Many students dream of being confident public speakers who always deliver the perfect presentations in class. We all want to start off our presentations with a room full of attentive eyes, ready to learn and take in whatever we have to say. However, for many students public speaking and presenting in class is often a source of anxiety. The fear of forgetting lines and losing the audience are just some of the many reasons why students are afraid to present and speak in front of their entire class. If you can relate, there isn’t anything you should worry about, as the fear of presenting in class can easily be overcomed with the proper amounts of preparation and arrangements. Once you learn how to get over the fear of public speaking while presenting in class, you will definitely see a huge improvement in your overall mark.
Understand your material
It’s quite obvious that when you create your presentations, you're also expected to know your material and what information you are giving out to your audience. However, most of the times when we think we know what we’re putting out, we don’t know all the exact details. Not understanding the material to your fullest potential often leads to risks of drawing blanks and not being able to answer questions. To solve this issue, research beyond what you already know and extend on the background knowledge of your topic. For example, if your presentation topic is on the continent of South America, research a little bit on what makes up the continent, and the geological history behind it. Not only does understanding your material give you a better grasp of what you are about to deliver, it also allows you to expand on what you already know. From doing this, you can overcome the fear of drawing a blank from answering a question by a peer.
Identify your strengths and weaknesses
Identifying your strengths and weaknesses can help you be aware of your positive traits that strengthen your speech presentations, and the negative habits that weaken it. Even if public speaking isn’t your greatest strength, there’s bound to be something else that is. The hard part is understanding what you're good at, and what needs more work. Once you identify what your weaknesses are and separate them from your strengths, you will understand what to work on and how to get over the fear of presenting in class. Most of the time, students get unmotivated because they think that even if they have a good presentation prepared, their public speaking skills will ruin it. If you are good at delivering material, but your confidence level hampers your ability to present, consider practising more and try to focus on improving.
Visualize your success
To relieve the anxiety of public speaking and presenting, visualize that it went well. Imagine how you want your presentation to go, and then turn it into reality. Positive thoughts can help motivate and take your mind away from overthinking. Instead of visualizing what might go wrong, visualize how things will look if they go the way you want. This will help you become confident, and in addition, it will take away most of your fears and allow you to understand that good things do come from being confident in the way you present.
Acknowledge your accomplishments
After you visualize your success and you try to make it happen, acknowledge your accomplishments after your presentation is done. It may not have gone exactly how you wanted it to go, but you made it through and you deserve to understand how far you came. You might not even know how well your presentation was because you may fear that you messed up, but chances are you're more critical of yourself than your audience. Public speaking is hard, but understand that this isn’t your last presentation, and that there is still so much more to come. Learn from your mistakes, find new ways to improve, but also acknowledge what you did well. Seeing the positives can really help you be more inclined to public speaking since you know that it isn’t all that bad and that you have gone through it many times before.
It will take time to get over the fear of public speaking and presenting in class, but know that one day you will get over it. After going through it many times and understanding that there are positives, your confidence level will be where you want it. Remember that everyone is different, and what works for them may not work for you. Not everyone started off as excellent public speakers, but over time they improved and now they are comfortable with it. As time goes on, you will understand how to get over the fear of presenting and soon it will be something you enjoy.
Edited By: Khushi Kumari
Farah Aaryanna is a grade 9 pre-IB student at Milliken Mills High School. Learning new ways to improve has always been a part of her journey to academic success, and she hopes that she can help other students strive to improve as well.
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