Unit 1 - Milestone 1 / Public Speaking

Select the action that represents the remembering phase of the listening process.

A boy tells his friend that his behavior resembles that of a character from a novel he read last year.

Which of the following speeches is primarily meant to persuade?

A graduation speaker encourages her classmates to start saving for retirement immediately.

Jeremy tucked his t-shirt into his jeans as he walked to the front of the conference room to present a new concept to the board of directors. His hands shook when he flipped through his note cards. Before beginning his presentation, Jeremy introduced himself and noted how nicely the audience was dressed. After his presentation, as he returned to his seat, Jeremy wondered why some of the audience gave him funny looks. Based on this scenario, which public speaking best practice did Jeremy neglect?

Appropriate dress

Select the statement on public speaking that most closely relates to St. Augustine.

Argued for the continued development of rhetorical ideas that originated hundreds of years before

Which of the following scenarios describes an effective way to give criticism?

Focusing on the behavior that could be changed in an objective way

Which of the following statements represents the purpose of a speech? Elderly people should not postpone planning for what will happen when they die. Half of all people over the age of 65 have not completed a will. Helping the elderly prepare for death Thanks to the internet, creating a will is easier than ever.

Helping the elderly prepare for death

James is the newly-appointed director of product development. He plans to host a breakfast for his new team members on Monday, at which he will give a speech. Which of James's speeches has the purpose of informing his audience?

James will speak about where he has worked previously, why he is excited to be in this new position, and where he believes the company should go from here.

Which scenario is the best example of culture getting in the way of effective listening?

Jennifer can't stop staring at the tattoos on the speaker's arms and legs.

Lillian was working when Mike entered her office in tears. He told her about the death of his dog, and how devastated his whole family is. Which situation best fits the responding stage of the listening process?

Lillian tells Mike how sorry she is to hear about his family's loss.

Which of the following is an example of an informative speech?

Maya is about to present a speech about the newspaper club's story selection process.

Which of the following situations represents the actions of an unethical speaker?

Melissa says that everyone who has tried the new software loves it, even though it has not been tested.

Sandy had to give a toast at a party for her parents' 50th wedding anniversary. Sandy and her siblings organized the party as a surprise for their parents. Sandy's mother-in-law was at the party, and her husband had just passed away the previous month. They were married 45 years, and he died suddenly of a heart attack. Determine which of the following circumstances describes an environmental context that will affect Sandy's speech.

Sandy's sister-in-law put together a slide show to go with the toast, and it was difficult to see with the lights on.

Which of the following is an example of a physical contextual factor that a union leader should consider before delivering a speech at a rally?

The size and temperature of the auditorium in which the speech is taking place

Janet was unhappy about how her presentation to the 8th graders of Jefferson Junior High had gone. She knew beforehand that it would be uncomfortable for her to talk about sex education, but she didn't expect half of the boys in the audience to giggle continuously while she showed slides on the female reproductive system. She decided to make some adjustments to her presentation before speaking at St. Xavier next week. In this example, Janet failed to account for __________ when considering her audience.

age

Sandra, a school gym teacher, is preparing to speak at the opening of a children's playground. Sandra knows that the whole town is invited and that the school children will be very excited to use the new playground. After determining the probable perspectives and interests of her audience, Sandra adds slang to her speech, and encourages the audience members to text their friends about the event. In the situation above, Sandra attempts to account for __________ when preparing her speech.

age

Lara was halfway through her speech when she realized that her references to 1980's musical groups had not been understood by her fifth-grade listeners. She decided to use the current number-one boy band in her next example. Lara remembered the public speaking best practice of __________.

analyzing the audience

Speakers want well-organized speeches in order to keep their audiences engaged. When developing a speech, a speaker must select a topic, a purpose, and a thesis. In order to come up with a topic for a speech, a speaker can try __________, a method of problem solving in which individuals or group members contribute ideas quickly and spontaneously.

brainstorming

Brett was ready to begin his first year as a college professor. On the first day of class, he arranged the seats so that every student could hear him, and see him and his PowerPoint presentation. After class ended, he was happy with how well his first lecture went. This first lecture is an example of a ___________.

co-located audience communication

When soliciting information, sometimes a speaker will __________, which enables him or her to ask questions that can tailor the information received in real-time.

conduct an interview

Janet finished making her practice elevator pitch to her husband, Michael. He knew that there was a lot riding on the pitch, and wanted to help his wife get it right. Michael noticed how nervous Janet was: her hands and knees were shaking. When she finished, Michael told Janet that she did badly because she was so visibly nervous. He reminded her that audiences not only listen to the message, but also look for confidence in the speaker's body language. The element of effective criticism that Michael's feedback did not include is __________.

constructivity

Janet squirmed in her chair as the school board candidate presented his agenda. She had been sitting all day, and her chair was aggravating her lower back pain. This is an example of __________ leading to poor listening.

low concentration

Shane recently read an article that explains how to prevent children from spending too much time interacting with online entertainment and social networks. A few days later, Shane refuses to buy his son a new cell phone, explaining his decision by using words and phrases similar to the ones he read in the article. Shane engaged in the act of __________ when he explained to his son why he could not get a new cell phone.

paraphrasing

Jose was nervous because he had to make a presentation at work. After telling his wife about his uneasiness, she suggested that he practice by making his speech to their family every night after dinner. Jose found that speaking to his family in this way increased his confidence. This experience shows how Jose benefited from __________ through public speaking. networking personal satisfaction external influence professional advancement

personal satisfaction