Public Speaking Chapter 15
What quality must a speaker have to achieve all the guidelines for effective informative speaking?
Creativity
Chris, a veteran, was invited to talk to middle-schoolers about the role of the Marines in Afghanistan, Chris used many acronyms, such as IED, AADS, MEDEVAC, and CBW. Based on this description, why was Chris not an effective informative speaker?
He was too technical.
In concluding her speech on supervolcanoes, the speaker says, "In this speech, I have tried to inform you about the sleeping giants beneath our feet. Right now, magma is dripping ever so slowly into giant chambers in the earth. One day, perhaps thousands of years from now, another supervolcano will explode again, changing our world forever." What guideline for informative speeches does this segment best illustrate?
Relate the subject directly to the audience.
In her speech on voting technology, Vanda asked audience members if they had made their voices heard in the last municipal election. What guideline for effective informative speaking did Vanda's question fulfill?
Relate the subject directly to the audience.
Which of the following topics would be appropriate for a speech about a process?
Starting a campfire
Which of the following would be a topic for an informative speech about an object?
The Grand Canyon
Which of the following topics would be treated as an informative speech about an event?
The signing of the Declaration of Independence
Which of the following should a speaker assume about his or her audience when giving an informative speech? Multiple choice question.
They know very little, if anything, about the subject.
In which of the following scenarios is it acceptable to use technical language in an informative speech?
When the audience specializes in the subject
Gary gave a speech at his university on how to use the student e-mail accounts. The type of informative speech he gave was a speech about
a process.
In order to give an interesting, engaging speech, you should not only follow the guidelines for informative speaking but also be ______ and use language imaginatively, descriptively, and clearly.
creative
According to the guidelines for informative speaking, the language used in an informative speech should be
1. creative. 2. concrete. 3. personalized.
Which organizational pattern would work best for the following specific purpose statement: "To inform my audience about the important symbols of Kwanzaa"?
Topical
Which of the following are guidelines for effective informative speaking?
1. Avoid technical language. 2. Avoid abstractions. 3. Personalize your ideas.
To which of the following should a speaker pay special attention in a speech about a concept?
1. Avoiding technical language 2. Defining terms clearly 3. Using examples and comparisons
What is the best way to personalize a subject?
Explain it with the help of a human example.
When Joshua gave a speech on heart disease at school, he discussed his grandfather's death from the disease and mentioned a widely liked teacher who was struggling with the disease. By doing this, which speaking guidelines did Joshua follow successfully?
1. He personalized ideas. 2. He related the topic to the audience.
When Gabriela explained to audience members the feeling of isolation, she had them imagine life on a deserted island with only animals to talk to. What guidelines for informative speaking did Gabriela follow by doing this?
1. She avoided abstractions. 2. She was creative.
Kristen tried to tell her audience of inexperienced computer users how to design their own Web page. She used computer terminology but did not clearly define those terms. What guidelines for effective informative speaking did Kristen violate?
1. She overestimated how much the audience knew about computer programming. 2. She used language that was too technical for a general audience.
Jun wanted to give an effective informative speech about rock climbing to an audience that was unfamiliar with the activity. In order to avoid abstractions, he should consider doing which of the following?
1. Use a comparison to an experience listeners could relate to 2. Use concrete language to describe details 3. Contrast the danger of the sport to other sports
During her speech on diabetes, Tomia discussed many facts about its causes and how to treat it. However, she forgot to give real-world examples of people who live with diabetes and didn't mention that her mother was recently diagnosed with the disease. What guideline to effective informative speaking did she violate? Multiple choice question.
Personalize your ideas.
Ana gave an informative speech to a driver's education class on how to parallel park a vehicle. Which of the following was most likely her goal?
To teach listeners to perform the process themselves
In a speech on supervolcanoes, the speaker describes the organization of her speech by saying "We'll first examine the mechanics of supervolcanoes. Second, we'll examine the way they shape our world. And third, we'll look at a supervolcano that's located right here in the United States." Based on this description, which organizational pattern did the speaker use?
Topical
What organizational pattern would you use if you wanted to inform your audience about the three major sociological approaches?
Topical
Donna gave a speech on her company's founder. The type of informative speech she gave was a speech about
an object.
In relation to an informative speech, anything that has a visible, tangible, and stable form is
an object.
