WHAT IS A GOOD LECTURE?

Dr.T.V.Rao MD

WHAT IS LECTURING?
Lecture: a discourse given before
an audience or class, especially
for instruction, as we teach our
Students
Discourse: a verbal interchange
of ideas; formal, orderly and
usually extended expression of
knowledge and thought on a
subject.as we do in many
Seminars and interactive classes

Etymology of lecturing
( Brown 2002)

As the etymology suggests, the

origin of the lecture is generally
accepted to be found in the
medieval pre-printing press era.
Books were scarce and
extremely valuable, which
made the lecturer the absolute
gatekeeper of specific
knowledge, and the student
had to commit what was read
aloud to memory from the
outset.

I was doing the same for many Decades

HOWEVER
Many are doing for Centuries

Remarkably little has

changed over the
centuries, and
lecturing is still the
most widely used
teaching method in
higher education.

Our System of Teaching including Teaching

Medicine

Depend
on
Lecturing
Lectures are still the mainstay of
higher education teaching, and
often they are the only practical
and cost-effective means of
ensuring that curricula can be
delivered in full to large numbers
of students. The lecturing style
and technique is also often used
successfully in conferences and
workshops.

Lectures are not simply didactic it is to

Promote Skills and Stimulate our Students
Though no longer used
to spread the content
of a single book,
lectures are generally
used to teach new
knowledge and skills,
promote reflection,
and stimulate further
work and learning.

In the appropriate context,

They are an effective way of providing information that is not
available from other sources
They can be cost-effective for transmitting factual information to
a large audience
They provide background information and ideas, basic concepts
and methods that can be developed later by private study, or in
small tutor-supervised group activities
They can be used to highlight similarities and differences
between key concepts
They can be a useful way of demonstrating processes.(Bligh, 2000)

Many reasons for choosing the lecture,

Among them .
When there is no workable alternative due to size of group, venue, etc.
When the programme stipulates it, such as at a conference or as part of an
undergraduate programme
When part of the purpose is to set guidelines for assignments, exams, etc.
When the aim is to present broad outlines of a subject and factual
information
When the aim is to illustrate process and/problem-solving strategies
When you want to model academic practice you wish to encourage

When you are invited.as happens in Guest lectures

Carefully thought-out learning outcomes

are essential before preparing a lecture.
What do you want the audience
to learn?
What are the key concepts that
need to be addressed?
What essential skills and
competencies should
participants have on leaving the
lecture?
How will all this be clearly
communicated to the audience?

A good lecture at the right time:

To our Students
Facilitates learning of the key
basic principles of the subject
Fits coherently into the overall
teaching programme is relevant,
well presented and holds
students attention is organised
into a logical structure supports
and builds on previous learning
is stimulating and provides food
for thought.

Beginning lecturers
Beginning lecturers or presenters need to realize that the
nature of an audience changes with its size. With fewer than
20 people, discussion is possible. With more than 50, a
performance is expected, and an audience can turn
vicious if it does not get one. Start your career teaching to
small classes. ( AS WE CALL MICROTEACHING )In this module
we will look at techniques to break a very large group into
smaller groups, and other ways in which you can avoid the
(thankfully rare) viciousness to which he alludes. Winston
(2008)

The main characteristics of a good

lecturer are that they:
Present the material in a clear
and logical sequence
Make the material accessible,
intelligible and meaningful
Cover the subject matter
adequately are constructive and
helpful in their criticism
demonstrate an expert (and
authoritarian) knowledge in
their subject

The main characteristics of a good

lecturer are that they:
Prepare the lecture appropriately
include material not readily
accessible in textbooks
are concise
illustrate the practical applications
of the theory presented
show enthusiasm for the subject
generate curiosity about the
lecture material early in the
lecture.

The main characteristics of a good

lecturer are that they:
A good lecturer
presents the audience
with opportunities for
meaningful
engagement with the
subject material and
with their lecturer.

Be clear
Not to be Repetitive
Make sure that you can be
heard and that you and your
visual aids can be seen. Make it
a rule to use simple and explicit
language, unless you wish to be
deliberately ambiguous to
promote reflection and enquiry.
Pace your delivery so that the
audience can engage with the
material and take notes.

Make sure the material is covered

Provide readings to cover the
module, with questions to help
identify the key aspects (but bear
in mind the points made in the
section on hand-outs later in this
module).
Give an outline and some guiding
questions before a lecture.
Provide background information
and further reading on the web.
Use an online discussion forum for
further discussion.

Be knowledgeable
Now your subject and be
willing to share your
authority. As well as
giving information, pose
thought-provoking
questions and provide
signposts for learners to
follow up with their own
investigations.

Be interesting
I Still Love My Teachers
Dont read or worse still
dictate. Speak to the
audience not at it. Make
good eye contact and
establish a relationship with
participants. Vary your style,
vary your delivery and vary
the ways in which you
involve the audience.

AUDIOVISUAL AIDS
Even the most high-tech audiovisual aids will not transform a
lecture. They are a very powerful
teaching tool but they can be
counterproductive if they are
irrelevant, confusing or just
distracting. AV aids should be used
to enhance the lecture by offering
clarification of material in the
lecture, and are particularly useful
for students whose preferred
learning style is visual. AV also
stands for Added Value.

Avoid:
excessive detail
complicated busy
slides
reading out your
slides
talking to the screen.

Remember! Technology can fail

Be powerful Stand Alone and
Teach

Work on your presentation

style
Your job is not to entertain but you dont have to be boring.
Think about how you use your voice for emphasis, contrast,
exaggeration, negation, etc. Your voice is a tool for gaining and
holding attention.
Participants in any part of the room should be able to hear you
clearly. Avoid:
speaking in a monotone
looking or sounding bored
using vocalised pauses (you know, okay, etc.)

Leave them with a message

Lectures should have a planned
ending not just a last word for
that day (or worse, just running
out of time). Your ending should
include:
A summary of the main points
A recap of the key questions
posed/answered the exit
thought you would like your
students to take with them

We Teachers Need Skills

Like most techniques in teaching
and learning, lecturing requires
its own set of skills, which can all
be learned and refined through
practice and reflection, but the
single most important element
of an effective lecture is that it
should be a meaningful
engagement for the audience
and speaker alike.

Personal Connection and

Individual Involvement
One of the primary ways Jobs
was effective in reaching
audiences was his remarkable
ability to establish a personal
connection between himself and
each audience member. Instead
of speaking to a group as a
whole, he seemed to speak to
each individual as if he were
having a familiar, one-on-one
conversation

Be Bold:
Care about your subject, and
how important it is for each
listener to get it. Where
possible, find something in your
talk you can be passionate
about, and let that passion
show. Give the listeners reasons
to listen. E.g. say What Im
going to tell you now changed
my life

ARE WE TEACHERS BY ACCIDENT

OR PASSION
Today Majority of us are Teachers by Accident, and
Few by passion, However teaching is a Art can be
perfected with passion, Being a Teacher living
without a passion makes the Life of Disappointing
Dr.T.V.Rao MD

A presentation without you leads

nowhere
As you can see, terrific
design, great images,
skilful use of media and a
strong script arent
everything, when it
comes to an effective
presentation. No, the
most important element
is you.

References
What Presenters Can Learn From Steve Jobs By Toke Kruse
IMPROVE YOUR LECTURING NHS
Google Images

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 Program Created by Dr.T.V.Rao MD to make many

Passionate Teachers to make Students better
Humans to change the Society
Email
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