Public Speaking Exam 1

Discuss methods of controlling nervousness and making it work for, rather than against, the speaker.

1. Acquire speaking experience: The more you become accustomed to a situation, the less threatening it will become. 2. Prepare: Pick speech topics you care about and prepare them so well that you can't do anything but succeed. The more practice you have, the more comfortable you will become. 3. Think positively: Confidence- If you think you can do it, you will. By controlling your nerves you can focus on your speech. 4. Use the power of visualization: Picture yourself, days before the speech, as being successful and working through mistakes in your speech. 5. Most nervousness is not visible: If you act calm and collected, it is often difficult for the audience to sense your extreme nervousness. 6. Don't expect perfection: There is no such thing as a perfect speech. Often your audience will not notice your mistakes either. They are not judging looking for a perfect performance.

Explain the three key criteria for evaluating the quality of materials on the World Wide Web.

1. Authorship: Author should be clearly identified with their qualifications. 2. Sponsorship: Is the sponsoring organization impartial? Objective? Have a good reputation? How credible? 3. Recency: Often more updated than printed, but make sure there is a date with the last revision of the website. You need to make sure it is current enough to use in your speech.

List and discuss the three basic guidelines for ethical listening.

1. Be courteous and attentive: You want to act how you want your peers to respond when you are speaking. We have to support one another. 2. Avoid prejudging the speaker: You don't have to agree with them, but you should listen to their speech in order to make your own decision about the topic. 3. Maintain the free and open expression of ideas: You can disagree with the speaker's ideas, but still support their right to express it. By restricting free speech, we often end up suppressing minorities and unpopular opinions.

Explain why the effective use of language is vital to speech composition and pubic speaking.

1. Choose words that are precise and accurate. 2. Using language clearly allows for grasping of your meaning immediately. 3. Using vivid language helps bring the speech to life. 4. You have to adapt to the particular and topic at hand. 5. Develop your own language style.

Identify and discuss the five major methods of organizing main points in a speech.

1. Chronological: The main points follow a time order. 2. Spatial: The main points follow a directional pattern. 3. Causal: The main points show a cause-effect relationship. 4. Problem-solution: The first main point deals with the existence of a problem and the second main point presents a solution to the problem. 5. Topical: The main points divide the topic into logical and consistent subtopics.

Explain three ways to avoid abstractions in an informative speech.

1. Description: A statement that depicts a person, event, idea, or the like with clarity and vividness. Can describe internal feelings as well. 2. Comparisons: Put the subject in concrete, familiar terms. A statement of the similarities among two or more people, events, ideas, etc. 3. Contrast: A statement of the differences among two ore more people, events, ideas, etc.

Discuss and apply the guidelines for effective use of visual aids in a speech.

1. Display visual aids where listeners can see them. 2. Avoid passing visual aids among the audience. 3. Display visual aids only while discussing them. 4. Explain visual aids clearly and concisely. 5. Talk to your audience, not to your visual aid. 6. Practice with your visual aids. 7. Check the room and equipment.

Explain and apply the six guidelines for informative speaking.

1. Don't overestimate what the audience knows: You can't make assumptions on what they know. Make sure to explain everything. They have to understand everything the first time you say it. 2. Relate the subject directly to the audience: You have to keep them interested the entire speech. Use the words "you" and "yours." 3. Don't be too technical: Some things can't be explained to a normal audience. The subject might not be too difficult, but the language used can be. Language should be straightforward. 4. Avoid abstractions: Add description, comparisons, or contrasts. 5. Personalize your ideas: People want to be entertained. 6. Be creative: Using language imaginatively.

Differentiate among the general purpose, specific purpose, and central idea of a speech.

1. General purpose: The broad goal of a speech. 2. Specific purpose: A single infinitive phrase that states precisely what a speaker hopes to accomplish in his or her speech. 3. Central idea: A one sentence statement that sums up or incapsulates the major ideas of a speech.

Identify the four objectives of a speech introduction.

1. Get attention and interest 2. Reveal the topic: If you don't mention your topic, your audience will be confused. State it clearly and concisely. 3. Establish credibility and goodwill: You want to seem qualified and let the audience know that you have their best interests at heart. 4. Preview the body of the speech: Preview statements to guide your audience and help them understand.

Identify and differentiate among global plagiarism, patchwork plagiarism, and incremental plagiarism.

