Communicating science effectively : oral presentations and writing skills

Teacher(s)

Andres Michael; Goffaux Valérie;

Language

English

Main themes

The course uses the different formats of scientific communication in order to develop the skills necessary for effective communication.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	The course emphasizes the acquisition of skills rather than formal knoledge. The student will learn to adapt to the audience, to strucure their communication around a message, to master the rules and formats of scientifcs communication, with a critical mind.

Content

The course uses the different formats of scientific communication in order to develop the skills necessary for effective communication. The course emphasizes the acquisition of skills rather than formal knowledge. The student will learn to adapt to the audience, to structure their communication around a message, to master the rules and formats of scientific communication, with a critical mind. The teaching is in English but the student's work can be in French or English, according to their preference.

Teaching methods

The course is based on regular exercise, different levels of interaction between students (collaboration, autonomy, confrontation), and a gradual learning through four main tasks: (1) participation in a journal club (oral presentation of a scientific paper), (2) the design a poster (visual presentation of a research), (3) the writing of a scientific article and (4) the review of another student's article. The course requires the student to attend weekly sessions where teachers provide basic knowledge, supervise the work and organize the exchanges (learning outcomes : C1 & C2, F1, F2). Given the exceptional situation resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the course may alternate face-to-face sessions and remote sessions according to a schedule that will take into account its evolution.

Evaluation methods

The evaluation focuses on the following practical exercises that will be done successively during the quadrimester : (1) the production of an oral communication (poster presentation), (2) the writing of a scientific article (written work), (3) the review of an article written by a peer (written work). The evaluation of these three works contributes equally to the overall grade. The evaluation modalities are the same for the first and second sessions. In the second session, the student only presents the works failed in the first session.

Other information

The course is open to all Master or PhD students. Some tasks (poster, article) imply that the student has personally conducted or at least initiated a research project in the context of other courses, their stage or mémoire.

Online resources

The course material includes slides and examples of presentations and manuscripts available via Moodle.

Bibliography

Il n'est pas nécessaire d'acquérir ces ouvrages / It is not necessary to buy these references :
Davis, M., Davis, J.K., & Dunagan, M. (2012). Scientific papers and presentations (3rd Edition). San Diego : Academic Press.
Doumont, J-L. (2009). Trees, maps and theorems : effective communication for rational minds. Brussels : Principiae.
American Psychological Association (2020). Publication Manual of the APA (7th ed.). Washington DC : American Psychological Association.

Faculty or entity

EPSY