Non Chronological Report Writing

non chronological report writing"non chronological report writing"

Is the New Testament Historically Reliable? (part 2 of the "IS" series)

An introductory study of Christian apologetics reveals that the claims of Christianity were presented by the early apostles/messengers as verifiable, objective truth. Whereas most other world religions/cults avoid empirical and historical investigations, Christianity is grounded on real events having taken place (I Cor. 15:17). In fact, Dr. Steven Collins goes so far as to point out "Christianity might be the only belief system in the world that rests its validity on the reality of certain events." This is one of the primary reasons (along with the claim of the exclusivity of Christian truth - or even truth in general), that Christianity is such a regular target of derision. The premise that Christianity is "true" is based on the acceptance of "truth" according to the "correspondence" view - meaning that truth is that which corresponds to reality. This stands in opposition to concepts of truth being determined according to "that which is existentially relevant," or "that which works" (pragmatic view), or truth as that which "feels good." These latter views of truth can be shown to be not only self-defeating, but also virtually absent in our everyday lives, activities, and systems. Hence, individuals are often torn between their own professed worldviews and the everyday lives they live. Norman Geisler points out that if the pragmatic ("what works") view of truth were applied to our everyday culture, our whole judicial system would be thrown into disarray, since witnesses in court are not asked to "swear to tell ‘what works for you,' ‘the whole of what works for you,' and ‘nothing but what works for you'" (for a detailed discussion on this and a refutation of Immanuel Kant's agnosticism, see Norman Geisler's chapter in Why I Am a Christian entitled "Why I Believe Truth is Real and Knowable" pp. 30 – 45)     

We saw in the previous article how there is actual empirical evidence (through what is called general revelation Romans 1:20, 2:14-15) which reveals there is some kind of "god" who "creates" (cosmological argument), "designs" (teleological argument), and who through this creation bears evidence of the existence of at least a general "morality" (moral argument) and meaning (religious need / joy). Though some people to whom we witness and inquire about evidences for the Christian faith will not require this sort of "systematic" approach, the "classical apologist" affirms the above premises and ideas in order to have a certain grounding for presenting evidences pertaining more specifically to Christianity. Geisler expresses the classical approach this way:

"The basic argument of the classical apologists is that it makes no sense to speak about the resurrection as an act of God unless, as a logical prerequisite, it is first established that there is a God who can act. Likewise, the Bible cannot be the Word of God unless there is a God who can speak. And Christ cannot be shown to be the Son of God except on the logically prior premise there is a God who can have a Son" (Geisler, ECA) 

Thus, in the progression of "classical" Christian apologetics, we now move on sequentially to issues pertaining more particularly to Christianity. The question arises: Has this "god" who is evidenced by means of general revelation ever, in time-space history, been revealed to us inany kind of objective, verifiable manner?(not pertaining to merely "feelings" – or even mere personal, "mystical experiences" although these can be considered "some" evidence for a Christian view of God). The Christian answers "yes," meaning that this true God revealed himself through an actual, historically verifiable person known as"Jesus," who is "the Christ." "Testing" whether or not the Christian's answer is true can be done using the same accepted ways we test all historical truths. Along with considering extra-biblical evidences for the Jesus of history, what is often termed as "normal historical procedures" can be applied to the New Testament itself in order to present "evidence" that it is a valid source of historical information. This practice is known as historiography, or the "science of historical investigation." The reason for starting with the NT as a valid source of history is broken down by Dr. Winfried Corduan as follows:

1) The New Testament as history shows that…

2) it is reasonable to believe in the deity of Christ, who…

3) taught us to accept the Bible as the Word of Go

Consequently, based on what evidence do we consider the NT to be historically reliable?

Evidence and Other Ancient Writings

The N.T. time period is known as "ancient" history. Our common knowledge of ancient history is based on what is known as documentary or "written" evidence. Keep in mind that the secular world relies upon ancient writers for its knowledge of the past. Examples include: Herodotus, Suetonius, Tacitus, Julius Caesar, and Josephus. Many of these who recorded history were let alone not eyewitnesses, they were not even contemporaries of the people and events concerning which they reported. For example, Herodotus (480 – 425 BC) wrote about events that preceded him by hundreds of years – yet his version of events in history are generally accepted (or "believed") to be accurate. They're generally accepted because there isn't any good reason to doubt the basic integrity of the documents. One important question which should be applied is: Are the surviving manuscript copies that we have "original in force?" "Documentary" evidence helps draw conclusions for the answer to this question. This evidence involves, in the very least, the following subjects:

A. Primitive Manuscripts (Do early manuscripts of the documents exist?)

B. Quantity and Quality (Do they exist in sufficient quantity and quality so that the

     readings of the original texts can be accurately reproduced?)

