public speaking week 10 study guide

Tom's latest speech assignment requires him to open his speech with a startling fact. Which of the following attention getters should Tom use to begin his speech?

"According to census reports, more than 32 million Americans are under the poverty line." Since this statement cites Census Bureau data, Tom should choose this attention getter to fulfill the requirements of his assignment.

Which of the following is a direct question?

"How many of you here today have children?" The speaker actually expects a response to this question. Each of the other questions are rhetorical questions.

The following are examples of effective introductions except

"My name is Steve, and today, I'm going to tell you three ways you can save money on your income taxes." This is not effective because the speaker begins his comments with an unnecessary preliminary statement.

Mike is brainstorming ideas for a chronologically organized speech. Which of the following topics would not be suitable for Mike's speech?

A tour of the country's most beloved historical monuments, from the west coast to the east This topic is organized geographically, not chronologically.

The goal of your speech is to describe the three deadliest snakes in the world. Which of the following would not be an effective topic sentence for a speech meant to be clearly organized and easy to follow?

Although not one of the three deadliest snakes in the world, the boa is a snake with a frightening reputation and an exquisite color pattern. This statement strays from the specific purpose of the speech and should be omitted.

Which organizational pattern uses memory-triggering techniques as a method of organizing a speech?

Both formula and gimmick The formula, or gimmick pattern, is a method or organizing informative speeches by using memory-triggering techniques.

All of the following are examples of using the pro-con pattern except

Currently, school districts ensure that teachers instill basic academic skills in their students by rewarding or penalizing schools based on students' scores on standardized tests. But this is not enough. Without smaller classes and larger incentives for valuable teachers, we will guarantee that thousands of students are underserved by our schools. This statement employs the elimination-order pattern, mentioning several solutions and then eliminating possibilities.

Patti, a successful musician, is giving a speech to a group of college music majors on succeeding in the competitive rock music scene in Los Angeles. Which of the following would be an effective main point for her speech?

Hiring an aggressive manager is the key to a successful music career. Main points should emphasize a single idea in as few words as possible.

Mary is giving a speech on three methods of financing a college education. Her main points are scholarships, student loans, and summer jobs. Which of the following is the best central idea statement for her speech?

The three best methods of financing a college education are scholarships, student loans, and part-time jobs. The central idea statement should offer a concise preview of the main points of a speech.

Charlie is preparing an informative speech about World War II. Which of the following purpose statements would not suit his goal?

To encourage lawmakers to support funding for a World War II memorial in Washington, D.C. This purpose statement is for a persuasive rather than an informative speech.

Which of the following examples uses the elimination-order pattern?

To reduce the number of Americans in poverty, we could increase welfare benefits or raise the minimum wage, but the only real solution is to improve our job-training and educational efforts. In the elimination-order pattern, you state several possible solutions and then rule out all of them except the one you favor.

James is giving an informative speech on Zen to his philosophy class. He begins his speech by walking to the front of the class, sitting down, and meditating silently for two minutes. For his introduction, he then says, "Zen, an ancient philosophy that began in Japan many centuries ago, is as practical today as ever. I will now discuss the history of Zen, the basic tenets of the Zen philosophy, and explain how you can benefit from designing and caring for your own Zen garden. The Zen garden is especially relaxing when you build a pond for gold fish." Which of the following requirements of effective introductions has James not satisfied?

Transitioning into the body of his speech James has satisfied all of the requirements for an effective introduction, but he fails to transition into the body of his speech.

Before anything else, you should choose an organizational pattern. This step will help you determine which information to include, which main points would be most effective, and how to develop the body of your speech.

allow a speaker to concentrate primarily on recall.Effective organization does all of the following except allow a speaker to concentrate primarily on recall.

Tamika is speaking to a booster club for the local school district's football program. She begins by saying, "More than seventy four high-school students have died while playing football since 1984. Today, I am going to tell you why we should implement a women's soccer program at our middle schools. First, I will discuss why sports are good for young women's self esteem." Tamika's introduction

begins with an attention getter. Tamika does begin her speech with an attention getter. Unfortunately, Tamika fails to consider her specific audience, to preview her main points, or to keep her introduction relevant to her main points.

Ben has spent the last three days scouring through books and resource materials, and now he has decided to begin writing his speech. Ben should first write the ___________________ of his speech.

body While it may seem like you should begin by writing the introduction, you must first have material to introduce.

The first thing to do when organizing your speech is to

choose an organizational pattern.

Katy is giving an informative speech on state flowers to a group of botanists. She explains, "Today, I am going to discuss the Texas bluebonnet, the Illinois purple violet, and the Connecticut mountain laurel. Each of these states has a beautiful state bird, too." Katy's introductory statement is ineffective because it fails to

clearly state her topic and purpose. By mentioning that the states also have state birds, Katy strays from her topic and purpose. You should not talk about one topic and then switch to another in your introduction.

The tone of a speech should be __________ and __________ from the beginning to the end, regardless of the type of speech.

consistent; clear To aid the audience, it is important to establish a clear and consistent tone for a speech.

A chronological pattern can be used to do all of the following except to

describe a place. To discuss or describe a place, a geographical (or spatial) sequence pattern would be most effective.

