Public speaking: key terms, techniques, and evaluation

Speech Class Learning Statement

The author of this report has been asked to offer what was learned over the course of the public speaking class that is about to conclude. There are actually a great many things that were discovered or at least improved internally within the student who is writing this response. The author of this report will describe and expand on the terms and tricks that were learned over the course of this class and what the future might hold in terms of learning and growing further. While some people are prone to under-estimate and under-state the importance of public speaking skills, they are indeed invaluable or at least advantageous to possess in many roles and positions within society.

Analysis

One major part of effective public speaking is preparation. While some speeches and words spoken are off the cuff and there can be little to no time for preparation, this is not usually the case. It usually speaks unspoken negative words for someone if it is clear that they are not properly prepared for a speech. This can be manifested and realized in a number of ways including consistently looking down at notes, any indication that the speech or summary was prepared by someone else, the speech is lacking in the needed and proper amount of detail and so forth. Any good speech needs to be structured well and in advance so that the proper information is shared and unimportant items are excluded (Dummies, 2015). The class text covers this topic in its second part, ranging from the fifth to the eighth chapters (Lucas, 2012).

Another important part to public speaking is poise and posture. Someone who is sulking or is clearly being timid is not going to have the commanding presence needed to grab and keep the attention of the audience. This stands in contrast to people who know precisely what they are saying, do not look (or as least do not look excessively) at their notes and so forth. If a speaker is engaging, establishes a rapport with the audience and makes the entire presentation interesting even if the root material is dry and uninviting, this can greatly improve the outcomes and perceptions about the speech and the speaker. Just like the old argument that a good salesperson can sell you your own pen, a good public speaker can make a topic that is bland and make it interesting. Of course, subjecting people to speeches and subjects that are not relevant or all that helpful is less than wise, there are some situations where even bland topics must be covered and thus need to be covered effectively. Examples of this would be fire drill procedures, ethics training and so forth. Knowing the audience and the material in advance is very important (SFC, 2005). The class text covers this in the twelfth chapter (using language), the thirteenth chapter (delivery) and, to a lesser extent, the first few chapters of the test (Lucas, 2012).

The last major part of public speaking that must be covered is the ethics involved with public speaking. People might be itching to get their viewpoints and feelings out there but this must be done carefully and this is especially true when speaking of facts, trying to convince people to glom onto a cause and so forth. For example, a person that is making a speech about famous child murder/death cases might be apt to refer to Casey Anthony as a murderer in light of what happened to her daughter Caylee. However, a court of law has said that Casey Anthony was not guilty of that crime and thus saying otherwise as a matter of fact, rather than opinion, is not ethical and could actually be slander. More obvious and poignant examples would be George Zimmerman and his alleged guilt as it relates to the death of Trayvon Martin and Darren Evans and his involvement in the death of Mike Brown. Zimmerman went to trial and was acquitted and Evans was not even charged by the grand jury. However, this has not stopped many people from asserting that one or both are murderers (HLNTV, 2012).