics explicate criteria and expectations. Furthermore, such an instrument also facilitates feedback and self-assessment processes. Finally, the rubric, resulting from this study, could be used in future quasi-experimental studies to measure students’ development in presentation performance in a pre-and post-test situation.

• Higher education
• Oral presentation competence

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• 10.1108/JARHE-02-2016-0012

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• Methodology Psychology 100%
• Expectations Psychology 100%
• Mixed Methods Psychology 100%
• Self-Assessment Psychology 100%
• Student Nursing and Health Professions 85%
• Self Evaluation Nursing and Health Professions 42%

T1 - Assessing oral presentation performance

T2 - Designing a rubric and testing its validity with an expert group

AU - van Ginkel, Stan

AU - Laurentzen, Ramona

AU - Mulder, Martin

AU - Mononen, Asko

AU - Kyttä, Janika

AU - Kortelainen, Mika J.

N2 - Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to design a rubric instrument for assessing oral presentation performance in higher education and to test its validity with an expert group. Design/methodology/approach: This study, using mixed methods, focusses on: designing a rubric by identifying assessment instruments in previous presentation research and implementing essential design characteristics in a preliminary developed rubric; and testing the validity of the constructed instrument with an expert group of higher educational professionals (n=38). Findings: The result of this study is a validated rubric instrument consisting of 11 presentation criteria, their related levels in performance, and a five-point scoring scale. These adopted criteria correspond to the widely accepted main criteria for presentations, in both literature and educational practice, regarding aspects as content of the presentation, structure of the presentation, interaction with the audience and presentation delivery. Practical implications: Implications for the use of the rubric instrument in educational practice refer to the extent to which the identified criteria should be adapted to the requirements of presenting in a certain domain and whether the amount and complexity of the information in the rubric, as criteria, levels and scales, can be used in an adequate manner within formative assessment processes. Originality/value: This instrument offers the opportunity to formatively assess students’ oral presentation performance, since rubrics explicate criteria and expectations. Furthermore, such an instrument also facilitates feedback and self-assessment processes. Finally, the rubric, resulting from this study, could be used in future quasi-experimental studies to measure students’ development in presentation performance in a pre-and post-test situation.

AB - Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to design a rubric instrument for assessing oral presentation performance in higher education and to test its validity with an expert group. Design/methodology/approach: This study, using mixed methods, focusses on: designing a rubric by identifying assessment instruments in previous presentation research and implementing essential design characteristics in a preliminary developed rubric; and testing the validity of the constructed instrument with an expert group of higher educational professionals (n=38). Findings: The result of this study is a validated rubric instrument consisting of 11 presentation criteria, their related levels in performance, and a five-point scoring scale. These adopted criteria correspond to the widely accepted main criteria for presentations, in both literature and educational practice, regarding aspects as content of the presentation, structure of the presentation, interaction with the audience and presentation delivery. Practical implications: Implications for the use of the rubric instrument in educational practice refer to the extent to which the identified criteria should be adapted to the requirements of presenting in a certain domain and whether the amount and complexity of the information in the rubric, as criteria, levels and scales, can be used in an adequate manner within formative assessment processes. Originality/value: This instrument offers the opportunity to formatively assess students’ oral presentation performance, since rubrics explicate criteria and expectations. Furthermore, such an instrument also facilitates feedback and self-assessment processes. Finally, the rubric, resulting from this study, could be used in future quasi-experimental studies to measure students’ development in presentation performance in a pre-and post-test situation.

KW - Assessment

KW - Feedback

KW - Higher education

KW - Oral presentation competence

KW - Rubrics

U2 - 10.1108/JARHE-02-2016-0012

DO - 10.1108/JARHE-02-2016-0012

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85019620860

SN - 2050-7003

JO - Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education

JF - Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education

Subtotal

Graphic Presentaton Rubric \(Worth 70%\)

Presentation

Total

The Total Score is a combined score of the Oral Presentation score

+ the Graphic Presentation score.

Oral Presentation = 30%

Graphic Presentation = 70%

--------------------------------------

Group Members: _____________________________________________________________________________

SubTotal

Group Members:

___________________________________

Worth 30%\)

Oral Presentation

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iRubric: Oral Presentation with PPT VALUE Formula

• Oral communication, Centralized message, Delivery technique, Supporting fabric, Choose
• Presentation