1. Global: Stealing a speech entirely from a single source and passing it off as one's own. To avoid this, give yourself plenty of time to prepare. 2. Patchwork: Stealing ideas or language from two or three sources and passing them off as one's own. The more sources you have, the less likely this is to happen. 3. Incremental: Failing to give credit for particular parts of a speech that are borrowed from other people. (Quotations and paraphrases)

Explain the five step method for effectively practicing delivery.

1. Go through your prep outline aloud to make sure everything is how it is supposed to be. 2. prepare your speaking outline, 3. Practice the speech out loud several times using only the speaking outline with your visual aids. 4. Polish and refine the delivery. Practice in front of a mirror checking for eye contact, volume, etc. Try it out on other people. 5. Give the speech under conditions as close as possible to those you will face in class. (Ex: empty classroom)

Explain the difference between hearing and listening.

1. Hearing is a physiological process that involves the vibration of sound waves on the eardrums and the firing of electrochemical impulses in the brain. 2. Listening involves paying close attention to, and making sense of, what we hear. Listening is crucial to every day life and success in jobs and school.

Discuss the guidelines for organizing main points.

1. Keep main points separate. 2. Try to use the same pattern of wording for main points. 3. Balance the amount of time devoted to main points.

Discuss the five important resources for finding what you need in the Library.

1. Librarians 2. The catalogue 3. Reference works (encyclopedia, yearbooks, quotation books, biographical aids) 4. Newspaper and periodical databases 5. Academic databases

List and discuss the five guidelines for ethical speechmaking.

1. Make sure your goals are ethically sound: You have to have worthy goals. 2. Be fully prepared for each speech: You have an obligation to yourself and listeners to deliver a fully prepared speech. You don't want to waste anyone's times or give misleading information. You have to thoroughly explore your topic. 3. Be honest in what you say: People are assuming that what you are saying is true. You have to be accurate and fair in what you present. Don't plagiarize. 4. Avoid name calling and other forms of abusive language: You don't want to degrade individuals or groups. This is reinforcing stereotypes that are detrimental to social forces. It undermines the right of all groups in the US to be fairly heard. 5. Put ethical principles into practice: Do it all the time, not just when it is convenient. Do your best to follow them.

Identify the four major causes of poor listening.

1. Not concentrating: Because we can listen and think of other things at the same time, we are tempted to interrupt our listening by thinking of other things. It is easier to lose track than concentrate. 2. Listening too hard: If we try to absorb everything, we can miss the main idea and confuse facts. We should focus on main points and evidence. 3. Jumping to conclusions: You don't want to put words into a speaker's mouth. We often think we know what someone is going to say, so we don't listen to what they actually say. We can also prematurely reject a speaker's ideas as boring or misguided. Every speech has something to offer. 4. Focusing on delivery and personal appearance: We judge on how a person looks or sounds and we don't listen to what they say. It is easy to be distracted and lose sight of the message.

Discuss the kinds of visual aids available for use in speeches.

1. Objects and models: Clarify ideas and make more dramatic. If the object is not the right size to bring in, use a model. 2. Photographs and drawings: Have to be large enough for the audience to see. Don't pass them around. Instead, use powerpoint. 3. Graphs: Easy to display a complex set of numbers. 4. Charts: Help summarize large pieces of information. Don't include too much information. 5. Video: Clip should not be too loud, should be cued at the right time, no low resolution, cued to precise length. 6. The speaker: You can do a demonstration using your own body. 7. Powerpoint: Use to integrate many visual aids.

Discuss the four kinds of informative speeches.

1. Objects: Anything that is visible, tangible, and stable in form. Can be alive. People, animals, places. 2. Processes: A systematic series of actions that leas to a specific result or product. One kind explains a process so that the listeners understand it better. A second explains a process so listeners will be better able to preform the process themselves. 3. Events: Anything that happens or is regarded as happening. 4. Concepts: A belief, theory, idea, notion, principle, or the like. Often are more complex. Avoid too technical of terms.

Discuss the four most important aspects of nonverbal communication for the speaker.

1. Personal appearance: You need to look clean and groomed appropriately. 2. Movement: You don't want to lean on the podium. Standing up straight is important. You don't want to have quirks from nervousness. 3. Gestures: Gesturing can be affective; however, you do not want to overdue them, as this can be very distracting. 4. Eye contact: You want to look at your audience personally and pleasantly to establish a bond. If you fail to make contact, it looks insincere. You want to look at everyone equally and hold contact for about three seconds.

