Do you frequently or periodically make essentially the “same” presentation or speech? Perhaps, as Human Resources Director in a large organization, you regularly welcome new employees. Maybe you, as a department head in your marketing firm, initiate the weekly meeting of your group. You may, as City Engineer, routinely brief the City Council at its monthly meeting. As Engineering Dean, I frequently welcomed groups of high school students and their parents who were visiting our and other colleges of engineering to help them decide what university they may want to attend.

The good news about these apparently routine presentations is that they are easy, that is, relative to some of the critical one-of-a-kind speeches we also prepare for and present and sometimes dread. The bad news about the apparently routine presentations is also that they are easy. And, therefore, we may not give them proper attention, we get careless, we lose our edge, the audience knows it, and we fall short of the intent of oour communication.

More specifically, when we give the same presentation over and over, we may inadvertently fall into these traps:

1) Verbal graffiti: “Ah,” “you know,” “um,” and “he/she goes,” are examples. This happens because we are not thinking, not focusing-we are on autopilot. Think you don’t do this? Maybe you don’t, but why not verify? The next time you make that routine presentation, unobtrusively place an audio recorder on the lectern or table and, at your leisure, listen to yourself.

2) Negative body language or distracting behavior: Examples are holding our arms across our chest as we speak, which many interpret as your being autocratic and not open to input; failing to make eye contact with all portions of the audience; and excessive fiddling with our eye glasses.

3) No enthusiasm: You used the same words and sentences so many times that you just can’t get up for it. For example, I once worked in an organization where the chief executive, whenever he spoke and whoever he spoke to, always began with an expression like “I am pleased to be here”-got a little old.

For some of us who give that frequent speech to what is always a new audience, please consider the applicability of this advice: We get only one chance to make a first impression. Let’s leverage those “one chance” speaking opportunities.

Some thoughts for improving your “stump speech”:

1) Listen to a recording of your current presentation, as suggested above, or ask a colleague or friend to critique your speech. Identify strengths and weaknesses. Build on the former and fix the latter.

2) Commit to minimizing verbal graffiti. You don’t have to give a presentation to do this. Work at eliminating meaningless word and sounds in you every day conversations.

3) Find or develop a new opening each time, such as a story, metaphor, quote, or example. Yes, this requires extra effort. One benefit of that effort: thinking deeper about your audience and what you want them to learn and/or do. Using a new opening also adds freshness to your comments.

As stated by writer and author, Patricia T. O’Connor, “An audience is a terrible thing to lose.” That is exactly what happens when your audience senses that you are simply going through the motions. Instead, make them feel special. While you have presented the message many times, for them it should be as though it is the first time.

The impact of technology, especially presentation technology, in education is not bypassed. Presentations have a very special role in education and their positive impact in the process of teaching and learning is not questionable. Today it is common to use PowerPoint presentations in education. Students depend on quality education to survive in today’s competitive global community. You as a teacher are responsible for preparing your pupils for this competitive environment.

Regardless of the objective significance of a particular activity or topic, if your students do not find it sufficiently engaging and interesting, chances are bleak that they will be motivated to expend their efforts. However, if you make the coursework engaging for them by connecting it to their goals and interests, they will be more likely to invest time and effort. You, as a teacher with engaging educational presentations, can make a big difference by influencing your pupils. Educational presentations, by providing you with the scope of including engaging illustrations, go a long way in achieving this objective of student engagement.

Don’t Lecture Your Pupils-Engage!

Do not just lecture your pupils, it is old-fashioned. Include the personal aspect of your knowledge to engage your students. Educational PowerPoint presentations have the scope to accommodate interesting activities to make the coursework interesting. It is of paramount importance to make your students personally and intellectually involve with education. It is only possible if you succeed in bequeathing your own experiences to your students. Educational PowerPoint presentations can successfully give your students a virtual tour of the area they are studying. And, if you succeed in conveying emotional involvement via educational presentations, you will increase the chances of motivating your students to get seriously involved and study.

PowerPoint Presentations are the daily rituals of modern teaching and learning. As educational PPT presentations adopt the approach of two way communication, your students feel involved and important. They promote the significance of self-study and questions. Questioning helps break the ice and build positive student-teacher relations.

Educational PowerPoint presentations are a good way give education a personal touch by virtue of effective communication. PowerPoint presentations provide you with an opportunity to talk to your students and get them involved. They encourage your pupils to participate by making the coursework interesting.

The benefit PowerPoint presentations in academic settings is that they help you engage your students not just through words, but also through powerful visuals. Remember, some students learn better by hearing, but most of them learn better by seeing. Presentations possess the power of engaging students through the visual means. Use PowerPoint with effective PowerPoint backgrounds and relevant visuals and see the difference!

In this article, I will assume that the reader already knows when to use the Spanish present perfect tense. Therefore, the focus of this article is how to conjugate this tense and how to conjugate it with ease. Let’s examine how -ar verbs are conjugated in the present perfect tense:

Practicar (To Practice)

Past Participle: Practicado (Practiced)

Yo he practicado (I have practiced)

tú has practicado (you have practiced)

él ha practicado (he has practiced)

ella ha practicado (she has practiced)

usted ha practicado (you have practiced)

nosotros hemos practicado (we have practiced)

ellos han practicado (they have practiced)

ellas han practicado (they have practiced)

ustedes han practicado (you have practiced)

Now let’s try a phrase or two with this verb:

Pamela ha practicado las letras.

(Pamela has practiced the lyrics.)

Hector ha practicado la natación por mucho tiempo.

(Hector has practiced swimming for a long time.)

Keep in mind, that in the Spanish language, as in the English language, the auxiliary verb haber (to have) must always precede the past participle of the verb. It is important to note that -er and -ir verbs take on a similar pattern when they are conjugated.

Recojer (to pick up)

Past Particple: Recogido (picked up)

Yo he recogido (I have picked up)

tú has recogido (you have picked up)

él ha recogido (he has picked up)

ella ha recogido (she has picked up)

usted ha recogido (you have picked up)

nosotros hemos recogido (we have picked up)

ellos han recogido (they have picked up)

ellas han recogido (they have picked up)

ustedes han recogido (you have picked up)

The student should also be aware that in addition to “to pick up,” this verb can also mean “to collect,” “to gather,” and “to pick.” Here is an example using the verb recojer:

Ella no ha recogido las muñecas del piso.

(She hasn´t picked up the dolls from the floor.)

Here´s an example using the -ir verb “discutir” which means “to discuss,” “to debate,” or “to argue.”

Discutir (to argue, debate, discuss)

Past Participle: (argued, debated, discussed)

Yo he discutido (I have argued)

tú has discutido (you have argued)

él ha discutido (he has argued)

ella ha discutido (she has argued)

usted ha discutido (you have argued)

nosotros hemos discutido (we have argued)

ellos han discutido (they have argued)

ellas han discutido (they have argued)

ustedes han discutido (you have argued)

Here´s an example using “discutir”:

Bobbito no ha discutido con su hermana hoy.

(Little Bobby hasn´t argued with his sister today.)