Assignment Instructions: Speaking Assignment # 2- The Speech to Inform

Time Limit: 5-7 minutes

Goals:

1. To practice analyzing the audience and choosing a significant topic of specific interest to them.

2. To develop and organize concepts into 2-3 clear and related main points

3. To become familiar with specific critical thinking and research techniques.

4. To develop information within a specific organizational pattern.

5. To utilize examples, statistics and expert testimony as

supporting materials to speech’s specific topic and main ideas.

6. To effectively demonstrate use of oral citations.

7. To skillfully use visual aids and descriptive language to enhance message delivery.

8. To improve delivery in both voice and eye contact.

 

ASSIGNMENT REQUIREMENTS:

Your Speech Organization Outline-see notes below, as described in class / text, and speech checklist must be submitted on speaking day. The outline must be typed using 11- 12pt font and 1”margins and be not less than a page and half in length nor exceed three pages in length.

 

Be sure to note the following: Your speech should include a specific purpose. The introduction should consist of an attention step and clarification / preview step and should be written out. The conclusion should summarize the main ideas and should be written out. The body of the speech should be outlined with full sentences at all Roman numerals and capital letters. Key words and sentence fragments should be used below this level. You should have not less than two and probably not more than three main ideas in the body of the speech. Main ideas should be supported with credible , authoritative examples, statistics, and testimony. Transitions should be written out between main ideas and should summarize the previous point as well as preview the next main idea. Each main idea should include at least one oral citation.

 

TOPIC: You must select a topic / subject that is significant and relevant to your audience. Your speech should be timely and new “news” to your audience.

 

What ?, Who?, and Where? are questions that can help you get beyond the How to? of speech assignment # 1. You are now using the information skills of defining, describing and explaining to increase the awareness and understanding of the audience.

 

You can generate quite a few broad topic areas using brainstorming and mind mapping techniques already practiced in class (See Handouts). You should keep in mind that the topics that may be most interesting to your audience give information and concepts that are new, unique, useful and relevant. Avoid doing a topic that only explains a dimension of a topic. For example, you may decide that a demonstration would be a useful sub-point or main idea in your speech but it should not become the focus of the speech.

 

RESEARCH: Investigating sources of information, gathering credible, relevant and accurate supporting materials and demonstrating their use are required for this speech.

 

1) You will need to search for and use, as oral citations, at least three unique information sources beyond your own knowledge in your actual speech-see notes below. You may have sources of your own (magazine, books etc,) at home but you will probably need to make a trip to the library to discuss your information needs with a reference librarian and/or use a computer to find the reliable sources for this assignment. These sources might be articles found in magazines, books, interviews, television programs, information from electronic data-bases, the internet, pamphlets, or almost any other form of information that carries a copyright.

 

However, it is strongly recommended that your actual search for supporting materials / evidence be much deeper, and so, you should collect, at a bare minimum, 4-6 citations related to the very specific subject you will speak about.

 

Choose and use the three best for making oral citations within your speech. If using internet databases / websites as oral citations/evidence, you must not use any one site for more than one citation.

 

Once you have discovered relevant and current supporting information specific to your audience’s interest, copied the articles, etc.., you will want to analyze the information and find /CHOOSE examples, statistics and expert testimony that will best support your main ideas, address the audience’s specific interests and aid understanding of the subject matter.

 

Sometimes, examples involving "real people" are particularly interesting to audiences. (We all love a good story!). Moreover, your choice of reliable and accurate statistics and examples can help your audience believe you are as credible source.

 

2) Be sure to look for and use visual aids that may better explain a process or relationships between concepts in your speech. See the textbook’s discussion /class notes on presentation aids. You may be able to enlarge the graphics in articles both quickly and cheaply by taking them to stores like Staples, Office Depot, or FEDEX-Kinkos.

 

3) A bibliography with at least 5 supporting sources / evidence must be included as apart of your speech preparation outline (see Citation note below). Only two supporting pieces of evidence can be from unique websites.

 

4) Also, you must turn in proof of your supporting materials search. Your name and the date you completed the search should be in the upper right hand corner of each page. These should be stapled or paper clipped if they contain more than one page and attached to speech outline.

 

This providing proof part of the assignment can be done in three ways. You may hand in photocopies of the title page of a book on the subject, a sheet with the names and dates (typed in proper citation form as indicated later in this handout) of magazine articles on the subject, or a printout of a database search. The database search may be the least complicated route to take for this assignment. The most accessible database for beginners is Infotrac. One of the most credible is http://lii.org

 

DELIVERY-Presentation should be extemporaneous using no more than (six) 5" x 7" note cards. Delivery should be made from a presentation outline similar to the ones discussed earlier in the semester and found in your text. DO NOT WRITE OUT YOUR ENTIRE SPEECH. DO NOT READ YOUR SPEECH. DO NOT USE YOUR OUTLINE WHEN SPEAKING. This will result in a significant reduction in the number of points being earned in delivery.

 

BE ENTHUSIATIC ABOUT THE MESSAGE / INFORMATION YOU WANT TO SHARE!

