The impact of an innovative instructional intervention on the acquisition of oral presentation skills in higher education

The present study focuses on the design and development of an instructional approach to develop oral presentation skills. The theoretical base builds on the social cognitive perspective, and self-regulated learning. The aim of the study is to investigate whether the design of a multimedia-based instructional format - comprising of a standardised multimedia instruction, practical activities and feedback - will enhance oral presentation skills. In the study, the differential effect of three 'modes of feedback' on performance has been researched. The results reveal that oral presentation skills did improve significantly after the instruction. The multimedia nature of the design was favoured by all participants. In contrast, no significant impact of feedback was found. Nevertheless, feedback proved to be a useful process that was highly welcomed by participants. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.