C. Internal Consistency (Does consistency exist within the contents of the text itself)

D. Time Proximity (How does the date of writing compare with the time of the events

                                 themselves?)

Evidence Supporting the New Testament

Gary Habermas notes that "if the same criteria that are regularly applied to other ancient writings are also implemented by New Testament scholars, a solid historical basis emerges for the life and teachings of Jesus."  Thus, let's explore an application of each of these criteria to the NT. The following is a breakdown of these historiography subjects and some notable facts pertaining to each when comparing the NT with other ancient documents:   

A. Primitive Manuscripts and their (B) Quantity and Quality. One will notice that applying these rules to the N.T. lend it overwhelming support, especially in comparison to other ancient documents.

Other Ancient Works: Aristophanes (playwright – writing dates 450 – 385 BC) Number of primitive manuscript copies: 10; Aristotle (philosopher – writing dates 384 – 322 BC) Number of primitive manuscript copies: 5; Plato (philosopher – writing dates 427 – 347 BC) Number of primitive manuscript copies: 7; Suetonius (historian – writing dates AD 75 – 160) Number of primitive manuscript copies: 8; Tacitus (historian – writing dates AD 100)Number of primitive manuscript copies: 20; Sophocles (playwright – writing dates 496 – 406 BC)Number of primitive manuscript copies: 100; The most documented ancient secular work is Homer's Iliad, which survives in 643 primitive manuscript copies. Compare all of the above with the New Testament (Date of writing AD 45-70) with 5,686 primitive Greek manuscripts in existence.

The date of the earliest copy compared to the time of writing: For most –over 900 to 1,000 years or even longer. An example is Aristotle – with the date of writing being 384-322 BC – and the date of the earliest manuscript copy being AD(CE) 1100

Concerning the works of Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates (who lived in the fifth and fourth centuries BC [BCE] there are no existing manuscript copies which date prior to AD [CE] 1000).

Compare this to the NT: Date of writing AD 45 – 70; Fragments (AD 125) Many whole books (AD 200)

(* Keep in mind that the comparison which is being made is between what are typically accepted by secular scholars as secular documents of the same variety – meaning a text preserved on perishable material that was intended to be distributed on that material. Comparing these to the rare case of a bronze tablet affixed to the sides of a tomb, or inscriptions carved on temples is comparing apples to oranges *)

C. Internal Consistency: This is in reference tointernal tests dealing mainly with the consistency of the individual documents and their general harmony with other documents reporting the same events.

On the subject of Jesus' arrest, trial, death, and resurrection in…Matt. 26; Mark 14; Luke 22; John 13 -Matt. 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 20 concerning variances in details…the case is actually strengthened, where minor differences in the retelling of the same event are actually legal earmarks of authenticity.

 According to Historian Paul Meir; "Many facts from antiquity rest on just one ancient source, while two or three sources in agreement generally render the fact unimpeachable"

D. Time Proximity

Meaning an examination of the time-proximity of the original writing compared to the events they report. In the midst of skepticism from radical critics about supposed late dates for the writing of the New Testament, because of newly-discovered New Testament manuscripts (whole and fragmentary – which are very early in date) it has become increasingly difficult for critics to hold to their previous assumptions. Take into consideration the following:

The dating of the Gospel of John: The John Rylands papyri fragment (P52) from Egypt (found in 1920) dated from 117 to 138, and possibly as early as AD 94. The fact that this writing was composed in either Palestine or Asia Minor, and yet the fragment was found in Egypt, bears evidence that the Gospel of John had already been copied numerous times and circulated. For this to have happened, it had to have been written early enough to allow for this fairly wide distribution. This at least pushes the date of John's original document back into the middle or latter part of the 1st century – which pushes back the date of the original documents of the other Gospels even earlier.

Dating the NT by way of the book of Acts: Numerous evidences point out that Acts had to have been written at least prior to AD (CE) 70. Roman historian Colin Hemer cites 15 reasonable evidences for Acts being written between AD (CE) 60 and 62, including these four:

1) There is no mention in Acts of the crucial event of the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70.

2) There is no hint of the outbreak of the Jewish War in AD  66 or of serious deterioration  of relations between Romans and Jews before that time.

3) There is no hint of the deterioration of Christian relations with Rome during the Neronian persecution of the late AD 60's.

4) There is no hint of the death of James at the hands of the Sanhedrin in AD 62 which is recorded by Josephus in Antiquities of the Jews (20.9.1.200).

