CaliforniaStateUniversitySacramento -- Department of Civil Engineering

CE 135: Hydraulics Laboratory

General Requirements for Oral Reports

In this lab, the oral report is intended to be a springboard for the discussion following data collection.

Content:

The report should contain the following elements:

  1. Description of the purpose or goal of the lab exercise.
  1. General description of the laboratory set-up and what data were collected and why.
  1. Results in the form of whatever calculations or graphs are requested in the laboratory assignment sheet. Describe how you did the calculations (don’t just present results).

Format:

This is a semi-formal talk (sometimes known as “business casual”). You don’t have to dress up and speak formally. On the other hand, you aren’t describing the experiment to your buddies over a pizza. Imagine you are talking to colleagues (including your boss). You want to be clear, concise, and professional in your presentation. You can assume that the people you are talking to have similar technical backgrounds as yourself. (This kind of talk is a lot harder when the audience is the general public.)

Plan your talk for 10 minutes, assuming two people are speaking. This is a guide. Use as much time as needed to cover the material. Be prepared to answer questions after your presentation (i.e., outside the 10 minutes).

If more than one person is speaking, divide up the topics among the speakers in some logical fashion. Each person should speak only once during the presentation.

Use your visual aids as your notes (though if you want to carry note cards, that’s OK). What’s important is that you don’t memorize or read a prepared speech. Even though you aren’t memorizing your speech, you should still practice it before speaking in class.

Visual Aids:

It is expected in professional circles these days that formal oral reports are accompanied by appropriate visual aids. The use of computer graphics (PowerPointTM) is very common now and will be required in this class. A computer projector will be provided. If you can bring your own computer, that would be appreciated. If you cannot, let the instructor know in advance. The black- and whiteboards can be used to answer questions, but not for the presentation.

In making slides, keep the following tips in mind:

Make text large enough (usually not smaller than 24 pt).

Choose colors that are readable and provide contrast (e.g., not blue on red).

Keep backgrounds simple so they don’t distract from your message or obscure it.

Use animation effects sparingly and consistently. Too much animation is a distraction. If you choose to animate entrances and exits, use the same effect throughout the presentation.

Use Equation Editor (inside WORD) to make equations (not spreadsheet formulas).

In choosing the number of slides, figure about one minute per slide, unless you have a lot of photos you are going to flip through quickly.

Don’t overload any individual slide with information!!!!!

Submittals

You may, but are not required to make a handout for the class.

Email a copy of your PowerPoint file to the instructor.