Skylar Schuth 12/16/15

Section SE
Samantha Futhey
Final Essay
Over the course of the semester I have worked on a number of projects, but the most
important type of project moving forward to me is presentations. I will certainly have to give out
presentations over the course of my career. To prepare I will need to improve my oral and visual
skills and develop an action plan to guide me.
The most important part of WOVE that I need to work on is oral. It is the biggest part of
presentations and an area that Im still uncomfortable using. I think that one specific area that I
should work on is introducing data in presentations. Data is the key factor for projects in the
STEM world and because of that I need to be able to discuss it effectively while engaging the
audience. Yet I still had trouble introducing the graph for the assignment #4 presentation about
the income levels of the top 1%. I did not start with what the data on the x and y coordinates was
and I could have provided more examples as to the implications of what the information meant.
So clearly Im not where I need to be when it comes to introducing data. Another possibility with
using data improperly is that it can lead to a dull presentation, so it is important to choose the
right graphs and figures to represent the data.
For presentations a key factor in keeping the audiences attention is visual prowess. In my
presentations, my graphs and figures need to informative, but not overwhelming. Its sometimes
a tricky balance to figure how much data to put on a slide. For example in my assignment #4
presentation I had trouble formatting my chart on Americans ideas on the wealth distribution. I
went back and forth from having all the data on one slide or breaking it in to three parts. I think
that having them all on one slide was the right choice, but I could have gone further into detail if

they were separate. I still need to put in more work in order to reach mastery of oral and visual
skills that I desire.
To improve these areas I have come up with an action plan to reach the proficiency I
desire. First I will reflect on how I would go about presenting projects and research from future
classes to my future employers. This will help me get ready for when I have to present my
findings to them in the future. Secondly I will think about how I can display trickier concepts in
math visually. If I can figure out ways to easily display differential equations or integrals I will
be prepared to show data points from simpler problems. Lastly I will try to get in a leadership
position in a club in order to lead meetings. I am still uncomfortable presenting to people.
Therefore to combat this will I need to speak in front of others to become more accustomed to
public speaking.
With my action plan I will improve on my oral and visual skills. This will allow me to
become a proficient presenter and a more valuable worker. I have come a long way over this
semester, but I still have a ways to go before Im content with my skills.