The Other Librarian has an interesting alternative for giving interactive presentations to big groups, called the "fishbowl presentation technique":
The Other Librarian also has great instructions on how to prepare a 15 minute talk.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_c.png?x-id=5867b96e-d5e2-499d-b693-5cb69f59a82f)
- You place 5-8 chairs in a space separate from the audience (usually inside a circle, but there are other ways to do this as well).
- You invite some members of the audience to fill the seats, except one of those 4-8 chairs is always vacant.
- Then you offer the instructions:
- People inside the fishbowl can speak at will.
- If you are outside the fishbowl and want to speak, you sit down in the vacant seat.
- If this happens, someone in the occupied seats ought to leave the fishbowl (at the most convenient or appropriate time possible).
The Other Librarian also has great instructions on how to prepare a 15 minute talk.
Fishbowl conversations can be great for idea sharing in a large group. It can get like musical chairs sometimes, so that's the cost. And you need a good way of making feel comfortable enough to participate.
I've also used it to some success to discuss strategic planning among law librarians. There is a 'is this going to work?' moment for sure, but it's great to encourage dialogue.
Or rather, it emphasizes dialogue in the presentation.
Ok, the conversations might get more interesting, but there are still talking the same people, which have talked in that particular conversation anyway, right? Or is the fishbowl version also including people?
The IJB committee used this technique to evaluate its own work following IJBC in Guatemala in 2009. I've since used it with a number of groups and have found it really effective.
Nick, I love that you follow a Halifax-based blog. I think I'd like to be friends with Ryan.
During AIM 2010 we tried this for the observers orientation session, which worked semi-ok, because nobody was really comfortable with talking at all, and switching chairs was a little difficult in a crowded room. But it gave the presentation a nice twist - and added some dynamics. I guess you have to paractise the technique a bit to get used to working with it.