The testimony of John A.T. Robinson – By the 1970's, John A.T. Robinson had built a reputation as being a "liberal" Bible scholar. He was known for his role in what was called the "Death of God" movement. In 1976, he stunned his colleagues with the revolutionary book Redating the New Testament in which he carefully examined the available evidence for the dating of each New Testament book. After extensive detailed research, he concluded that all of the books of the New Testament were written before AD 70 by the traditional authors. Robinson even ended up dating NT books earlier than the dates of his "conservative" peers. As Geisler states: "Robinson places Matthew at 40 to after 60, Mark at about 45 to 60, Luke at before 57 to after 60, and John  at from before 40 to after 65. This would mean that one or two Gospels could have been written as early as seven years after the crucifixion. At the latest, they were all composed within the lifetimes of eyewitnesses and contemporaries of the events. Assuming the basic integrity and reasonable accuracy of the writers, this would place the reliability of the New Testament documents beyond reasonable doubt" (Geisler, ECA)

Paul's writings*: The early date of Paul's writings, and what can be known of Jesus from Paul's writings alone (Aside from the obvious facts of the Gospel and various teachings) Jesus was born a Jew(Gal. 3:16) from the family of David (Rom. 1:3) and lived under Jewish law (Gal. 4:4). Jesus had brothers (I Cor. 9:5), one of whom was James (I Cor. 15:7), as well as twelve disciples (I Cor. 15:7). Paul knew that at least some of Jesus' brothers and apostles had wives (I Cor. 9:5). In fact, Paul knew personally James, as well as apostles Peter and John (Gal. 1:18-2:16). Paul also presents many of the details concerning the last week of Jesus' life (I Cor. 11:23-25; Rom. 4:25; 5:8; 6:6; Gal. 2:20; I Thess. 2:14-15; I Cor. 15:3-8). Creeds and Hymns in Paul's epistles, as well as some others, present some of the earliest documentary evidences of what true Christianity entailed (examples: Rom. 1:3-4; I Cor. 11:23ff.; 15:3-8; Phil. 2:6-11; Col 1:15-18; I Tim. 3:16; 2 Tim. 2:8; also John 1:1-18; I Peter 2:18-22; I John 4:2). Dr. J.P. Moreland writes of three characteristic traits regarding these hymns: "First, they are pre-Pauline and very early. They use language which is not characteristically Pauline, they often easily translate back into Aramaic, and they show features of Hebrew poetry and thought-forms. This means that they came into existence while the church was heavily Jewish and that they became standard, recognized creeds and hymns well before their incorporation into Paul's letters. Most scholars date them from 33 to 48. Some, like Hengel, date many of them in the first decade after Jesus' death. Second, the content of these creeds and hymns centers on the death, resurrection, and deity of Christ. They consistently present a portrait of a miraculous and divine Jesus who rose from the dead. Third, they served as hymns of worship in the liturgy of the early assemblies and as didactic expressions for teaching the Christology of the church" (Moreland: Scaling the Secular City c.1987 pp. 148-149)

(*Note, I personally had the privilege of  viewing a page of Papyrus 46 – one of the oldest known Greek manuscript copies of the letters of Paul – containing a section of the book of Romans. This was made available for viewing at the The Dea Sea Scrolls and the Bible exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum, Jan. 22, 2010 – June 6, 2010)

The church "fathers:" Concerning only the four Gospels, there are 19,368 citations from the church "fathers" dating from the late 1st century onward. Papias (as a companion of Polycarp, who was a disciple of the Apostle John) quoted John. From this fact the argument is made that the Gospels were in existence before the end of the first century.  It's even been noted that there are enough quotations from the early church fathers that "even if we did not have a single copy of the Bible, scholars could still reconstruct all but 11 verses of the entire New Testament from material written within 150 to 200 years from the time of Christ" (Mc Dowell, "Evidence for the Historical accuracy of the New Testament," in The Intellectuals speak Out About God, 273-274, as reference by Dan Story, Defending Your Faith, 38)

Determination about the time for the development of myth:

Roman historian A.N. Sherwin-White, having done extensive studies on the amount of time required for "myth development" to take place defiantly rejects the mythological view of the New Testament (Geisler ECA)

C.S. Lewis (Oxford / Cambridge scholar of mythology) addressed the subject of "myth" and the Bible by saying: "Those who equate the New Testament with mythology have not studied enough myth"

Determination about time and the influence of myth:

Dr. Edwin Yamauchi (Professor of History and Archaeology at Miami University Oxford, Ohio) presents extensive research on the subject of similarities from "stories of Greek gods" and concludes the stories were not prior to but after the time of Christ. Hence, if there is any influence of one on the other, it is the influence of the historical event of the New Testament on the mythology, not the reverse" (ECA, 518) (For an excellent, comprehensive breakdown and responses to the "Christianity copying mythology" arguments, consider visiting the J.P Holding multi-essay examination available at the following site http://www.tektonics.org/copycat/copycathub.html)

 The General Historical Reliability of the New Testament:

