Mid-term presentations

What?

Each student will prepare a 5 minute presentation to share with the class. If you like, you may partner with one other classmate to present together, in which case you will have a 10 minute presentation time slot. Should you choose to present with a partner, each person must address the key points below in relation to their own Attentive Repetition experience.

  • What method have you been using to record your encounters?
  • Why did you choose the method you chose?
  • What have you noticed about the way your attention is solicited by the environment?
  • Do you find this changes depending on external factors? (e.g. the weather, how well you slept the night before, how much other homework you have to do when you get home)
  • One particularly interesting/exciting/notable encounter you have had on a walk so far.

The presentation can be in any format you like, though its creation and presentation must follow the principles of universal design, which we will begin to become familiar with on Day 2. Some examples of delivery methods for the presentation are:

  • speaking in front of the class
    • Unless one of your group members is conversant in Sign Language, please submit a written transcript of what you expect to say during your presentation to the instructor (for distribution to the class) the day before you are scheduled to present.
  • displaying a slideshow
    • Any imagery used must be described in words either out loud during the presentation or in a written document submitted to the instructor (for distribution to the class) the day before you are scheduled to present.
  • creating and playing a video for the class
    • All imagery used must be described in words either embedded in the video or submitted to the instructor (for distribution to the class) the day before you are scheduled to present.
    • Subtitles must be provided for spoken audio.
    • Descriptions must be provided for sounds other than words.
  • a skit
    • A written description of the skit must be submitted to the instructor (for distribution to the class) the day before you are scheduled to present.

Why?

By this point in the course, you have been practicing attentive repetition consistently for over a month. We will come together as a class to share our experiences with this practice and show each other some of the highlights from our catalogues of rendered encounters. This intentional and shared reflection on process can also help you in your understanding of how you are building the muscles for this practice and what you have learned so far.

Where and when?

On Day 12 and Day 13 of this course we will have our first Interlude, which will be dedicated to your mid-term presentations. These presentations will happen in our classroom. Who presents on which day will be determined first by an opt-in sign up sheet released on Day 8 and closed after class on Day 10. Those who do not sign up will be randomly selected to present on either Day 12 or Day 13 in the presentation time slots left available.

Evaluation

Your grade for this presentation will constitute 10% of the final course mark. Presentations will be graded on a three point scale of strong/satisfactory/weak (Elbow, 1997), according to the following rubric:

Grade Delivery Content
Strong Fully accessible according to the principles of universal design;
Fits within the allotted time;
Presentation format is a perfect fit for the content.		 Thoughtful responses to all 5 key points outlined above;
Satisfactory Partially accessible according to the principles of universal design;
Less than 2 minutes over the allotted time;
Presentation format supports the content reasonably well.		 Addresses all 5 key points outlined above;
Weak Not accessible according to the principles of universal design;
More than 2 minutes over the allotted time;
Presentation format is a poor fit for the content.		 Does not address the 5 key points outlined above;