Along with many of my classmates, I worked on gathering information and preparing a presentation about composting for the RAs of Rooker Hall. For this project we kept in mind several things: our audience and our objective. Our audience was the RAs of Rhooker Hall and our objective was to inform them about composting and how to do it, so for our research we compiled helpful information that was relevant to this topic. We did not want the presentation to be too technical, so we tried to include only basic details about the benefits of composting as well as what to and what to not compost. After we had enough information, we created a flyer that was colorful, aesthetically pleasing, and easy to read, and we created a PowerPoint presentation to show during the meeting with the RAs. This type of research—keeping a narrow focus based on the audience—will be helpful in the future should I ever give a presentation to a group of peers who are not currently studying or have studied the topic at hand.

During the research project and presentation, we focused on the dos and don’ts of composting, how composting is beneficial, and any common questions we believed our audience might have. Before this project, I knew that composting was good for the environment, but in researching I learned just how large the impact of composting can be. Furthermore, in researching the specifics of what is compostable from different websites, I gained a very precise picture of composting as well as used some of the questions I had prior to beginning the project to help the RAs develop a similar understanding. Presenting the information to people who did not know much about composting also furthered my knowledge about the subject because we prepared to deliver the material, and we were able to hear and respond to their questions.

I thought an interesting component in our presentation was the section about why we should compost. We included several interesting statistics and facts that definitely intellectually stimulated our audience. During preparation for this presentation, we always kept in mind our audience, which is evident in the short but informative presentation as well as the easy to read but interesting flyer we made. I think our creativity was evident in both of these elements, as we made sure to cater to our audience in an interesting and pleasurable way.

Reflecting about the presentation, I learned that I can remain calm despite pressure. Right as we were about to give our presentation, we ran into some difficulties with our location, so we ended up having to move to a different room where there was no projector. Despite this mishap, my peers and I pulled together and kept level heads. I also thought that I did a better job of paraphrasing the information on the slides than I have in the past, and I do see myself as more confident since we delivered a good presentation on the fly and were able to respond to questions.

Most of our project was centered around our assumption that only a select few people want to listen to a lengthy and technical presentation about composting on a Wednesday night, and that the Rhooker Hall RAs were not among those few. Consequently, we made our presentation brief and straightforward, and we made the flyer engaging and simple. For future communication efforts, I will seek to find a balance between achieving the goal of the presentation and being sensitive to the proximity of the audience to the subject.

If I could change something about our presentation, I would have prepared more thoroughly so that we could have adapted better to the switched order of the presentation. Nonetheless, the presentation taught me that people are more interested in composting than I had previously thought and that composting is a very marketable as well as an important activity. The presentation also helped me with teamwork, which is common in this course, and my presentation skills.  I learned that a crucial presentation skill is keeping your audience in mind as well as being engaging, and I learned that feedback from professors and other faculty members involved is crucial as well. All of these skills and tools will be useful both in my education at the University as well as in my professional field after graduation.

As a group, I felt we had a strong grasp of our information. However, we did appear slightly frazzled, as the location change and segue to the project threw us off. I would have preferred for us to appear more put-together, but the situation did not aid us in that pursuit. I do believe that, in sum, we came across as knowledgeable which was beneficial in marketing our project to the audience. Furthermore, I think giving this presentation was effective because it developed my group work skills as well as my communication skills, both of which are vital for both academic and professional success. I felt my classmates and I received helpful feedback that led us in the right direction, and, ultimately, I believe our presentation was a success.

For my final project, I went to Clarke Central High School to do a joined study about antibiotic resistance with a class of AP Environmental Science students. Before we went to Clarke Central, we first had to run our own experiments back in the UGA lab. Our class was split up into teams of 2 to 3 people, and each team collected a soil sample from either somewhere in Athens or somewhere in the state of Georgia. What we aimed to do was test the antibiotic resistance of different soil samples from around the state and upload our results to a national database: the PARE site (Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment). Once we collected the soil samples, we took our teams to the lab. We diluted our soil samples and plated them on petri dishes with varying levels of antibiotics. After letting our dishes sit for a period of time, we counted how many bacteria colonies had formed from the soil on each petri dish. What we expected to find was that there would be less bacteria colonies on the plate with Tet30, the strongest antibiotic, than there would be on the plates with Tet3 and no antibiotic.