The NT "Gospel" of Luke** (read chapter 1 verses 1-4, along with noting that Luke was aphysician by profession); F.F. Bruce writes: "He (Luke) relates his story…to the wider context of history …courting trouble if not careful…he affords his readers so many opportunities for testing his accuracy." Sir William Ramsey (considered one of the greatest archaeologists of all time) stated "Luke is an historian of the first rank; not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy; he is possessed of the true historic sense…he seizes the important and critical events and shows their true nature at greater length…in short, this author should be placed along with the very greatest of historians" (** Note: I personally had the opportunity to view a page of Papyrus 4, a very old Greek manuscript copy of the Gospel of Luke, which was made available for viewing at the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Bible Exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum from Jan. 22, 2010 – June 6, 2010)

Extra-biblical and archeological evidence: For many years (based on silence about events/people etc) extra-biblical and archeological evidence prompted many to question the truth of the Bible. Yet, the more people have critiqued, compared, etc. the more the scriptures come out shining (Examples: Gospel of John mentions the pool/pools of Bethesda concerning which there was no evidence until this last century; Details of governing and Roman judicial procedure – have been shown to have been accurate) 

Sherwin-White (the renowned archeologist) on the book of Acts: "To reject its basic historicity even in matters of detail must now appear absurd" 

William L. Craig (philosopher, apologist, and author) on the Gospels: "The Gospels show an intimate knowledge of Jerusalem before its destruction, indicating that they were written before the terrible event (in AD 70)" "The Gospels are full of references to proper names, dates, cultural details, historical events, and opinions/customs of the time." "The stories of Jesus' weaknesses and the faults of the disciples are earmarks for authenticity"

Julius Africanus (an ancient extrabiblical historian who wrote in about AD 221) quotes from a work that has been lost (by an eastern Mediterranean – Thallus). Thallus wrote in AD (CE) 52 about an event in previous years of darkness which he explains away as probably being an eclipse of the sun. Likewise Phlegan – a Greek author from Caria writing a chronology soon after AD 137 reported that (in the AD 30's) there was the "greatest eclipse of the sun" and that it became "night" in the sixth hour of the day (i.e. noon) so that the stars even appeared in the heavens.

Will Durant (historian from this century –and not a friend of Christianity) – from "The Story of Civilization" comments on the general reliability of the NT text: "If higher criticism was applied (in the same severity) to other works of antiquity, a hundred worthies (Hamurabi, Socrates etc.) would fade into legend…After two centuries of higher criticism the outlines of the life, character, and teachings of Christ remain reasonably clear, and constitute the most fascinating feature in the history of Western man"

John Warwick Montgomery (historian / law professor)"To be skeptical of the resultant text of the New Testament books is to allow all of classical antiquity to slip into obscurity, for no documents of the ancient period are as well attested bibliographically as the New Testament"

The NT being "biased" as an obstacle to reliable history: Since this is a common "obstacle" presented regarding the historical veracity of the NT, let's take into account the following issues and quotes regarding whether or not the authors of the New Testament had merely a biased agenda when writing:

The assumption of agendas producing inaccuracies: First, this contradicts the internal consistency test (*see above*). Also, Dr. Ben Witherington III makes a convincing case for Gospels being a particular type of genre, which includes history (Dr. Ben Witherington III, The Gospel Code) (For an excellent essay refuting the "biased" argument about the accuracy of the New Testament see Glenn Miller's study at http://www.christian-thinktank.com/nuhbias.html). 

Also, this invites the question: What we can know about Jesus / Christianity outside of the Biblical attestation?

 - Extra-Biblical "friends" of Christianity: Concerning only the four Gospels, there are 19,368 citations from the church "fathers" dating from the late first century onward.

 - Extra-Biblical "enemies" of Christianity: Utilizing only extra-biblical authors (mostly antagonists of Christianity) such as Tacitus, Suetonius, Pliny the Younger, Josephus (etc), Dr. Edwin Yamauchi (Professor of History and Archaeology of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio) constructs the life of the person of Christ in the following manner:

"First, Jesus was a Jewish teacher; second, many people believed that he performed healings and exorcisms; third, some people believed he was the Messiah; fourth, he was rejected by the Jewish leaders; fifth, he was crucified under Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius; sixth, despite this shameful death, his followers, who believed that he was still alive, spread beyond Palestine so that there were multitudes of them in Rome by AD 64; and seventh, all kinds of people from the cities and countryside-men and women, slave and free-worshiped him as God"