Martha, a historian, has been asked to lecture on the major wars in American history to a class of fifth grade students who have just begun studying U.S. history. One of Martha's main points includes a brief discussion of the Civil War. She decides to talk about the battles of Ft. Sumter, Antietam, and Gettysburg. Which organizational pattern would best suit her speech?

earliest to latest Martha's speech is based on historical events, and each of her supporting points is specific, relatively complex, and unfamiliar to her audience. For these reasons, she should use the earliest-to-latest pattern.

Humor, whether appropriate or inappropriate, should be used to make your audience laugh and help them feel relaxed.

false

When delivering a speech, you should introduce yourself and then move immediately to your attention getter.

false

A central idea statement should introduce the major supporting points in a speech.

false A central idea statement states the main points in a speech; supporting points are introduced by transition statements.

The goal of an informative speech should be stated in a series of declarative statements.

false The goal of an informative speech should be stated in single, clear declarative statement.

José is giving a speech on the contributions of foreign food to the American diet. For his first main point, he will discuss Mexican food. His supporting points are salsa, tortillas, and molé. If his audience has little experience with Mexican food, which of the following organizational patterns should he use?

familiar to unfamiliar Each of his supporting points is specific and simple, but because his audience knows only a little about Mexican food, Jos� should use the familiar-to-unfamiliar pattern.

Good organization is important in public speaking for the following reasons except that

good organization makes it difficult for audiences to anticipate a speaker's main points. Audiences enjoy organized speeches because they enjoy anticipating and easily connecting a speakers points.

Allen, a conservation biologist, is giving a speech on how to save the rainforest to a group of environmental activists. One of his main points is the need to stop deforestation. As his supporting points, he will discuss expanding ecotourism, limiting the growth of cattle farming, and regulating the timber industry. Considering his audience, which organizational pattern should he use?

least to most important Each of Allens supporting points is relatively familiar to his readers, simple, and general. He should use the least-to-most-important pattern because his supporting points contribute different amounts to deforestation.

The following demonstrations would be effective attention getters except

lighting and smoking a cigarette to help illustrate the negative effects of second-hand smoke. Smoking a cigarette does not enrich a speech on the effects of second-hand smoking. Since the speech addresses the negative effects of second-hand smoking, performing this demonstration does not display goodwill toward the listeners and would, more than likely, offend them.

Josh uses Monroe's motivated sequence to organize his speech. He tells his audience, "Like many Americans, you probably don't think twice about throwing away metal cans after using their contents. What you may not know, though, is that a steel can will take 200 years to disintegrate in your local landfill."Which part of the motivated sequence does Josh's statement reflect?

need In the need section of the motivated sequence, you explain why an audience should be concerned with a problem and why they should change a belief, attitude, or behavior.

The organizational pattern that acknowledges possible counterarguments and then uses strong evidence to support a particular solution is called a

pro-con pattern In the pro-con pattern, you present both sides of an issue and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each. Then, you use stronger evidence to make a more powerful argument for one side.

The following are true of parallelism except that it

should be reserved only for persuasive speeches. Parallel form can be used in any type of speech to add rhythm and to enhance recall.

An effective introduction

should not be more than sixty seconds long. The introduction should be between 45 and 60 seconds in length.

Fernando, a world-renowned organic chemist, is lecturing to a group of freshman chemistry students. Limiting the speech to basic material, he decides to discuss the prevalence of addictive organic compounds as one of his main points. For his supporting points, he plans to speak about his own reliance on caffeine and nicotine and then to discuss how Hollywood glamorizes drug use. How should he organize his supporting points to allow his audience to follow his speech?

specific Fernando's supporting points are equally familiar, moderately complex (chemically), and chronologically insignificant for his speech. Fernando's caffeine and nicotine use are personal and specific, while Hollywood glamorization of drugs is general. Specific to general is therefore the best pattern.

All of the following are commonly used organizational patterns for persuasive speeches except

the simple-to-complex pattern. The simple-to-complex pattern is a model for informative speeches.

Mary's speech focuses on a very serious topic, the AIDS epidemic. If she wants to develop a connection between herself and her audience, the attention getter that best serves her purposes is

to tell a story Opening a speech with a story is one of the most effective ways for a speaker to develop a connection between themselves and their audience members.

The following are purposes of the introduction except

transitioning from the body to the conclusion of the speech. The introduction should be used to transition into the body of the speech.

An organized speech increases a speaker's credibility.

true A well-organized speech will increase the audience's enjoyment and enhance the speaker's credibility.

In the simple-to-complex organizational pattern, the most easily explained idea is discussed first, and the most difficult-to-explain idea is discussed last.

true This is a common pattern, used to build on an audience's familiarity with a topic.

The cause-and-effect pattern can be used in both informative and persuasive speeches.

true Unlike some other organizational patterns, the cause-and-effect pattern can be used to organize either a persuasive or an informative speech.

Ralph is nervous about preparing his first speech. He made a list of all of the things he needs to do. If Ralph wants his speech to be effective, he should avoid

writing the introduction first to help write the body of the speech later. writing the introduction first to help write the body of the speech later. All of Ralphs ideas are effective except for this one. To ensure that his introduction and main points are linked and well organized, Ralph should begin by writing the body of his speech and then move to the introduction.