I presented to BNCA, a women’s architecture college in Pune, India in November. The client wanted their female students to feel more comfortable voicing their opinions and ideas, presenting their work and even interacting with their instructors.
A big challenge was to connect “skill at presenting” to all areas of their lives, since realistically, not all students are terribly motivated about achieving top honors in school or even becoming successful architects.
The “secondary” goal (mixed audience) was to challenge instructors to make their material more engaging and appealing to students. I gave them all tools, motivation and enthusiasm to apply to developing their voices, taking risks and communicating well to achieve whatever goals matter most to them.
We did exercises to engage everyone with the material. Students “worked on” (yes I made them get out pen and paper and run scenarios) presentations ranging from totally personal (man thinking about his 1 year old) to career (woman who focused on her thesis project).
To get your audience to connect with your material, you REALLY have to suss out (and SHOW them) why they should care.
*”Vivas” refers to important oral examinations.
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