The Most Formidable Obstacle to Considering the NT as Historical: Naturalistic Dogmatism: This leads us to what is perhaps the most formidable obstacle for many in regarding the NT as being historically reliable – that being an Anti -supernatural bias (a priori). When the issue of anti-supernatural, a priori bias is raised, one question which must be asked is; whatever happened to theism? Is Antony Flew's "conversion" to deism - and a creator "god" - truly that far removed from a belief in a "god" who can act in history? (Interestingly, world-renowned God belief antagonist Richard Dawkins, author of the best-selling book The God Delusion recently conceded during a public debate at Oxford University – October 21st, 2008 - that a good case could be made for a deistic explanation of the universe. What many fail to understand, or at least admit, is that this simple "case could be made" acknowledgement is a radically abrupt worldview change – from a "closed system naturalism" to an "open system supernaturalism." If an infinite being created, ultimately, something out of nothing – is it so far-fetched to hold that this "being" would/could reveal itself by means of the miraculous? If the anti-supernatural bias is stripped away and the same criteria that are regularly applied to other events in ancient history are applied to the New Testament, historiography bears overwhelming evidence that God has revealed Himself through the historical figure known as Jesus the Christ. Still, Witherington explains the somewhat moot nature of this argument in light of our current post-modern culture where people "are not less prone, but in fact are more prone, to believe in miracles, magic and a host of other so-called non-rational things." In light of this, exposure of the double-standard bias in rejecting the New Testament as history can be seen: I.E; It is not history one won't accept (Plato – with comparatively weak historiography), it is Christian history that one won't accept (Christ – with extremely strong historiography). It is not "supernatural" events one refuses to accept, it is Christian supernatural events one refuses to accept.

Sources:

Steven Collins, Championing the Faith

William Lane Craig, from Collins  op. cit.

Norman Geisler, Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics

John AT Robinson, from Collins op. cit.

Dan Story, Defending Your Faith                            

FF Bruce, from Collins op cit

Sir William Ramsey, from Collins op cit.

Gary Habermas, "Why I Believe the New testament is Historically Reliable"  from Geisler/Hoffman eds. "Why I Am A Christian"

JP Holding, "Texture Tantrum" online article at tektonics.org

Colin Hemer, from Habermas op cit, from Geisler/Hoffman eds. Op cit.

Will Durant,from Collins op cit

John Warwick Montgomery, from Collins op cit

J.P. Moreland, "Scaling the Secular City"

Winfried Corduan, "Why I Believe the Bible Alone is the Word of God" from Geisler/Hoffman eds.

"Why I Am a Christian"

Edwin Yamauchi, from Lee Strobel "The Case for Christ"

Ben Witherington III, The Gospel Code

Justin Brierley, The John Lennox – Richard Dawkins debate: http://www.bethinking.org/science-christianity/beginner/the-john-lennox-richard-dawkins-debate.htm

 

About the Author

Pastor Eric Hann is the Lead Pastor of Cornerstone Community Church in Chariton, Iowa. He has a BA and Masters degree in Christian studies and is a member of the Evangelical Philosophical Society.

http://pastorericsunderground.wordpress.com/

http://www.cornerstonecommunitychurch.net/

[MGO] two rounds of RACE AA | Freebattle Non-stats


non chronological report writing
non chronological report writing
non chronological report writing

Non Chronological Report Writing Frame

non chronological report writing frame"non chronological report writing frame"

How to Deliver Presentations?

PRESENTATION SKILLS


BY PROF.M.S.RAO, ACADEMIC GUIDE, ICFAI UNIVERSITY, INDIA


“Half of the world is composed of people who have something to say and can’t; the other half have nothing to say and keep saying it”. That is the kind of problem for the half of the people and again that is the kind of prospects for the other half of the people who know the art and power of presentation skills.


We all present our ideas, views and opinions when we talk with people in general. And when it is to be presented for a longer time it requires lot of energy, effort and enthusiasm. Besides, it requires lot of information, ideas, and material to format and organize the same mentally. Here the majority of the people fail and a few succeed. And those who succeed are those who are good at presentation skills.


In every day professional life, every one has to deliver presentations. In many educational institutions paper presentation is encouraged so that students gradually develop the attitude and the art of presentation skills. Because of the growing significance and importance attached to internet search engines the students are able to generate a lot of important information at the click of a mouse. It is indeed a healthy, positive and progressive sign for students to gradually cultivate the habit of presentation skills. When they join the corporate world they would be in a comfortable position to present regularly.


For freshers, for giving any kind of presentation it is ideal to divide the process into pre-session, during session and post session. By breaking into three parts they can get into the process of presentation very easily.


PRE-SESSION:


It is ideal to consider 4W’s in this context. That is who the audience is, what the subject to be delivered is, where to deliver it and why the objective behind giving the presentation is. Knowing the profile of the audience will make presentation easier. Profile is nothing but finding out the age pattern, sex, geographical and cultural background of the audience. All the information will provide insights about the maturity level of the audience so that the material can be gathered and delivered accordingly.


