Demonstration of Knowledge

Week 9 at SCMC was unlike any other week I had experienced so far. Part of its focus was on Virginia Working Landscapes and their demonstration plots off the side of Racetrack Hill. For the Virginia Working Landscapes assignment we were to present our findings from our various surveys to the Conservation, Biodiversity, and Society program. It was at this point that we became flustered. We were handed sheets and sheets of data uploaded on excel documents that we were supposed to pick and choose data from, making graphs and figures. The assignment lacked specific instruction (Grader, I’m sorry if you were a part of putting this assignment together) and we didn’t know what kind of information the other program needed from us. Somehow it all turned out alright in the end, our presentation looked nice, and our figures were readable.

During this presentation, I experienced the first brain fart of my life while presenting. I was going through all of my major points on my slide and got to one that I forgot the true meaning behind and froze; I stopped talking for at least a minute. At this point in time, I think this brain fart symbolized my group’s confusion behind the whole assignment. I was mortified that I had let it happen afterwards, but quickly got over it and laughed.

I think that there was a lack of communication on what was to be expected from the students on this assignment. I would have also liked to know what exactly the other program needed from us, specifically with regards to data, before we put the presentation together. We were supposed to act as consultants to the other group and I don’t think consultants normally present data haphazardly without knowing what their client is interested in. It didn’t make sense that they wanted data on invasive species when we had only collected data on flowering plants. I think that if we had at least known what they were looking for then this assignment would have flowed more smoothly.

What I got from the assignment (whether it was to be intended or not) was that my group was to collaborate and put together a cohesive PowerPoint explaining what we considered to be the most important findings from the demonstration plot data. We were able to practice our presentation skills, skills of which hold great value in the world of conservation because being able to convey ideas and data is extremely important within the field. We were to demonstrate our knowledge on how to present and how to use the diversity indices that we had learned previously at the beginning of the year.