Once we had our incubated petri dishes, we were told to count colonies of plates that had between 30 to 300 colonies. Once we had chosen the best plates for counting, we would multiply our number of colonies by the dilution factor. The purpose of multiplying by the dilution factor is to account for the fact that we had varying levels of dilutions for our soil samples. Once we had the results of our teams’ soil samples and a couple samples from the AP Environmental Science students, we were ready to take this same experiment to Clarke Central. This research is similar to research I hope to do in the future because I am in the College of Education at UGA, and I hope to integrate my research with neighboring schools in order to understand what it is like to conduct a classroom experiment. While I am on track to be a speech pathologist, I still look forward to partnering with professors in the COE for future research projects.

I think that this first lesson we did in the classroom (Water, Antibiotics, and Evolution) will ultimately be the chapters I best understand from this semester. This is because I like to participate in lessons as opposed to listening to lectures (though I still find lectures necessary). We not only had the opportunity to be in the lab to learn about how antibiotic resistance is affecting our environment, but we also had the opportunity to take a field trip to teach other students about this same subject material. This is how I best gained information about antibiotic resistance. The lectures in class, quizzes online, and lab work combined with the field trip really helped me get a good understanding of the material. Preparing to help the high school students was a helpful experience because we wanted to make sure that our class time with them was not only informative, but fun as well.

In my opinion, our team of college students who traveled to Clarke Central did a great job incorporating the three characteristics to informative delivery. Our class time with them was intellectually stimulating not because of anything we could control, but simply because the students had the opportunity to see how the soil in their own environment tested in a university lab. Antibiotic resistance is an important issue and has been a topic of conversation and debate recently, so I believe that this also contributed to our project being not only intellectually stimulating, but relevant to the audience as well. I also believe our project was creative because when I was in high school, I never got the opportunity to work alongside college students in any of my science lab classes. This opportunity was such a fun way to talk about biology while also talking to prospective college students about what college is like. I found a lot of my conversation were geared towards explaining what it was like to actually be in the university lab. It was also a nice way to answer any questions and calm any fears or anxieties that these high school students had about going off to college someday.

I discovered a couple of things throughout this project. First, I realized that I am capable of connection. I was worried that I was not going to be able to “get through” to the high school students during our presentation due to the fear of being too awkward and unapproachable. However, after our time with them I realized that these were just lies I was telling myself. This project helped me cast out those lies and replace them with the truth that I have the ability to relate to others through a teaching environment. This helped me affirm my confidence in what I am studying at UGA. Secondly, I discovered why technology rules are so important. While I believe our time at Clarke Central was fruitful, I believe that if the students were prohibited from using their cell phones, we could have had a better interaction with them. I realized this by simply changing my perspective in the classroom from student to teacher, and I believe this experience was very telling.

We did not have much time to analyze our audience before we began our presentation, but before we began, we did get to observe them doing a “warm-up” AP test question. It was during this time that I was able to gauge just how intelligent these students were. They knew a lot more than I did about environmental science, so I was able to apply this knowledge to our lesson. I knew immediately that we could not limit these students’ capabilities simply because of their age. This proved to aid our presentation because while we were helping the students learn, they were also teaching us in turn. I will use this information in the future when I give presentations. Though it can be difficult, I believe it is important not to make assumptions about your audience preemptively. I look forward to giving interactive presentations where I not only give information, but I take questions and suggestions from my audience as well.

For this project, I would have prepared even more for our presentation by planning out a detailed schedule of what we would be doing beforehand. This is because I am a forgetful person who thrives in an organized environment, as I have to reference my own detailed schedules daily.

This project helped me better understand the material because I found it to be more hands-on than other things I had done in science classes before. I also find that the best way to learn subject material is by teaching it. This was a studying method for me in high school, and it was nice to see how this same strategy was effective in college as well. In the future, I hope to use this strategy to help me study. I want to find outlets for me to be able to teach as a form of studying. Also, I will take what I learned about myself during this project experience and apply it to my future in many areas of my life. Knowing that I am capable of what I set my mind to and having confidence in my strengths is a quality that can be applied to not only my student life, but my relational life as well. I believe that I came across in the beginning as somewhat shy. However, as the presentation went on, I think I grew more confident. I hope that in the future I would affirm my confidence before presenting and know that there is nothing I need to be anxious about. Through this project experience, I learned what it looks like to recognize self-deprecating lies and replace them with truths about myself and my capabilities.