Explain four methods one can use when having trouble choosing a speech topic.

1. Personal inventory: Jot down all of your interests and hobbies and from this list a general topic and specific topic may come. 2. Clustering: Divide your paper into subjects and write down topics that come to your mind for each. 3. Free associate: Write down a word and write whatever comes to mind. Eventually an idea will click with the sublists. 4. Internet search: Search a general topic or subject.

Differentiate between a prep outline and a speaking outline.

1. Prep: A detailed outline developed during the process of speech prep that includes the title, specific purpose, central idea, intro, main points, sub-points, connectives, conclusion, and bibliography of a speech. 2. Speaking: A brief outline used to jog a speaker's memory during the presentation of a speech.

Identify and differentiate among the four methods of delivering a speech.

1. Reading from a manuscript: A speech that is written out word for word and read to the audience. 2. Reciting from memory 3. Speaking impromptu: A speech delivered with little or no immediate preparation. 4. Speaking extemporaneously: A carefully prepared and rehearsed speech that is presented from a brief set of notes. It has a conversational quality. You have full control over your ideas.

Explain seven methods that can be used to gain attention in an introduction.

1. Relate the topic to the audience 2. State the importance of your topic 3. Startle the audience: Intriguing statement 4. Arouse the curiosity of the audience: Build suspense 5. Question the audience: Rhetorical questions get your audience thinking. 6. Begin with a quotation: Make sure it is short 7. Tell a story: Personal experiences, provocative, dramatic, suspenseful. Also relies on the delivery.

Explain how to use the Internet efficiently and responsibly for speech research.

1. Search engines: have to do it systematically with the ability to narrow things down. 2. Specialized research resources: Wikipedia, virtual libraries, government resources

Discuss and apply the four guidelines for effective central ideas.

1. Should be expressed in a full sentence. 2. Should not be in the form of a question. 3. Should avoid figurative language. 4. Should not be vague or overly general.

Identify the major functions of a speech conclusion.

1. Signal the end of the speech: Too sudden of an ending leaves the audience puzzled and unfulfilled. Can use transitions or just the tone of your voice and the delivery. 2. Reinforce the central idea: Reinforce the audience's understanding of or commitment to the idea.

Identify and discuss the basic elements of the speech communication process.

1. Speaker: The person who is presenting an oral message to the listener. Your success as a speaker depends on you. 2. Message: Whatever a speaker communicates to someone else. The goal is to have your intended message be the message that is actually communicated. The message is sent with words and actions. 3. Channel: The means by which a message is communicated. Class has most direct channel. 4. Listener: The person who receives the speaker's message. Without a listener, there is no communication. Everything the speaker says is filtered through the listener's frame of reference. You must be audience centered. 5. Feedback: The messages, usually nonverbal, sent from a listener to a speaker. You can tell how your message is being received. It is two way communication. 6. Interference: Anything that impedes the communication of a message. It can be external or internal to listeners. You have to try to hold their attention despite this. 7. Situation: The time and place in which speech communication occurs. You have to be alert to the situation. It can help or hurt your speech.

Utilize the guidelines for an effective prep outline.

1. State the specific purpose of your speech 2. Identify the central idea 3. Label the intro, body, and conclusion 4. Use a consistent pattern of symbols and indentation 5. State main points and sub-points in full sentences 6. Label transitions, internal summaries, and internal previews 7. Bibliography 8. Title

Explain the methods for fulfilling the functions of a speech conclusion.

1. Summarize your speech: Explicitly states, but not intriguing. 2. End with a quote 3. Make a dramatic statement: Can revive your speech, dramatic, stunning. 4. Refer to the introduction

Discuss the seven ways to become a better listener.

1. Take listening seriously: It comes with work. Make a serious effort to overcome shortcomings as a listener. 2. Be an active listener: You should give your undivided attention to the speaker in a genuine effort to understand the point of view. 3. Resist distractions: Make a conscious effort to keep your mind on what the speaker is saying. Try to review what the speaker is saying. 4. Don't be diverted by appearance or delivery: You have to set aside preconceived notions based on a person's looks or manner of speech. Don't let negative feelings keep you from listening. Try not to be misled if they are attractive. 5. Suspend judgement: You don't have to agree with everything, but try to wait until the end of the speech to reach a final judgment. 6. Focus your listening: Listen for main points and evidence. Listen for their strengths and weaknesses to learn about successful speaking. 7. Develop note-taking skills: Write down key words in order to retain information. Separate main points from sub points to show relationship of outline.

