Planning and Researching a Presentation

Objectives

• Define public speaking and its purposes
• Give examples of public speaking in the workplace
• Explain the public-speaking process
• Demonstrate topic selection, audience analysis, and audience goals
• Explain general principles for conducting research
• Explain how to find and use sources of information
• Demonstrate library, interview, and Internet research
• Evaluate research materials

Key Terms

Audience Analysis – part of the process a speaker uses to create a message appropriate for a specific audience

Audience Goal – a description of what the listeners should be able to do after a speech is completed

Cyberspace Resources – a wide range of resources provided by the Internet

Fabrication – the act of making up information as part of the research process

Formal Feedback – planned written or oral comments, often referred to as critiques, that evaluate a speech

Informal Feedback – verbal or nonverbal messages given spontaneously to the speaker during or after a speech

Informative Speech – a speech that is intended to increase listeners’ knowledge of a subject

Persuasive Speech – a speech that is intended to change the beliefs or behaviors of listeners

Plagiarism – the act of representing words or ideas of others as one’s own (more)

Social-Ritual Speeches – short speeches that have a specific social function and follow a predictable pattern

Training Speech – a speech that is intended to teach specific procedures or skills

Outline

Planning and Researching a Presentation

• The Public-Speaking Process
• Elements of Public Speaking
• Speaker
• Message
• Listeners
• Feedback
• Situation
• Purposes of Public Speaking
• Informative Speeches
• Training Speeches
• Persuasive Speeches
• Social-Ritual Speeches
• Topic Selection
• Personal Interests
• Audience Interests
• Audience Analysis
• Basic Data
• Beliefs and Attitudes
• Knowledge of the Subject
• Expectations
• Setting
• Audience Goal
• Michelle Meyer, Puppeteer
• Phil Zepeda, Director of Media Relations
• Researching Your Presentation
• Sources of Information
• Personal Experience
• Expert Interviews
• Questioning
• Interview Etiquette
• Print Materials
• Electronic Media Resources
• Cyberspace Resources
• Consider the Source
• Taking Notes
• Ethics of Research
• Career Communication, Webmaster

Elements of Public Speaking:

·        Speaker:  To be a speaker, you have to have skills to share with a group so that you can be respected as a leader.

·        Message:   In order for a speaker to have a good speech, they must have a message which another words would be a point to what they are saying.

·        Listeners:    If the speaker wants the audience or listeners to listen to them, they must have a message across their speech so that they will know that people aren’t just hearing them but listening as well.

·        Feedback:  As long as the speaker has good oral skills, with a message, and have good listeners, they will be able to get feedback on their speech.  The type of feedback a speaker can get may be verbal or nonverbal, and good or bad depending on how well they did in their speech. 

·        Situation:  The speaker must stick to the topic and situation and not get carried away and not drag the conversation in a different direction.  By sticking to the situation, the speaker is able to give a message, have listeners, and feedback which could help improve their speech for next time in which can make them better leaders.

Purposes of Public Speaking: 

·        Informative Speeches:  The goal of an informative speech is to increase the listeners’ knowledge of a subject. 

·        Training Speeches:  The goal of a training speech is to teach specific information, procedures, or skills.

·        Persuasive Speech:  The purpose of a persuasive speech is to change the beliefs or behavior of a listener to the beliefs of the speaker.

·        Social-Ritual Speeches:  The types of speeches have specific functions which follow a short, predictable pattern. 

Researching your presentation: 

·        In order to have accuracy when researching your topic, you should write down notes on all the important factors.  By knowing how long you have to speak in a presentation, you can decide how much information you will need to make your presentation meet the time limits.  In order to have

Sources of Information: 

·        Personal Experience, Expert Interviews, questioning, and Interview Etiquette

Cyberspace Resources:

·        Cyberspace resources wide range of resources that the Internet offers.  There are many search engines you can find that will help you with your research.  In order to make sure you have accurate sources on the internet, you should check if the information provider is a nonprofit, government or educational organizations, expert authors, documented sources, and reliable print sources.

Taking Notes:

·        Taking notes is a convenient way to gather information.  You must remember that when taking notes, you should record your sources so that you can give proper credit for original or unusual facts. 

 

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Review Questions

 

1. How is public speaking different from everyday conversation?

Everyday conversation includes all conversation done on a regular basis with a lot of interaction between the speaker and the listener, but public speaking involves a presenter speaking orally to an audience and the audience interacting nonverbally.

2. What are the general purposes of public speaking? Give specific examples of each. ]> ]>

The general purposes of public speaking are to inform (give someone information on a given subject), to train (teach the audience to do something with higher efficiency), to persuade (change beliefs of audience), and to participate in social-rituals (special functions that follow a short, predictable pattern).

3. What are the criteria for selecting a good speech topic?

The criteria for selecting a good speech topic include personal interests and audience interests.

4. What factors should be considered when analyzing your audience?

Basic data, beliefs and attitudes, knowledge of the subject, expectations, and setting are the factors that should be considered when analyzing your audience.

5. Why is it important to have an audience goal before you prepare a speech?

An audience goal helps a speaker decide what content to include and what should be given the most attention.

6. What are some typical resources for researching topics?

Some typical resources for researching topics are personal experience, expert interviews, print materials, electronic media resources, and cyberspace resources.

7. What information do you need to gather before seeking an expert interview?

You need to gather the following information in order: why are you asking questions, who would be the best source, when and where will the interview take place, what do you need from this expert, and how will the interview be conducted.

8. What rules of etiquette should you follow when you interview someone?

Some rules of etiquette you should follow when you interview someone are to dress appropriately, wear a watch, be a little bit early, test any equipment beforehand, thank the expert for his time, shake hands firmly, and follow up with a written thank-you note that expresses your appreciation for the time spent together.

9. What problem might you encounter if you use undocumented information from a website on the Internet?

You may run into false information, undocumented information, or inaccurately modified information.

10. What is plagiarism and how can you avoid it?

Plagiarism is the act of representing words or ideas of others as one’s own, and can be avoided by making a bibliography recording the title, author, and date.