Secondly, analyzing what kind of topic is to be presented because it is the main thing and the entire presentation revolves around what kind of topic is to be presented. Thirdly, find out the place where it is to be delivered. Knowing this, will help us to physically verify the place and space of the room where it is to be provided. It is essential at least just before the day of the presentation to go physically and check for compatibility, suitability and accessibility of the video or audio equipment to prevent last minute disasters. Many celebrities resort to this exercise to ensure effectiveness of the presentation. It also provides a sense of comfort and confidence. And fourthly and lastly, why the presentation is to be delivered. What are the goals and objectives behind delivering presentation? If all the 4 W’s are kept in view then the real presentation can be executed at ease.


PREPARATION:


“He who fails to plan is planning for failure”.


Do lot of research related to the topic, discuss with friends and family members and also the like minded people related to the topic, if possible. Refer and read number of books, publications, magazines and journals and collect the relevant material. Surf number of search engines in the website and gather lot of information. After reading the entire material, create your own views and opinions and jot down the same. Select the important information by narrowing down and by keeping the duration of the presentation in view. Get the best of the best ideas and concepts based on the priority level of importance. This is indeed an Herculean task and once it is prepared and created half of the battle is won.


Prepare the entire script on index cards in key words. Prepare it chronologically, coherently and logically with an impressive introduction. You can start with a shocking statement or a wonderful quotation or with an astonishing statistical information which must provoke the audience to think and concentrate. Keep the body part which must be in bulleted format in short hand format so that you can explain each idea by elaborating with your own examples. The conclusion should leave a mark in the minds of the audience. Over all, the entire script should be like a skeleton stuff.


PRACTICE:


After the completion of the skeleton stuff, the next stage is to practice speaking aloud. You will be able to hear your voice and then you learn to organize thoroughly in logical order. And also practice in front of friends and family members and take feedback. The feedback must be from the people who are honest and unbiased as it will help overcoming from weaknesses and strengthening the strengths. You can also practice in front of mirror at home so that you can analyze yourself as you are true to your conscience. You can also tape record your speech and rewind and replay number of times so that you can objectively and specifically correct your weaknesses. And the process should never be continuously at the same time. Once you listened to your tape and took the feedback, leave some gap or in the next day replay the tape again then you may find more areas where improvement is needed. The process must continue number of times till you find that you acquired perfection and confidence.


Look for your visual distractions for corrections by the below procedure:


You may videotape your practice of presentation and take feedback in three different methods. Firstly replay the videotape and list out your strengths and weaknesses by observing both your oral and body language. If there is any inconsistency between the both that may be written for rectification and improvement. This is the usual procedure everybody does. Secondly, keep the videotape in muted mode and observe only your body language. There are many mistakes we make without our knowledge and those areas can be jotted down for improvement. Some people make some unusual gestures unconsciously which may distract the attention of audience or at times it creates inconvenience and discomfort for audience. Out of the total communication the body language alone accounts for maximum per cent of the communication. Hence more sincere efforts should be made to fine-tune body language by this methodology. Thirdly play your videotape and do not look at it all but hear your voice for modulation, accent, pronunciations, pace and pause etc., With this, you will be able to know if any drawbacks in your oral language. The repetition of all these three stages independently number of times provides the correct feedback for rectification... Usually the ideal duration of the preparation should be 12 times to that of the real presentation.


SIGNIFICANCE:


The presentation skills will help you tremendously at the corporate world. In case if some stuff is created then it needs to be presented effectively and efficiently. Then only the stuff will get noticed. If a new project is prepared then it is essential to present the same to prospective clients or customers. It helps in displaying your skills and abilities. It also helps in triggering your passion. It is a well admitted fact that all great leaders are great presenters.


DRESS CODE:


For male presenters the dress code should be formal and official with a compulsory tie with elegant and neat appearance. The presenter must feel comfortable so that he feels confident to take part in presentation. Total official and formal appearance is vital as it makes a lot of different. For female presenters the same is applicable and it is advisable not to wear accessories and jewellery and rings. The main intention is not to distract the visual attention of the audience but to make sure that the audience stay glued to the presenter with a professional attitude.


PRESENTATION PHOBIA:


Sometimes butterflies may run in your stomach just before the final presentation. You can beat the so called stress in different ways and means. Drink water as it cools your inner system and it brings comfort to your vocal chords. It also warms your voice and decreases the stress gradually. You can start counting the numbers from 1 to 10 and vice versa as you do not think of the presentation. Do light exercises as it provides you with fresh energy and enthusiasm. You can also do breathing exercise like inhaling and exhaling as fresh oxygen goes to your brain and you get distressed gradually. And also, start discussing something other than the presentation as it removes your anxiety levels.


TIME MANAGEMENT:


Usually keep 15 per cent of the stipulated time towards introduction 70 per cent towards body and 15 per cent towards summary. The timings mentioned are approximate and there can be flexibility. It teaches to plan well and present well.


DURING SESSION:


“First you tell ‘em what you are going to tell ‘em, then you tell ‘em, then you tell ‘em what you told ‘em”, quoted Sergeant Major.


