Writing and Presenting Under Pressure
Most college writing is done for assessment — that is, most of the papers you hand in are eventually evaluated and graded. But some college writing tasks exist only as methods of assessment, designed to allow you to demonstrate what you have mastered. You often need to do such writing on the spot — a quiz to finish in twenty minutes, a final exam to complete in a few hours, an impromptu essay to dash off in one class period. How do you discover and shape your ideas in a limited time?
This chapter provides tips for three types of in-class writing — the essay exam, the short-answer exam, and the timed writing assignment. It also covers online assessments, the writing portfolio, and the oral presentation, which may include software slides.
Why Writing and Presenting under Pressure Matters
In a College Course
- You write under pressure when you take reading quizzes in biology or annotate bibliography entries in history.
- You work under pressure as you prepare an oral presentation about your internship.
In the Workplace
- You meet frequent deadlines as you justify your productivity and report on customer service problems.
In Your Community
- You learn that the school board is about to vote on closing your child’s school, so you need to alert other parents right away.
When have you most often needed to write or speak under pressure? How might you reduce stress in such situations in the future?