39th Annual CSUN Assistive Technology Conference Has Concluded

Tips for Presenters

Planning Your Presentation

Get organized

Before you begin, outline your thoughts and organize the natural flow, consider your audience, and research and collect supporting documents. You have already submitted your proposal, which included your session description and objectives. Think about your goals and as you create your presentation, make sure you meet those objectives.

Know who your intended audience is and who else might be in your audience

Sometimes these are the same and sometimes they aren’t. As you design your presentation, be sure to communicate how the information can be relevant across a spectrum of attendees. Successful sessions transcend fields, industries, and professional roles.

Time yourself

Practice and fine-tune your presentation. Sessions are a total of 40-minutes in length and the schedule cannot accommodate sessions extending beyond 40-minutes. If you want to have time for questions and answers, build that time into your presentation. Be aware that your home or office is a controlled environment and that real-time at the conference can move faster, so add in a few minutes as a buffer.

Think about the types of questions you may receive

Consider having someone else review your presentation and pose any questions they may have. Think through your responses and any additional resources, and either incorporate them into your presentation or have them handy to share.

Preparing Your Presentation

Ensure your slides, media, handouts, and everything else are accessible

The CSUN AT Conference is an accessibility conference and we take accessibility seriously and hold our presenters to a high standard. In the past, we have not collected and disseminated presentation slides due to this standard and our inability to ensure quality accessibility control. In an effort to provide attendees with the highly requested slide presentations, presenters should adhere to this standard and ensure presentations are designed and created with accessibility as a priority.
W3c WAI has an information page, Making Events Accessible: Checklist for meetings, conferences, training, and presentations that are remote/virtual, in-person, or hybrid that provides tips and instructions on making materials, slides and overall presentations accessible. This is a great resource to use, so be sure to check it out to make your session inclusive to your audience.
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Share your slides

A repository of links to presentations will be made available to the public prior to and following the Conference. Sharing presentation slides is voluntary and not required to present; however, attendees overwhelmingly want access to slides, so it is highly encouraged to share them. Registered presenters will receive instructions on how to submit the link to their presentation slides. It is recommended that a service such as Apple iCloud, Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, or Microsoft OneDrive be used to host your presentation materials and create a shareable link.
The Center on Disabilities will confirm that the content linked is relevant to your presentation but will not review content for accessibility and/or attempt to remediate any accessibility issues.

Have the equipment you need

Session rooms at the CSUN Conference are equipped with a laptop, widescreen projector (with VGA and HDMI), widescreen (16:9) projection screen, microphone, mini-jack (1/8” stereo jack) audio patch, and sound mixer and speakers. You can transfer your slides via USB when using the provided laptop. Have a backup plan, and have your presentation available via multiple sources in the event one does not work as planned.
If you plan to bring another device, such as a tablet, iPad, laptop, or anything else, make sure you bring compatible cables, dongles, or other needed equipment. The CSUN Conference does not have additional equipment available for use.

Delivering Your Presentation

Know where your session room is

Look at the Conference schedule and map to locate your session room so that you know where you are going. You may want to visit the room ahead of time to familiarize yourself with the layout.

Arrive early to set up

Please be considerate of the presenters before you by entering the room once that session has concluded. There is a 20-minute gap between sessions, and you should use this time to set up and be ready to start your session at your scheduled time.
If you use your own equipment, be sure to take it with you when you are finished. Additionally, reconnect the CSUN Conference provided equipment to its previous set-up to allow a swift transition to the presenters following your session.

Have a way to track your time

If you have co-presenters, designate someone to keep track of time. Be sure to select someone who will not be presenting at the end so that they can focus on the time. If you are the sole presenter, determine a method to best receive reminders to check the time, such as cues in your slides or an alarm.

Ensure you are presenting in a way that is accessible to your audience

Your audience will be diverse and your presentation should accommodate everyone in attendance. If you include videos, make sure the audio is clear and describes what is happening. If you have photos or images, describe what is being displayed and explain their relevance. Say all the information that is covered on each slide and do not expect your audience to read it on their own. Be aware that there may be sign-language interpreters, live captioning, and attendees using assistive listening devices, so speak clearly, use the microphone, and pause between topics.

Sharing information

Many attendees want to reach out to presenters after the session with questions or to simply connect. The CSUN Conference does not share private information, so if you would like attendees to connect with you, be sure to share an email address or any other contact method during your session. Don’t forget to verbally share your contact.

Making your presentation available

If you don't share your slides ahead of the Conference, there will be an opportunity to submit a link after the Conference. If you share your slides, either before or after the Conference, let your audience know they can access them through a link in the session details on the Conference website.