Public Speaking
Syllabus
Instructor: Tara Sanchez
VUB Summer 2002
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This is an introductory class in Public Speaking.
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For the purposes of this class, "public speaking" will be defined as ANY
kind of speaking in front of more than one person, not just giving speeches.
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Below I list
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the goals of the class (what you should learn)
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the requirements of the class (what you must do in order to pass)
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my expectations of you (what you need to do to act like a college student)
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and other important things that you need to know about this class.
Goals of this class:
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students will learn to give informative and persuasive speeches.
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students will learn to prepare a speech outline.
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students will learn to participate appropriately in class discussions.
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students will keep up with current events
Requirements of the class:
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you must complete all assignments, both oral and written.
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you must participate in class in the form of asking questions, commenting,
taking notes, paying attention, supporting other students.
My expectations of you:
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you must complete all assignments on time.
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you must come to class on time-this means, be sitting in your seat with
your coat off and notebook and pen ready at the time when class is scheduled
to start.
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you must come to every class prepared -this means, having done all assignments
and readings, with all supplies (like pen and paper), and ready to participate.
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you must not ask questions at inappropriate times.
[what does this mean? do not misunderstand-ALL questions are legitimate.
NO question is "too dumb." However, you are not 3 years old and you cannot
yell out questions whenever you want. RAISE YOUR HAND and I will call on
you when I finish my thought. If I say, "Any questions?", that's a good
time for a question. If your question is unrelated to that day's class,
wait until the end of class. If you are afraid you'll forget the question,
write it down.]
# you must be considerate
of other classmates. You can disagree, but don't insult.
Your grade-your grade in my class will be composed of the following:
Speech 1 20%
Speech 2 20%
Speech 3 20%
Speech 4 20%
Class participation 20%
Two things are important here.
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if you do not participate in class, the highest grade you can get is a
B, and you can only get this if you get a perfect score on every speech
(which has never happened before).
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the grade for each speech is composed of two parts: your outline and your
presentation. If you don't hand in any outlines, but give all the speeches
and participate in class, the highest grade you can get is a D, and only
if you get a perfect score on class participation and every presentation
(which has never happened before).
Speeches: Each speech will be graded according to content, organization,
and delivery. You will turn in an OUTLINE of every speech the week before
you give the speech in class. If you don't turn in an outline, you will
not give a speech. Speeches are graded as follows:
Content 6 points
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Is the topic related to current events?
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Are facts accurate?
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Are the main points supported by evidence?
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Is anything missing that should have been included?
Organization 7 points
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Does the speech have a clear introduction?
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Is the purpose of the speech communicated in the introduction?
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Does the speech have a clear conclusion?
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Does the conclusion reiterate the main idea of the speech?
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Are the main points clearly articulated?
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Does the author follow a logical order?
Delivery 7 points
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Does the speaker maintain eye contact with the audience?
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Does the speaker avoid distracting mannerisms?
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Is the speaker prepared enough so that s/he does not have to read from
notes?
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Is the speaker speaking loud enough?
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Does the speaker use gestures appropriately?
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Are visual aids used appropriately? (if used)
Class activities:
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During class, I will lecture. What I say and what I write on the board
is important-you should take notes.
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We will do class activities. The purpose of these activities is for you
to apply and practice concepts that I lecture about. You should learn something.
You will not be graded on how well you do the activities (so, it's OK to
make mistakes). However, if you refuse to participate, your grade in the
class will go down.
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You will give speeches regularly. You should practice these in advance-you
will be graded on them.
Class readings: There is no textbook for this class. You should
take notes in class. Also, I will distribute a couple of articles for you
to read. We will discuss them in class. YOU MUST read the articles! Occasionally,
I will give you handouts-treat these as you would a textbook. Put them
in your notebook, don't lose them, refer to them when doing homework.
How to contact me: tsanchez@babel.ling.upenn.edu
This is my e-mail address. E-mail is the only way you can contact me,
so I suggest you learn to do this ASAP. You should let me know 24 hours
in advance if you will be late to class, absent from class, late with an
assignment, whatever.
Below, you will find the class schedule and assignment due dates. This
is SUPERimportant. Do NOT lose this syllabus!
Date of Class
|
Class
Topic |
Assignment
Due |
Preparation |
May 15
|
introductions
course description
good/bad speeches |
|
|
May 22
|
informative
speeches
outlining |
self introduction
speeches (not graded but required) |
Read
Chapters 3 and 4 |
May 29
|
delivery |
informative speech
OUTLINE |
have topic
for informative speech |
June 5
|
NO CLASS DUE
TO |
VUB
GRADUATION |
|
June 12
|
handouts and
visual aids; about academic presentations; presenting other people's work |
informative
speech |
practice
speech |
June 19
|
about persuasive
speeches |
|
Read Chapters 5,
13, 17 |
June 26
|
|
informative
speech |
practice speech |
July 3
|
supporting
your ideas |
|
Read Chapters 12,
15, 16 |
July 10
|
organizing
arguments |
|
Read
Chapters 9, 10, 11;
have topic for persuasive speech |
July 17
|
|
persuasive
speech |
practice speech |
July 24
|
dealing with
audience questions |
|
Read Chapters 6,
7, 8;
have topic for persuasive speech |
July 31
|
|
persuasive
speech |
practice speech |
|
|
|
|