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Oral 2.7 · Select useful audiovisual presentation aids

Learn to select useful audiovisual presentation aids through clear examples and targeted practice.

Ontario Grade 11 English

Oral Communication

A focused lesson on selecting useful presentation aids

A class is preparing short presentations about changes to a shared school space. One student plans to explain a proposal to add quiet seating to a busy hallway. The student has a short spoken explanation, a simple sketch of the proposed seating area, and a photograph of the hallway. The task is not to use every available visual. It is to select the aid, or small combination of aids, that genuinely helps listeners understand the proposal. In this lesson, “audiovisual aid” means a visual or audio item used to support an oral presentation, such as a photograph, diagram, slide, recording, or brief clip. The central question is: what will this aid help the audience see or understand that the speaker’s words alone may not show as clearly?

What you will learn

Explain how an audiovisual aid can support a presentation’s purpose.
Choose an aid that makes relevant information clearer without distracting from it.
Use evidence from a presentation scenario to justify a choice while acknowledging uncertainty.

Begin with the presentation’s purpose

An aid is useful when it supports what the speaker is trying to communicate. Begin by stating the presentation’s main purpose in one plain sentence. In the hallway scenario, the purpose might be: “Explain how a small seating area could provide a quieter place to pause.” That purpose gives the student a way to judge the photograph and sketch. A photograph may help listeners picture the existing hallway; a sketch may make the proposed arrangement easier to understand.

The purpose also helps prevent a common mistake: choosing an aid simply because it looks appealing or is available. A striking image can still be irrelevant. If the presentation is about where seating could fit, a decorative image of comfortable chairs might not show the hallway or explain the proposed layout. It could create interest, but interest alone does not make it useful.

Ask what information the audience needs in order to follow the main idea. If listeners need to picture a place, a relevant photograph may help. If they need to compare locations or understand a proposed arrangement, a simple diagram may be clearer. If a short sound recording is essential to the topic, audio may be appropriate; if it adds no needed information, it may be an unnecessary extra.

Name the presentation’s purpose before selecting an aid.
Choose an aid for the information it contributes, not merely for its appearance.
Use only aids that help listeners follow the main idea.

Check relevance, clarity, and limits

A useful aid is relevant to the point being explained and clear enough for listeners to understand. For a photograph, check whether it shows the place or feature being discussed. For a diagram, check whether its labels and shapes make the proposed arrangement easier to picture. For a slide, check whether its text can be read while the speaker is presenting. An aid crowded with small writing or unrelated images may demand attention without helping the audience.

Consider what an aid can and cannot establish. A photograph of an empty hallway can show what that space looked like when the photograph was taken. By itself, it cannot establish how busy the hallway is throughout the day or whether students would use proposed seating. A sketch can show one possible arrangement, but it does not prove that the arrangement will work in practice. When speakers explain an aid, they should describe what it visibly shows and avoid treating it as evidence for claims it cannot support.

More than one choice may be reasonable. One speaker might select the photograph to introduce the location; another might choose the sketch because the proposed arrangement is central. The strongest choice depends on the purpose and what the presentation already explains aloud. A brief spoken explanation can also clarify an aid, but the aid should not require listeners to guess what it means.

Check that the aid directly relates to the point it supports.
Prefer clear, readable visuals over crowded or hard-to-follow ones.
State what the aid shows, and do not claim it proves more than it does.

Make a choice that fits the audience and setting

A suitable aid must work for the people who will see or hear it and in the setting where it will be presented. A detailed diagram may be useful when listeners can view it closely, but too complicated to follow on a screen from the back of a room. A short audio clip may communicate a sound effectively, but only if it can be heard clearly and the speaker can explain why it matters. The same aid may work well in one setting and poorly in another.

Check practical access as part of usefulness. Can everyone see the image or read its labels? Is the recording audible? Does the aid depend on equipment that may not be available? Could the speaker describe important visual information aloud for listeners who cannot see it clearly? These checks do not guarantee that every person will respond in the same way. They help the presenter notice avoidable barriers before presenting.

Selection includes restraint. An aid should support the spoken presentation rather than take it over. If a slide repeats every sentence the speaker will say, listeners may be left deciding whether to read or listen. If a clip is much longer than the point it illustrates, it may interrupt the explanation. Keep the aid focused on the information that matters to the presentation’s purpose.

Consider visibility, audibility, and available equipment.
Use an aid that listeners can follow in the actual setting.
Keep the aid focused so it supports rather than competes with the speaker.

Use a repeatable selection process

A practical selection process has four questions. First, what point does the aid support? Second, what will listeners learn or picture from it? Third, is it clear and suitable for the audience and setting? Fourth, what are its limits, and could a simpler aid work as well? These questions help a speaker make a reasoned choice without assuming that one format is always best.

To plan, compare the available aids against the same purpose. A photograph may orient the audience to the existing location; a sketch may explain a proposed change. The student might select both if each has a distinct job and there is time to show them clearly. If the photograph merely repeats what the audience already understands, it may be better to leave it out. Selection is not a contest to include the most material; it is a decision about what will help listeners understand.

Before presenting, check the aid in its intended format. View the image at the size it will appear, test whether labels are readable, and confirm that any audio can be heard. This is not a guarantee of audience understanding, but it can reveal problems the speaker can fix. After making a choice, be ready to give a brief reason: name the aid, identify the point it supports, and state any important limit.

Compare possible aids using the same purpose and audience.
Give each selected aid a distinct job.
Test whether the aid works in the format and setting where it will be used.

Worked example

Choose between a photograph and a sketch

The student’s presentation explains a proposed quiet seating area in a busy hallway. The student can show a photograph of the hallway or a simple sketch of where seating might go. Which aid should the student select, and what should the student avoid claiming?

