To help every presenter create a meaningful and engaging session, we reviewed feedback from past conference attendees to better understand what makes a presentation effective. Participants consistently valued practical strategies, authentic examples, opportunities for interaction, and resources they could use after the conference.
The following research-informed guidance reflects what attendees told us works best and is designed to help presenters create sessions that are relevant, memorable, and immediately useful.
Dos
- Share practical strategies participants can apply immediately.
- Use authentic stories, case examples, and experiences to illustrate key concepts.
- Connect research and theory to everyday practice.
- Clearly organize your presentation around a few important takeaways.
- Create opportunities for participants to reflect, respond, or ask questions.
- Use slides that support your message rather than compete with it.
- Provide resources participants can revisit after the session.
- Leave attendees with clear next steps.
Don’ts
- Don’t rely exclusively on lecture.
- Don’t overload slides with text, statistics, or lengthy quotations.
- Don’t present theory without explaining how it applies in practice.
- Don’t try to include so much information that important ideas become rushed.
- Don’t use stories that could identify students, families, clients, or colleagues.
- Don’t assume participants will remember everything they hear.
- Don’t end without summarizing the most important takeaways.
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Virtual Presentations Specifically:
Virtual participants need presenters to be especially intentional about maintaining attention, encouraging participation, and providing materials they can access electronically.
Dos
- Build interaction into the session through polls, chat questions, reflection prompts, or brief activities.
- Explain early in the presentation how participants can engage.
- Use clear, visually engaging slides that are easy to read on a computer or mobile device.
- Speak directly to the camera when possible to create a stronger connection with attendees.
- Pause periodically to allow participants to process information and respond.
- Provide downloadable slides, handouts, reference materials, or implementation tools whenever possible.
- Include links and resources that participants can easily access after the session.
- Plan for possible technology challenges and have essential materials readily available.
Don’ts
- Don’t deliver an uninterrupted lecture for the entire session.
- Don’t wait until the final few minutes to invite participation.
- Don’t place large amounts of text on the screen.
- Don’t read directly from your slides.
- Don’t assume that silence means participants are not engaged.
- Don’t depend on videos, websites, or technology that you have not tested in advance.
- Don’t share resources only by displaying them briefly on the screen.
- Don’t rush through the presentation to cover every slide.
The most effective sessions do more than share information—they create opportunities for participants to connect, reflect, and leave with practical tools they can use. Whether presenting virtually or in person, thoughtful planning, intentional engagement, and clear takeaways will help ensure your session has a lasting impact on attendees and the students, families, and communities they serve.