Explain the three major advantages of using visual aids in a speech.

1. The audience finds the message more interesting. 2. They grasp the speech more easily. 3. They retain the information longer. 4. The speaker comes across more prepared, credible, and professional. 5. Visual aids can combat stage fright.

Explain the four kinds of speech connectives.

1. Transitions: A word or phrase that indicates when a speaker has finished one thought and is moving on to another. 2. Internal preview: A statement in the body of the speech that lets the audience know what the speaker is going to discuss next. 3. Internal summary: A statement in the body of the speech that summarizes the speaker's preceding point or points. 4. Signpost: A very brief statement that indicates where a speaker is in the speech or that focuses attention on key ideas.

Explain the eight aspects of voice usage that are crucial to public speaking.

1. Volume: The loudness or softness of the speaker's voice. 2. Pitch: The highness or lowness of the speaker's voice. 3. Rate: The speed at which a person speaks. 4. Pauses; A momentary break in the vocal delivery of a speech. 5. Vocal variety: Changes in a person's rate, pitch, and volume that give the voice and expressiveness. 6. Pronunciation: The accepted standard of sound and rhythm for words in a given language. 7. Articulation: The physical production of particular speech sounds. 8. Dialect: A variety of a language distinguished by variations of accent, grammar, or vocabulary.

Explain why a strong sense of ethical responsibility is vital for public speakers.

Ethics is the branch of philosophy that deals with issues of right and wrong in human affairs. You want to gain a desired response from your listeners, but not at any cost. You do not want to lie or hurt anyone to make yourself look better. All speakers should be truthful. But speaking is often abused with disastrous results (Hitler). The spoken words has a lot of power.

Define ethnocentrism, and explain why speakers need to avoid it.

Ethnocentrism is the belief that one's own group or culture is superior to all other groups or cultures. It can lead to prejudice and hostility towards different racial, ethnic, religious, or cultural groups. In order to be a successful speaker, you need to show respect for others. Once you know about the different cultural factors, try to listen to your speech through their eyes. You do not want to be misunderstood. You want to relate to a wide range of listeners.

Explain why good delivery is important to successful speaking.

Good delivery conveys the speaker's ideas clearly, interestingly, and without distracting the audience. You want to be lively and formal. Nonverbal communication can also help deliver your speech and increase the impact of your verbal communication.

Discuss why it is important for speeches to be organized clearly and coherently.

Listeners need coherence. They only get the chance to understand and hear something once. The speech has to be organized strategically in order to achieve particular results with particular audiences. It can improve critical thinking skills in order to understand relationships. It also can increase your confidence and improve your speaking ability.

Explain why good listening is important to effective speechmaking.

Listening is important because it is how we get most of our ideas and information. If you do not listen, you will not understand and you can pass on your misunderstanding to others. The best speakers are usually the best listeners.

Explain why nonverbal communication is important to the speaker.

Nonverbal communication is based on a person's use of voice and body, rather than on the use of words. There is a lot of research that states the impact of a speaker's words and how they are powerfully influenced by this nonverbal communication.

Identify the major similarities and differences between public speaking and everyday conversation.

Similarities: 1. Organizing your thoughts logically. (Step by step) 2. Tailoring your message to your audience. 3. Telling a story for maximum impact. (Carefully build your story) 4. Adapting to listener feedback. (Aware of verbal, facial, and physical reactions) Differences: 1. Public speaking is more highly structured. (Detailed planning and prep, time limits.) 2. Public speaking requires more formal language. (No slang, jargon, bad grammar) 3. Public speaking requires a different method of delivery. (Clear voice, erect posture, no likes or ums)

Discuss Lucas's five tips for formulating specific purpose statements and the five questions to ask about them.

Tips: 1. Write the purpose statement as a full infinitive phrase, not as a fragment. 2. Express your purpose as a statement, not as a question. 3. Avoid figurative language. 4. Limit your statement to one distinct idea. 5. Make sure it is not too vague or general. Questions: 1. Does my purpose meet the assignment? 2. Can I accomplish my purpose in the time allotted? 3. Is the purpose relevant to my audience? 4. Is the purpose too trivial for my audience? (Too superficial) 5. Is the purpose too technical for my audience?