I believe this project experience was very effective for me. I really enjoyed learning about antibiotic resistance in a way that was easy to understand. In retrospect, I’m very thankful for this experience because it helped me understand our second chapters about soil and compost better. I believe sustainability is extremely important, so I’m glad I was able to learn more about how soil is a central idea to attaining a healthy environment.

 

 

• Describe the topic that you worked on.

 

I went to ECV to go inform the RAs on a new composting project run by Christi Tweedy. We researched and presented everything students should know about composting.

 

 

• Include a description of what did you do for the project. Please specifically include the research you did for the project and discuss how the research you did may be similar to research you will do in the future.

 

I, along with a classmate, researched what NOT to include in compost while the rest of the class covered all other aspects of composting. I also helped to present at ECV to the RAs to further inform their residents about the composting happening in ECV and on campus. This may help for research in the future because it gave me a solid foundation about composting that I didn’t possess before. Should our biology class become even more involved in this project, my background would greatly help.

 

 

• List your main points and write out what you now know about each of the points. How did you gain information about your topic? What did you learn about your topic through this project? Did presenting on the topic cause you to get to know the subject matter better?

 

We learned a lot about composting from our bio class teaming up with Christi Tweedy. I learned so much about composting through this project since I knew basically little to nothing about composting prior to research in class. Presenting didn’t help since I was already well informed before then.

 

 

• Three (3) characteristics of effective informative delivery have been identified: intellectually stimulating, relevant to the audience, and creative. How did you incorporate these three (3) characteristics in your presentation?

 

I honestly don’t think it was all that creative or interesting to the audience because it’s not a very attention-grabbing concern. However, I do think it stimulated the RAs because a lot of them proceeded to ask questions about the composting. It’s relevant to the audience because they could all do something easily accessible to them to create compost. We incorporated these three characteristics in our presentation by using a powerpoint and handing out flyers as well as showing them what the compost thing looks like.

 

 

• Identify 2 discoveries you made. What did you learn about yourself? Did you employ a new creative skill, do you see yourself as more confident? Did you become aware of assumptions you held—perhaps about the audience? Did you learn something new about delivering a presentation using technology?

 

I discovered that composting is very simple and I also learned that composting can be done in small homes such as apartments. Outside space isn’t necessary to compost. I assumed that the audience would be disinterested but they were very intrigued by what we had to present. We had technological issues because we didn’t have a projector so we used Josh’s tablet which ended up being fine. I learned it’s important to have a backup in case something goes wrong.

 

 

• How did you analyze your audience? How did your analysis affect your planning for your presentation? How can you apply what you learned about adapting to the audience in your future communication efforts?

 

I wasn’t excited to present because I thought the audience wouldn’t care at all. I learned I should ease up a bit since you never know what to expect from an audience.

 

 

• In less than three lines of text describe what you would do differently. For example, would you prepare introductory remarks differently?

 

If I could do something differently, it’d be to make sure the RAs didn’t have to move around and make sure the room was available for us to use before announcing the meeting location.

 

 

• How did the experience better help you understand what you are learning in the course? Please address audience analysis, content development, organizing your speech, delivery, and incorporating feedback.

 

It introduced me to the importance of composting for the very first time. In addition, I learned how prepared and organized I have to be to present a topic to an audience. You must be well informed and prepared to deal with unexpected obstacles. You also have to learn to take criticism very constructively.

 

 

• Please describe how you can use what you learned from this experience in your future.

 

Composting is a subject very advantageous to know about. It’s something that can improve your daily routine and is also something you could easily teach someone about.

 

 

• Did you come across the way you wanted to? What elements would you want to work on in the future?

 

We could’ve presented the information in a more organized manner and with a bigger screen, but luckily we had informational flyers for the RAs to better understand the topic of conversation.

 

 

• This assignment has the elements of students addressing a real-world issue (water quality), receiving feedback from the community partner, and delivering a presentation using technology. Was this assignment effective for you? Why or why not? Was the feedback you received helpful?

 

I think it was helpful but not as effective as it could’ve been due to our technological complications. It was helpful to receive feedback from the RAs to better our project. I learned a lot of useful information from researching and presenting about composting.

