SC3.1Plan and deliver a prepared individual presentation on a chosen topic in a formal context

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Notes

SC3.1 — The prepared presentation

OCR's spoken-language endorsement requires every candidate to plan and deliver an individual presentation on a chosen topic in a formal context. The endorsement is separately reported on the certificate (Pass / Merit / Distinction) and does not affect the J351 grade — but it is compulsory and assessed by your teacher under OCR's centre-marked rules.

Choosing a topic

Strong topics are:

Specific rather than broad ("Why Whitby's harbour is at risk" beats "The environment").
Researchable with two or three good sources, not just one Wikipedia page.
Stake-holding — you should genuinely want the audience to leave thinking differently.

Weak topics are vague ("Sport"), unsupportable ("Why my football team is best"), or so obvious there is no argument to make.

Structure that consistently scores

Section	Time	Job
Opening hook	~30 s	Statistic, anecdote, rhetorical question
Thesis statement	~15 s	Single sentence: the claim you will defend
Body — point 1	~90 s	Evidence + explanation + signpost
Body — point 2	~90 s	Evidence + explanation + signpost
Body — point 3	~60 s	Counter-argument and rebuttal
Close + call to action	~30 s	Echo the hook, finish on conviction

A five-to-six-minute presentation gives you headroom for SL.AO8 questions afterwards.

Formal register

OCR specifies a formal context. That means:

Stand, do not sit.
Use Standard English; avoid slang and filler ("like", "kinda", "you know").
Address the audience as a group ("you may not know that…", not "you guys").
Use a printed cue card or numbered notes — not a script you read verbatim.

Common pitfalls

Reading the slides word-for-word (kills eye contact and pace).
Choosing a topic so narrow no audience cares.
Forgetting the close — trailing off costs the call-to-action mark.

Plan PAF here too: Purpose (persuade / inform), Audience (your class + teacher), Form (formal individual presentation).

AI-generated · claude-opus-4-7 · v3-ocr-english-language-leaves

Practice questions

Try each before peeking at the worked solution.

Question 110 marks
Plan a 5-minute presentation
On your answer paper, draft a plan for a 5-minute prepared presentation on the topic: "Phones in schools — ban them, or teach with them?"

Your plan must include:
- A clear thesis statement (one sentence).
- Three body points with one piece of evidence each.
- A counter-argument and your rebuttal.
- A closing call to action.
[10 marks — SC3.1 planning]
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AI-generated · claude-opus-4-7 · v3-ocr-english-language-leaves
Question 26 marks
Open with a hook
Write the OPENING 60 SECONDS of a presentation on a topic of your choice. Choose ONE of the following hook strategies and label it at the start of your answer.

(i) A surprising statistic.
(ii) A 30-second anecdote.
(iii) A rhetorical question or imagined scenario.

[6 marks — SC3.1 + SC2.2]
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AI-generated · claude-opus-4-7 · v3-ocr-english-language-leaves
Question 36 marks
Convert a script into cue-card notes
Below is a 60-word excerpt from a draft script. Convert it to ONE cue card of bullet-point notes that you could speak from without reading word-for-word.

Draft script: "What I want to argue today is that we should bring back the four-day school week. There is research from a 2023 study in Missouri showing that attendance went up by 12 percent. There is also evidence from happiness surveys that students slept better and read for pleasure more often."

[6 marks — SC3.1 delivery prep]
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AI-generated · claude-opus-4-7 · v3-ocr-english-language-leaves

Flashcards

SC3.1 — SC3.1 — Plan and deliver a prepared individual presentation on a chosen topic in a formal context

7-card SR deck for OCR English Language (J351) — leaves batch 1 topic SC3.1

7 cards · spaced repetition (SM-2)