essay
Informative Speaking
An Introduction
Brought to You By
Adler, Ronald B., Rodman, G., and Athena DuPre. Essential Communication. N.p.
Hamilton, Cheryl, & Creel, Bonnie. (2011). Communicating for Success. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Lucas, Stephen E. (2015). The Art of Public Speaking. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
O’Hair, Dan, et. al, Real Communication, Third Edition
Rothwell, J. Dan. (2017). Practically Speaking, Second Edition.
http://www.publicspeakingproject.org/psvirtualtext.html
Informative Speeches
Speeches with the primary purpose to give your audience information they didn't already know
Enlighten your audience by teaching them something
A speech designed to teach your audience something new, interesting, and useful
Designed to create understanding about a person, place, thing, problem, or concept
Convey knowledge
Selecting a Topic
Analyze your audience
Demographics
Categories of an audience: Age, culture, education, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc.,
Further analysis: Psychological analysis, interest and knowledge analysis
A closer look
Psychographics---Psychological qualities of your audience
Values
Beliefs
Attitudes
Ask yourself:
Do I find the topic interesting, and will my audience find it interesting as well?
Do I know more about the topic than my audience?
Is my topic relevant to my audience?
Can I present on my topic in depth in the allotted amount of time?
What information about my topic does my audience already know?
Am I enthusiastic about my topic?
Ideas for Topics
People---a great way to identify the “humanity” of someone or give a snapshot into a brief part of their life
Places---vacation spots; home country; place of historical significance
Objects---tangibility; perhaps providing a new way to look at something in everyday life
Phenomena---a strange occurrence; something that is impressive or extraordinary
Ideas for Topics cont.,
Events---anything that happens or is regarded as happening
Processes---how something is done or develops
Concepts---abstract in that they include beliefs, ideas, principles
Plans and Policies---good idea for if you feel people need to be informed on how something could change
Purpose Statements
General Purpose Statement
aligns with the reason for giving your speech
to inform
Specific Purpose Statement
written as a goal for your audience
expresses both the topic and the general speech purpose in action form and in terms of the specific objectives you hope to achieve
states exactly what you want your audience to accomplish
“At the end of my speech my audience will…”
Thesis Statement/Central Idea
a sentence that captures the central idea and what you want your audience to remember about your presentation
encapsulates the main points of a speech in just a sentence (or two), and is designed to give audiences a quick preview of what the entire speech will be about
this is perhaps the most important sentence of your presentation and sets the groundwork for the rest of your speech
also can be looked at as a “residual message,” what you want your audience to remember if they remember nothing else
The Ethics of Public Speaking
Citing Sources; Giving Credit
Orally cite your sources within your presentation, stating where your information comes from
Avoid plagiarism
Paraphrases still need to be cited
If you’re not sure if you should cite your source, cite it!
Responsible Speech Goals
Promote diversity
Use inclusive language
Raise social awareness
Employ respectful free speech; avoid hate speech
Practice
General Purpose: What is the reason you’re giving your speech?
Specific Purpose: What is the goal of your speech---what will your audience be able to accomplish after you’ve spoken?
Thesis: What is the main idea of your speech? How can you summarize your topic in one sentence?