1. The outreach project I choose to work on was the Rooker Hall Composting Initiative. This was aimed to educate RAs about composting within dorms so they could take that to residents and carry it out. This would start within the ECV community then expand all across campus.
2. In order to execute this project as a class we had to research what to compost, what not to compost, the easiest way to store and collect compost in the dorm, and how compost can help the environment and soil. My partner and I focused on how to make compost. This included what to compost, what not to compost, and how to take care of the pile. Our research included using multiple sources then compiling it all on one page in the wordpress sight for future reference.
3. Some of the things that were highlighted through the presentation was: Why is composting important, What to and not to compost, Examples of composting already happening, finally How to collect all the compost. Presenting this material allowed me to understand the material much better due to being put in a situation to explain it and sell it to others so they can implement this initiative. It also made me dig deeper and look into the scope of the office of sustainability. The information was put together with guidance from Christy Tweedy.
   1. Why: Composting benefits our environment by improving soil/water quality, decreasing methane, helping with overall global warming. It is also a safe waste disposal mechanism.
   2. Do’s: Anything organic – vegetable and fruit scraps, coffee grounds, plants or leaves, egg shells, shredded paper, dryer lint, hair, and cardboard.
   3. Dont’s: Glossy or colored paper, bones, feces, metals, plastics. Meat is also not recommended as it attracts vermin
   4. Examples: All food waste from the UGA dining halls is currently composted then sent to the bioconversion center. Then used around campus. This shows how composting is helpful.
   5. Collection: Electric Bike – It is owned by the office of sustainability and run by interns. The bike will be used to collect the compost from the bin in the lobby of Rooker Hall on Fridays at noon.
4. This presentation proved to be intellectually stimulating because many of the RAs were very involved and asking questions. This showed that they were thinking about composting in a new way. They actually started to think this idea was practical, hence we sold it to them correctly.  Our presentation was relevant because the RA’s were the people who would take it to the residents for implementation and educate the residents. From our eyes the RA’s were the first step to implementation. Our presentation was creative because it included a presentation which illustrated our ideas, we also had flyers made that made it easier for RAs to understand what needed to be done. We also had pictures of the bike and the green bin as a prop.
5. I did not think this presentation would have much of an impact on the RAs and was thinking to myself “which college student actually cares about composting” as I thought when I started this out reach project. To my surprise, the RAs were actually very interested as they were asking some very in-depth questions and I saw some of them even taking notes. This makes me believe that our initiative will actually be useful and carried through. I started to sense myself becoming more confident as the presentation went on and the RAs started asking questions which I actually new the answer too.As far as technology goes, I learned to come with presentation material like in this case there is not a projector. So maybe print out the slides.
6. I believe the first thing we as a group adapted to was the style of presentation, given there was not a projector and that was what we were assuming. I personally adapted to the audience when I saw that they were more involved than I thought they would be. I tried to answer a few questions. Another thing I believe our group adapted to well was when they started asking questions in the middle and we had to steer away from the presentation order we had planned and present as we answered questions. This definitely kept the audience more engaged.  I learned to research the topic a little bit more in depth than whats on the presentation next time so that adapting is a bit easier and I won’t have to look at the slides all the time.
7. If given another chance, I would know the information on all the slides better rather than just focusing on my slides because there may come a point where we may not have a way to present the visual. I would also want to give more time for questions from RAs and start the presentation my letting them know that we will present then take questions at the end. I would like to do this because many of their questions were covered in future slides and this way we can also get our point across without being flustered.
8. This experience gave me a “beyond the classroom” outlook. It showed me how what I am learning can be applied. Analyzing the audience while presenting and adapting helped me understand what kind of presenter I am and how I can grow.  It also helped me see the scope of this project. Forming a presentation gave me a deeper understanding of the topic and aspects beyond the topic like the office of sustainability. I am a very engineering/corporate minded person so this outreach made me step out of my comfort zone and pursue a topic I usually would not give a second thought too.
9. I can use this information to practice composting myself and to teach sustainable practices to others. This experience also taught me to not judge the audience to hard before walking into the room. The presentation itself taught me to give a strong introduction so you control the presentation and not the audience.
10. Due to presenting and only talking on what I personally researched, I believe I came across confident. Next time I would like to be able to answer more questions to show that I am more involved than just my part — to do this I plan on glancing over all parts before the presentation.
11. This assignment was effective because it made me learn the content at a deeper level. The presentation helped me compile the content and figure out whats actually important and what needs to be focused on. I liked the relevance of the topic due to being a student living in Rooker. The feedback from the RAs allowed be to believe the impact we actually had due to seeing their interest.