Compare the two aids

Use the purpose to judge what each aid contributes and what it cannot show.

Identify the purpose
The purpose is to explain a proposed seating area in a particular hallway. The aid should help listeners understand either the existing space or the proposed arrangement.
Match each aid to its contribution
The photograph can help listeners picture the hallway as it appeared when photographed. The sketch can help them picture one possible seating arrangement. If explaining the proposal is the main point, the sketch is a reasonable choice; the photograph could also help if listeners need to understand the location first.
Qualify the interpretation
The sketch shows a proposal, not proof that the seating will fit or be used. The photograph shows the hallway at one moment, not how busy it is at other times. A defensible choice depends on which information the presentation most needs to communicate.

Answer: Select the sketch if the proposed arrangement is the main point; consider the photograph if listeners first need to picture the hallway. Do not claim that either aid proves the proposal will succeed.

Check: The choice follows the stated purpose and distinguishes what each aid can show from what it cannot establish.

Worked example

Decide whether to include a sound clip

A student explains how a quiet place in a school might feel different from a noisy hallway. The student has a recording of hallway sounds but no recording of the proposed quiet area. Should the recording be included?

Assess the recording

Separate the sound captured from the sound the proposal might create.

Check relevance
The recording is related to the contrast between a noisy hallway and a quiet place. It might help listeners imagine one sound environment.
Check what the evidence supports
The recording can demonstrate the sound captured at the time and place it was made. It cannot show what the proposed quiet area would sound like, since there is no recording of that area.
Make a conditional choice
Include the clip only if it is brief, audible, and clearly connected to the explanation. The speaker should identify it as a sample of hallway sound, not as proof of how every hallway sounds or how the proposed space would sound.

Answer: The recording may be useful as a brief example of hallway sound, but it is not necessary if spoken description is clearer. It cannot represent the sound of a space that has not been recorded.

Check: The decision considers relevance, audibility, and the recording’s limits without treating it as a complete picture.

Worked example

Revise an overloaded slide plan

A student plans one slide with a hallway photograph, a seating sketch, a long paragraph, and several decorative icons. The presentation’s main point is where the proposed seating could go. How can the student improve the selection without writing the whole presentation?

Focused slide selection

Keep the visual that best supports the main point; assess other items by their contribution.

Keep the main point in view
The stated main point concerns where seating could go, so the sketch is directly useful if it makes the proposed arrangement easy to see.
Remove distractions
A long paragraph may repeat what the speaker can explain aloud, while decorative icons may not help listeners understand the location. Removing them can make the relevant visual easier to notice.
Consider the photograph’s separate job
The photograph may be worth keeping if it helps listeners understand the hallway’s location or shape. If it adds no information needed for the explanation, leave it out. The student should check that the sketch remains readable when shown to the audience.

Answer: Use the sketch as the central aid, remove unrelated icons and the long paragraph, and keep the photograph only if it provides needed context. This revises the aid selection without supplying the student’s full presentation.

Check: Each retained item has a clear purpose; the decision about the photograph remains conditional on what listeners need to understand.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

Choosing an aid because it is attractive or entertaining.

Correction: Ask what information it contributes to the presentation’s purpose. Keep it only if that contribution is useful.

Treating a photograph or recording as proof of more than it captures.

Correction: Describe what is actually visible or audible and identify what the aid cannot establish.

Including many aids to make the presentation seem complete.

Correction: Select a small number of aids with distinct jobs; leave out items that distract or repeat.

Assuming an aid will work equally well in every room or format.

Correction: Check visibility, readability, audibility, and equipment in the intended setting.

Lesson summary

Start with the presentation’s purpose and select aids that help listeners understand it.
Check relevance, clarity, audience access, and practical fit.
Explain what an aid shows without claiming more than the evidence supports.
Prefer focused aids with distinct jobs over crowded or unnecessary materials.

Check your understanding

Question 1

A presentation explains a proposed arrangement of seats. Which choice most directly supports that purpose?

A clear sketch of the proposed arrangement
A decorative image of a different room
A long paragraph copied onto a slide
A sound clip unrelated to the seating plan

Show answer and explanation

A clear sketch of the proposed arrangement

The sketch directly helps listeners picture the arrangement being explained. The other choices do not show that arrangement.

Question 2

A photograph shows an empty hallway at one moment. Which claim is best supported by that aid?

The hallway is always empty.
The hallway was empty when the photograph was taken.
Students will use any seating placed there.
The hallway is quiet throughout the day.

Show answer and explanation

The hallway was empty when the photograph was taken.

The photograph can show what was visible at the time it was taken. It does not establish what happens at other times or predict how people will use the space.

Question 3

A slide contains a useful diagram but its labels are too small to read from the back of the room. What is the most relevant next step?

Add more labels to include every detail.
Keep it unchanged because the diagram is relevant.
Make the labels easier to read or choose a clearer way to show the information.
Replace it with decorative icons.

Show answer and explanation

Make the labels easier to read or choose a clearer way to show the information.

Relevance is not enough if the audience cannot read the aid. Improving readability or selecting a clearer aid addresses the problem.

Key terms

Audiovisual aid: A visual or audio item used to support an oral presentation.
Relevant: Directly connected to the point or purpose being explained.
Limit: Something an aid cannot show or establish, even when it is useful for another purpose.
Selection: Choosing which aids to use based on their usefulness for the presentation and its audience.

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About this lesson and its review

Published by DoAssignment. This reviewed lesson follows Ontario Grade 11 English (ENG3U), expectation Oral 2.7. It is a study resource, not an official curriculum publication.

Before publication, content is checked for structure, mathematical or chemical notation, calculations, course boundaries, and readability. Errors can still occur, so corrections are welcomed.

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