Oral Exercise: Informative Speech

ESTIMATED COMPLETION TIME: 2.0 hours

You should teach/show/clarify/inform us about a topic (e.g. an object, process, concept, event, etc) that you are passionate about and know well. Your speech should have a main point (a thesis) and several supporting points (e.g. when applicable: a story, an example, statistic, testimony, etc). You should cite any sources you use verbally during the speech.

The speech should be 4-6 minutes long -- i.e. at least four minutes, at most six. You will be cut off if you if you exceed this limit by 15 seconds.

You may find it helpful to write out your speech, but do not memorize it (you don't have the time). It is best if you know your main points (outline them), and speak extemporaneously. (You presumably did this in the previous assignment -- you knew the ordering of events in the story you told last week, but each time you tell the same story, the exact words you used were proobably different.) If you like you can memorize your introduction and your conclusion, since both of these should be thought out beforehand, and memorizing the introduction will also help you calm your nerves.

No slides or visual aids are allowed.

To be checked off: bring a brief outline of your speech to tutorial, have a title and practice beforehand.

GRADING RUBRICS

Your grade (max of 4.0) will be determined as follows:

• Content
  • title is interesting and concisely describes speech
  • introduction grabbed my attention
  • speaker related the topic to the audience / gave context
  • points were organized into a suitable "story arc" (e.g. topical, chronological, numerical, etc)
  • speech had structure - an overview at the start and some sort of transitioning/signposting
  • topic was something the speaker clearly knew/understood (speaker established credibility)
  • speech's conclusion reached a sense of finality (speaker didn't say "Thank You" to indicate it was over)
• Delivery
  • filler words - no more than 2
  • eye contact was made
  • speaker stood still (no distracting unintentional movement)
  • arms were at side (no distracting gesturing)
  • words were clearly spoken so that they were understandable (enunciation - open that mouth wide and don't drop word endings!)
  • words were spoken with commitment / conviction (not half-hearted) - speaker was clearly passionate / interested
  • words were comfortably audible
• Mechanics
  • start - takes a beat to settle self
  • ending - takes a beat before getting off stage
  • adherence to time (4-6 minutes) - pacing was good
• Overall Effectiveness (2 points)
  • speech kept my attention (was interesting, engaging, i didn't notice passage of time!)

Last Modified: Aug 23, 2012