Reflections on a First Time Experience
I presented an academic paper for the very first time on March 8, 2012, at SITE 2012 in Austin, Texas. This blog entry is a reflection on that experience.
Presenting at an academic conference for the first time was not a trivial affair. The preparation ahead of time: writing a proposal, writing the paper, editing and revising the paper to get it to the prescribed length, then creating a presentation based on the paper, revising and editing the presentation, practicing the presentation and then revising it a few more times, are all tasks that consume time and energy, but finally the time arrives when the stage is ready and it is I they are expecting to speak, to present, to share newly discovered knowledge, or to provoke deep thought. As a teacher I have presented innumerable time to classes, numerous times to colleagues, and a few times to management, but I had never presented to an academic group as an academic peer. To be honest I was both looking forward to the opportunity and dreading the task.
When I first arrived at SITE 2012 I was tentative and unsure if I belonged there; I felt like an imposter. Having all those Ph.D.s in the same room was a little daunting until I sat in on a few presentations and noticed a few things. Firstly the majority of the attendees were concerned with education and technology, just as I am. Next, the majority of the people there were no less apprehensive about presenting than I was. And finally, the attendees and presenters were all there to learn, to ask and answer questions, and to accept what others, including myself, had to say about the topics being presented.
After that first day I felt a whole lot better. I realized the other attendees and presenters were just people too. I began to feel more comfortable and more confident. Perhaps I did have something to offer, even if it was a little different than most were sharing. I became more confident and began to enjoy the presentations more and more and to dread my coming performance less and less. But I still spent the afternoon before my presentation revising my PowerPoint slideshow and practicing the actual presentation!
I feel my actual presentation went as well as it could, considering the time constraints. Perhaps my topic was too large for the 25 minutes allotted, considering 5 minutes were reserved for questions and answers. Keeping the number of slides to a minimum and keeping the amount of writing on each slide to a minimum are excellent rules to adhere too; not thinking ANY slide is an exception to the second rule is challenging, and one area my presentation needed improving. There were a few questions; most were clarification of points made; one person wanted clarification of my background to understand better where my framework came from.
All in all I feel the trip to SITE 2012 was successful. I think the process of preparing a paper, then preparing a presentation, and then presenting the paper is irreplaceable by any other activity. The immersion in four days of academic discourse was fantastic, and even though I will not recall all the details of what was talked about, my learning and my growth were immeasurable.
Maurice Last
June 2012.