The above quotation complements the presentation in three different modes and that become the 1H i.e. how to present yourself. Having known 4W’s in the pre-session and when it is clubbed with 1H in the during session besides supplementing with the Q&A (Question and Answer) session the presentation process becomes complete.


Define clearly the introduction part in short and precise manner. Ensure that the audience is brought to the topic immediately. You may do so by posing a question or by narrating an anecdote or a small story which is easily understandable to all. Having drawn their attention then highlight the features, significance and importance of the audience. Try to explain the benefits the audience are going to get out of the presentation and having done that go to the body part which you might have written in short hand format and try to explain each concept, idea and point with simple examples and with facts and figures.


In fact, you will find three segments of listeners in every audience. First segment are those who don’t know the topic at all. Second segment are those who knows the topic superficially and the third segment are the experts in the topic. Try to focus your introduction and summary part to the first and second segment of people and focus the body part of your presentation to the experts in the field. For experienced presenters it becomes very easy to segment these three kinds of audience just after some time of the presentation by their body language and learn to focus all the three segments equally. Knowing the psychology of the audience will also help deliver the presentation effectively and efficiently.


Another way of making the presentation effective is by knowing how to centre the topic on three aspects like the first one being the self (speaker), second one being the topic and the third one being the audience. Some presenters think too much about themselves and neglect the topic and also the audience. Some presenters are too much conscious about the topic and pay least attention to themselves and also on the audience. And some presenters worry too much audience and fail to focus on themselves and also on the topic. The effective and efficient way of any presentation is to bring synergy and synchronization and coordination amongst self, topic and the audience. This is a difficult task but can be achieved by regular preparation and practice.


Globally well known concept in any kind of presentation be it in written or oral is the concept of KISS. This is the acronym for ‘Keep It Simple Sweetheart’ or ‘Keep It short and Simple’. Don’t confuse the audience with loaded vocabulary or with slang or professional jargon. The objective of any presentation is to ensure that the message reaches the audience accurately. And the best way to reach them is to keep the process of presentation as simple, compact, concise and crisp as possible.


During presentation it is essential to lay stress on three kinds of animation – body animation, facial animation and vocal animation. Any communication constitutes 93 per cent non verbal language and only 7 per cent verbal language. Again the non verbal language is divided into 55 per cent body language which is also known as kinesics and 38 per cent modulation. Unless there is right marriage between oral and body language the communication becomes incomplete and ineffective.


There has to be all round healthy movement of body with positive gestures by ways of hand, leg and body motion. The body animation can be utilized fully so as to convey your ideas. At the same time avoid any excessive body movement as it will distract the attention of the audience. Coupled with this, there is a need to maintain facial animation. Learn to smile wholeheartedly from the core of your heart and change your facial feelings as per the situation. Don’t be too serious or smiley. You can effectively make use of eyes by maintaining right contact with audience. There is an adage, “The eyes are the mirror of the soul”. You can communicate a lot through your eyes wonderfully. It helps to build right rapport with audience. Coming to vocal animation avoid monotone speech. Vary your pitch to signify the importance depending on the importance of the contents. If there is effective combination and synchronization in body, facial and vocal animation the presentation can become more effective and efficient.


The body part of the presentation is the core of the entire speech and try to present the topic from different dimensions so that the audience can understand the topic properly.


After completion of the body part then slowly transfer to the final stage that is summary. And never declare that it is summary as people tend to lose interest at it. Restate the main points and ideas with greater emphasis leaving a wonderful satisfactory impact in the minds of the audience. And also you can make a clarion call to do something which is motivational and inspirational.


TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES DURING PRESENTATION:


• Find out the aspirations and expectations of the audience so as to tailor your talk as per their needs.

• Involve yourself totally on the topic.

• Be confident and radiate energy and enthusiasm.

• Smile at appropriate occasions as it warms up your voice.

• If required pose a few questions to the audience so that they will be challenged to think and will develop curiosity and interest towards the topic.

• There has to be smooth transition from one idea to another.

• If you are not good at humor, it is better to avoid because no jokes are better than bad jokes.

• The delivery of the flow should be natural.

• Avoid cluttering the contents and keep the contents relevant to the topic.

• Avoid over connectors such as ‘and’, ‘because’, ‘so on’ etc.,

• Never gaze at a particular individual for not more than 3 seconds as it creates discomfort.

• Do lay stress on qualitative presentation not quantitative.

• Even if there is disturbance in the audiovisual equipment, be prepared mentally to prolong the presentation by trusting on memory.

• Don’t stand dumbstruck. If you find it difficult to retrieve information keep a few filler words like Ok, right, actually, like and sentences like ‘It is like, . . .’, do you know?’, ‘you see’ . . . and so on. By keeping such ready made words and sentences in mind you can overcome from any delay in accessing information from your mind.

