(Regarding Chapter 11) Distinguish among a forum,
panel, colloquium, and symposium as a means for making a public
presentation. Why one would you
prefer? Why?
A forum is for a larger
audience. Everyone in the audience participates by examining the topic or
problem. A panel means that there is a small group of experts discussing the
topic in front of an audience. Normally the audience does not get involve with
the panel until after the panel is done with their discussion. The discussion
consists only of Q&A. The colloquium consists of a small group of experts
with varied views to discuss the issue, develop and work through it in front of
the audience. The audience in this case does participate. A symposium is when
there are a couple of short speeches made about the issue. The audience can
discuss afterwards.
Personally I think I like
panel option more than the others. I feel like it is nice to have the people
who are on the panel to finish what they would like to say before the audience
gets involved. I feel as if this might save a lot of time because the audience
does not get involved until the end. Also I think it is better to have a question
and answer session instead of a full on discussion. It seems to be simpler in a big group setting.
I enjoy listening to a panel because I like hearing what experts have to say. In a big group session, a panel might be more appropriate because there probably would not be enough time to hear from everyone in the audience who might have something to say. I agree, it would save time if the audience didn’t get involved, or did so only at the very end in a question and answer (Q & A) session. However, I don’t think a Q & A session does anything except clarify in the minds of the audience what the people on the panel have said. The authors write that besides a moderated Q & A session, a forum could follow the panel in order to give the audience a chance to participate in a discussion. I think this would be important for those people who are interested in giving input, because many ideas could be sparked by the panel and valuable brainstorming could take place in a forum.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your perspective about speaking in front of panels. While I do not see myself wanting to speak in front of a panel, you did bring up a good point how it is nice for a panel of experts to finish what they would like to say before the audience gets involved. I do think that the success of a panel is highly contingent on the moderator of that panel since some people from the audience do not wait to ask their questions or to speak their opinion and viewpoints which at times can throw the whole panel discussion off. Overall, I do think you are right that out of all the forms of making a public discussion, a panel does seem the simplest in form.
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