Teaching virtual presentation with a theory-based feedback intervention: An experiential class project for the postpandemic era

Abstract

This study draws from feedback intervention theory and professional communications theory to present a versatile, experiential class project to develop and improve students’ virtual communications and presentation skills by combining hard and soft-skill development, multisource feedback, and self-reflection. After successfully using this class project for four semesters, data were collected from six graduate classes (N = 145) to assess the project's effectiveness and students’ perceptions. Positive student feedback, control group–trained group comparisons, and the trained group's Time 1–Time 2 performance comparisons provide supportive evidence for the effectiveness of the project as a valuable learning tool in helping students develop virtual communication and presentation skills. As companies and institutions across industries continue to utilize virtual work arrangements, this project will be a useful tool for preparing students for the postpandemic digital business world.