Hi
On Tue, 28 Sep 1999, Melvyn King wrote:
> I am looking for guidelines on preparing lectures such as you might use in
> class or in more general forums. I have tried some Internet searches but have
> come up dry.
Go to http://www.uwinnipeg.ca/~clark and follow the teaching
links. There is a bunch of stuff there (some old and probably
out-of-date) on teaching. One short informal document I wrote
describes some of the qualities of effective teaching and how to
achieve them.
In general, you would go through something like the following
steps: (1) generate ideas for the talk (e.g., topic, objectives,
categories of material to cover, specific ideas), (2) prepare
some sort of outline (e.g., cognitive mapping techniques, a table
of contents like outline), and (3) find and/or prepare the
specific material and activities that you want related to each of
the topics (e.g., overheads, results of research, outline of your
talk). This material could come from the text, from other texts
in the area, from your own knowledge of the subject matter, or
anywhere else for that fact. Using a somewhat more advanced text
for planning lectures can work well.
If you are comfortable working from rough notes, you might stop
here. If not, then: (4) you might prepare a more polished version
written with headings, transitions, and point-form or sentences
that state the content. In essence a talk. (5) In writing the
final notes, use a large font that you can read easily, start
each major section on a new page (I usually keep overheads with
each section), use bold or spacing or other techniques to
indicate the structure, don't type too low on the page (your head
will dip down if you do), and try to keep the text less formal
than for a talk. (6) Practice the talk so that you can
"quasi-read" it in an informal manner, while maintaining eye
contact with the audience and projecting your voice into the room
(as opposed to the podium or floor), and so that you can
smoothly manage the thinking, speaking, and behaviors (e.g.,
overheads) involved in teaching.
Steps 1 and 2 might be combined, especially if you are familiar
with the topic. If not, the first 2-3 steps would be gone
through in a cyclical fashion as the content of the talk evolves.
Best wishes
Jim
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James M. Clark (204) 786-9757
Department of Psychology (204) 774-4134 Fax
University of Winnipeg 4L05D
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2E9 [EMAIL PROTECTED]
CANADA http://www.uwinnipeg.ca/~clark
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