• Never comment or joke on any of the members of the audience.

• If necessary you can crack jokes on yourself. And if there is excessive humor on yourself then you will become a clown.

• Learn to maintain proper pace and pause. The flow of your delivery should neither be too slow nor too fast. The flow has to be natural and effective. There has to be pause as and when required. Learn to stress on key words, ideas and catchy phrases. Proper pause will help audience to focus on your key ideas and contents.

• Visualize that you are talking to each and every individual not to the audience. Maintain a personal and conversational tone. Maintaining proper and equal contact with the entire audience will make the presentation more effective and efficient. Learn to speak one sentence by looking at one person and then shift to the second person with second sentence and so on if there is small audience. It creates a feeling of intimacy with the entire audience and the audience will reciprocate your presentation with interest. If the audience happens to be big, you can also fix a few persons at each corner of the room and regularly look at those individuals of all directions and it creates strong feeling that you are talking to them.

• Create an emotional bonding with the audience by telling ‘we feel greater, bigger, better etc.’

• Never get freezed in larger audience.

• Be mentally prepared for interruptions.

• If you have made mistake while speaking correct it and proceed further and do not apologize.

• Never be oversensitive to the audience.

• Never overload the stuff.

• Learn to repeat the key ideas, concepts and points in different ways to drive home your point.

• Remove your mask and be natural.

• Get connected to the audience wholeheartedly.

• Avoid usage of technical or professional jargon.

• If you find that the audience is bored use humor.

• If you want to convey a joke, it is desirable to practice number of times to make it effective.

• If you want to deliver a punch line look at the individuals whose body language is favorable to you and then deliver for effectiveness and applause.

• Budget your time judiciously and deliver with in the stipulated time.

• Involve with the participants closely and actively. And learn to mix with them as it creates bonding.

• Don’t prolong any presentation for a longer time as it loses its impact.

• Usually the practice presentation takes 20 per cent faster than the real presentation. Knowing this research report will help you budget your time properly on the D-day.

• Trust in your gut feelings.

• Don’t lose your links. Learn to pick up thread immediately where you have left. Usually it happens when there is interruption from audience.

• Present only what you know not what you don’t know. Don’t try to be a perfectionist.

• If you are a professional presenter maintain a separate files for quotations, anecdotes, case studies, examples etc., You can make use of the same depending upon the topic.

• If you want to become a professional presenter read the books and surf the websites of international professional speakers like Lenny Laskowski, Brian Tracy etc.,

• Avoid visual distractions if any.

• Always smile when leaving a message.


POST-SESSION:


After the successful completion of the presentation, it is the time to proceed to question and answer (Q&A) session where you invite a few questions for clarification. It is a very delicate and sensitive session as you must be fully prepared for any kind of questions. You need to encourage individually each participant and then clearly after understanding the question, handle it carefully, tactfully and patiently. Tell them to keep the questions with in the purview of the topic and if anyone goes out of the topic tell them the same clearly. If the answer is not known to you, say clearly and frankly and proceed further smartly and sharply. Don’t exceed the given time frame as it will upset other activities. We are not expected to know everything under the sun in the earth. Q & A session is, in fact, a crucial one where you can leave a wonderful everlasting impression by handling it successfully.


CONCLUSION:


Select an interesting topic, collect relevant material from all sources, organize it logically and practice the same thoroughly. After analyzing your strengths and weaknesses, rectify your weaknesses and then proceed for the real presentation. At the forecast stage, state what you are going to state, at the body stage simply state and at the conclusion stage, state what you have stated with a thought provoking one so that the audience will think on it for a longer time. At the end attend the Q&A session carefully, tactfully and diplomatically.


MESSAGE:


Speaking skills, listening skills, writing skills and reading skills are the four pillars for any effective communication. The speaking skills are subset of presentation skills. It is vital to be strong at presentation skills in order to become a successful professional. Talent is inborn while skill can be acquired by continuous training, practice, knowledge and experience. Presentation skills should be laid stress from the initial stage of education itself so that one can become an all rounded personality in the later stage.


T H E E N D

About the Author

(The author, Prof. M.S.Rao, is working as an Academic Guide in ICFAI University, India. He delivers ‘Guest Lectures’ upon request. He talks over radio and is a professional Writer and Trainer in soft skills, personality development, and motivation and equity investments. Number of articles has been published in various global websites, magazines and journals. He can be reached at email: profmsr7@yahoo.com).

H.No: 6-18-188, New NGO's Colony, Nizamabad-503002, INDIA Cell: +91-9949710632

YYCFL 2011-01-26 Calgary City Council - UE2011-02 Fluoride - January 26, 2011


non chronological report writing frame
non chronological report writing frame
non chronological report writing frame