Marie Auyong, CNAS Extension Associate for Sea Grant, the presentation titled “Outreach 101: Presenting in Guam’s Public Schools” inspired participation from many different agencies around Guam and the University.
The presentation gave tips for how to be an effective presenter. And focused on information about what to expect, how to keep students engaged at different grade levels, and overall, how to make presentations more enjoyable for students.
There were more than 50 participants for the event which includes representatives from GDOE, NOAA, National Park Services, Guam Conservation Office, Center for Island Sustainability, UOG Marine Lab, and DPW.
Auyong began with GDOE statistics followed by the first tip for being a good presenter – to be culturally responsive and mindful of financial situations of the student audience.
Auyong’s major tips included: 1.visiting the school to know the different protocols, 2. understanding that the schools are its own kingdom, 3. familiarizing with teachers and principles preferences for communication.
The presentation then emphasized the importance of specific information for the project or presentation.
Providing information such as the intended grade level, anticipated presentation length, whether the presenter decides to give students things to take home, and whether the presenter will be providing his/her own resource materials.
Effective presentations have age-appropriate activities to keep students engaged, such as kinesthetic which really helps the students memorize and understand the materials.
Auyong then shared the great things about working with public schools are the classroom management skills and the student excitement for having presenters.
Seanne Clemente and Trevor Boykin, current interns for Sea Grant, shared their experiences about working with the public schools and the things they learned.
Guest speakers Tina Nelson and Melanie Blas gave tips on what to wear, appropriate times for presenting in Middle and High school, as well as, providing information about being sincere to the students when providing information.
Melanie Blas, a teacher from Simon Sanchez High school explained, “The best time for presenting is before lunch and at the beginning of the school quarter.”
“Give the students your time, give them information that they can take home to share with family to better the island. Students have a zeal they are passionate about, so tap into it and steer them in the right direction,” said Tina Nelson, a teacher at Benavente Middle School.
Both speakers then presented the importance of not taking pictures, and that the best thing to do is to ask the teacher before taking any photos.
Before closing out the session, Auyong emphasized being timely and showing up early to avoid wasting the teacher and students time and that the biggest challenge of presenting is being attentive to the audience. If you want the students to change behavior or attitude be tentative and do something.
David Combasch, Ph.D., a professor at the Marine Lab, stated that the presentation helped him realize that his project needs to be more specific, mainly on the economics of the project.
Josefa Munoz, a representative from the Center for Island Sustainability, was also in attendance. “The presentation gave me a reinforced confidence with my subject matter and how to present it to future audiences,” Munoz said. “The event was very helpful and useful, it would be great to have more.”
