1. SPARKLINE APPROACH
visualizing the speech/presentation
Marsha R. Cuddeback, College of Art + Design, Department of Interior Design
LSU CxC COAD Studio, Vincent Cellucci, Coordinator
LSU CxC Faculty Summer Institute 2013
“Teaching & Learning with Writing/Speaking” Lightning Round
2. PURPOSE and NEED
improve
• Student Learning Outcomes
• Course Delivery
• Student Narrative
Development
provide
• Framework for student
reflection and self-evaluation
• Direct instruction
• Feedback and revision loops
utilize
• Specialized Graphic Analysis
Tool: SPARKLINES
“… to prepare future practitioners
capable not only of creating beauty, but
also able to communicate, clearly and
convincingly its value to the public.”
4. SPARKLINE analysis of Steve Job’s 2007 iPhone launch (Duarte)
A sparkline, coined by Edward Tufte in
Beautiful Evidence, is a small
intense, simple, word-sized graphic.
7. OUTCOMES
STUDENTS
• Assessment tool
• Reflection
• Power of narrative
• Improve future presentations
• Choreographed presentations
• Reliance on narrative
• Confidence
INSTRUCTORS
• Improve course delivery
• Reflect on presentation skills
Most importantly, it was communicated to the
students that design emphasizing any
intellectual interaction is dependent upon
communication, and that the students’
constructions of these skills can be structured
more directly in the design curriculum.
8. SPARKLINE APPROACH
visualizing the speech/presentation
Marsha R. Cuddeback, College of Art + Design, Department of Interior Design
LSU CxC COAD Studio, Vincent Cellucci, Coordinator
LSU CxC Faculty Summer Institute 2013
“Teaching & Learning with Writing/Speaking” Lightning Round
Editor's Notes
this is a short story about transforming the way that students create and deliver oral presentationusing the visual and spoken modes of communicationit is about improving communication skills for students, in this case, students in the design disciplinesand the instructional method illustrates a specialized graphic analysis tool employed during the revision stages of formal presentations
Our students are not always strong speakers and there is evidence that prospective employers are interested in graduates with excellent and persuasive communication skillsthe ability to tell a story, explain a design strategy, build consensus are all a part of the language of design, in spite of the demand,teaching these skills is not always clearcomponent of curricula, or reflected in student learning outcomes the focus of design coursework is typically on visual communication – something our students are very good at this model simultaneously, and early in the semester, introducesa visual method for developing and analyzing oral presentationsgiving greater access to our students and relying on a comfortable communication mode In the 1996 Boyer Report, Building Community: A New Future for Architecture Education and Practice, one of the primary recommendations was to “urge (and in this case) schools of architecture to prepare future practitioners capable not only of creating beauty, but also able to communicate, clearly and convincingly its value to the public."
at first blush the model seems rather traditionalreading assignments, looking at precedents (such as TED talks), creating outlines and scripts, developing visual materials, videotaping, and rehearsing with peer and faculty critiquewhere the model departs from tradition is the insertionof a visual analysis tool called SPARKLINES after the first or second iteration and again at the endA SPARKLINE, coined by Edward Tufte in Beautiful Evidence, is a small intense, simple, word-sized graphic.
Nancy Duarte in her book Resonate uses this graphic idea to create a structure for analyzing presentationsIn our model two areas from the Duarte text were emphasized:First, to understand that the active audience is the hero of the presentation, not the presenter,and the ability to connect with the audience is directly related to the level of the presenter’s advocacy at the conclusion of the presentation. Second, to understand that an effective presentation must have a visual structure, a parallel narrative that provides the harmony for the spoken presentation. Students were expected to learn that great presentations are carefully choreographed and use their visual structure to support the spoken narrative. Learning this was difficult for the students(on the screen) example of sparkline analysis of steven jobs 2007 iphone launch – 90 minutes longthe structurewhat ismoves back and forth between what is and what could beends with what Duarte calls the “new bliss”VERTICAL TICK MARKSL is laughingC is clappingM is marveling at your own accomplishmentsSTAR moments – something they’ll always rememberorange – demonstratingblue – guest speakerswhite – speakinggreen - video
sparkline analysis of MLK speech, I have a dreamthe text from the speech was analyzed to understand his use of repetition, metaphors and brief moments of pause
For the studentsProvided students with an assessment tool aligned with their predilection for visual thinkingAssisted students in reflecting on self developmentAided in connecting visually with the power of narrativeA better understanding of the skills and strategies needed to improve future presentationsLearn that successful presentations are carefully choreographed and use visual narrative to support spoken narrativeGreater reliance on an improved narrative to direct the presentationEliminating peripheral informationImproving confidence in delivery of the presentationFor the Instructorsone indirect effect of this narrative process was the opportunity to examine our own presentation skillsand improve course delivery based on formal analysis of our instruction methods The results were encouraging. Both instructors and students left with a better understanding of the tools available to enhance formal presentations. Most importantly, it was communicated to the students that design emphasizing any intellectual interaction is dependent upon communication. and that the students’ constructions of these skills can be structured more directly in the design curriculum.