 

DO practice out loud to gain familiarity with the speech. Do practice out loud in front of a practice audience once you have become familiar with the main concepts. Do practice eye contact and gestures. Do choose presentation aids that help the audience understand what you are explaining to them. Do practice with visual aids. You should be able to learn quite a bit from the class / instructor comments about and your self- analysis of your previous speech.

 

Give yourself enough time to practice the specifics of your delivery. One thing to keep in mind is that you may be working with a concept or idea that you know less about than you did on your speech # 1. This means your need to have a very thorough preparation outline and you need to work with that outline quite a bit before you switch to your note-cards. Practice with the note-cards and be sure to use the visual aids you use in your speech during your practice.

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NOTES ON REQUIREMENTS

ORAL CITATIONS

 

Unlike a paper, your audience does not have access to a printed bibliography so you must provide bibliographic references /supporting evidence within your speech. Because your audiences is listening rather than reading they can not go back and match the sources to the evidence so you must do it for them orally. The citation must come before the evidence so your audience will understand that the evidence you are presenting comes from a source other than yourself. Here are a few examples of citation formats (these are hypothetical examples):

 

"According to Omni Magazine on May 11 of last year the

human genome project. . ."…”

"On May 11 of last year Omni magazine online reported that

the human genome project. . ."…”

"Dr. Robert Fisk, in the May 11, 2003 edition of Omni

Magazine, tells us..." “

"Dr. Christie Cook, in her 2004 book entitled Race,

Religion and Politics, clarifies. . ."…”

"The Humane Society of America's brochure titled Pets

and Young Children made it clear." …”

“The May 2004 online publication, Pets and Young Children, from The Humane Society of America clearly describes…..”

 

WRITTEN CITATION-Bibliography attached to Speech Outline

 

At the end of your outline you will need to include a list f references. Problems of bibliographic entry are identified and the correct form of entry according to the American Psychological Association (APA) is given. You can also use the MLA (Modern Language Association) entry format.

 

Your reference list in the bibliography which is attached to outline should be arranged ALPHABETICALLY.

 

MAGAZINE ARTICLE

Gardner, H. (1981, December). Do babies sing a universal song? Psychology Today, pp. 70-76.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE, NO AUTHOR

Study finds free care used more. (1982, April 3). APA Monitor, p. 14.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE, DISCONTINUOUS PAGES

Lublin, J.S. (1980, December 5). On idle: The unemployed shun much mundane work, at least for a while. The Wall Street Journal, pp. 1. 25.

WEBSITES: The standard citation elements for a Web site are:

Author/Editor last name, first name. "Title of Document." Title of Complete Work. Home page date (last update or copyright date). Medium. Information supplier. Access date. URL.

Example:

Bos, Joan. "Crazy Caesars of Rome." The Mad Monarch Series. 12 Dec 1997. Online.

11 Mar. 1998 <http://www.xs4all.nl/-kvenib/madrome.htm>.

The MLA (Modern Language Association) style to cite, the official Web site for guidance is http://www.mla.org.

BOOKS, TWO AUTHORS

Bernstein, T.M. & Welch, R. (1965). The careful writer: A modern guide to English usage. New York: Atheneum.

ARTICLE OR CHAPTER IN AN EDITED BOOK

Hartley, J.T., Harker, J.O., & Walsh, D.A. (1980). Contemporary issues and new directions in adult development of learning and memory. In L.W. Poon (Ed.), Aging in the 1980?s: Psychological issues (pp. 239-252). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.

FILM

Maas, J.B. (Producer). & Gluck, D.H. (Director). (1979).

Deeper into hypnosis [Film]. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

WEBSITES: The standard citation elements for a Web site are:

Author/Editor last name, first name. "Title of Document." Title of Complete Work. Home page date (last update or copyright date). Medium. Information supplier. Access date. URL.

Example:

Bos, Joan. "Crazy Caesars of Rome." The Mad Monarch Series. 12 Dec 1997. Online.

11 Mar. 1998 <http://www.xs4all.nl/-kvenib/madrome.htm>.

The MLA (Modern Language Association) style to cite, the official Web site for guidance is http://www.mla.org.

CASSETTE RECORDING

Clark, K.B. (Speaker). (1976). Problems of freedom and behavior modification (Cassette Recording). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

 

LANGUAGE

Again, Your goal should be language that is both clear and interesting. A carefully worded specific purpose should include the speaker’s intent and main ideas. Good speakers use concrete words, vivid imagery, and personal pronouns to facilitate audience understanding.

Main ideas should be written as short, simple, declarative sentences.

Use precise words like "two" or "four" rather than vague language like "several"

or "various." These ideas should be supported with vivid examples and likely descriptions. Don't be afraid to use words like "we”, "us", and "our" during your speech. These words lessen the distance between you and your audience.

Performance Evaluation-Earning Points:

Research / Oral Citations and bibliography 25 points

Outline / Informational Organization and clarity 20 points

Effective use of presentation aids 10 points

Speech Presentation / Delivery 45 points

 

Total 100 points possible