In preparing reports, students develop the ability to select material appropriate to classroom topics and to the audience, and the ability to collect and organize material (requiring skill in reading critically, taking notes, summarizing, and outlining). Often a report can be made more meaningful to the audience through the use of visuals such as charts, maps, diagrams, and overhead transparencies.
Oral reports should emerge from other English language arts processes. If some students are not comfortable with reporting, they can develop more confidence by taking part in other oral activities before they are ready to give a report.
Before the Oral Report
Reports should be written, then presented orally. Students need to be instructed about where and how to locate information, how to prepare notes, and how to put the information into their own words.
Students and teacher together can plan a set of guidelines for reports, which should be posted for reference. Some suggestions include the following:
Reports should be genuine and useful. The following are examples of useful reporting in the English language arts classroom:
During the Oral Report
It is important that the report has an interesting, attention-getting opening and closing. Students should use notes and simple outlines for their oral presentations. Students may assist the teacher in drawing up a list of guidelines to follow while orally sharing reports, such as the following:
Some of the items listed above (e.g., eye contact) can vary across cultures and in accordance with the situation. Teachers should also be aware of second language and dialectical differences that can be present in students' speech, and adapt their assessment instruments accordingly.
After the Oral Report
Debriefing provides listeners with opportunities to make connections between what they know and what they have heard. Listeners can extend their understanding of information and concepts through discussion or written responses.
Debriefing also helps speakers assess how well they have expressed themselves. Speakers might assess their success using a learning log entry similar to the one on the following page. Teacher assessment may take the form of an assessment checklist or rating scale, a letter to the student, or a student-teacher interview. It is important that students are aware, at the outset of the project, of the criteria upon which they will be assessed.