Self Evaluation 2

1) I think I achieved the purpose of my speech pretty well considering the time constraint. It's difficult because I chose such a broad and important topic and I had to try and figure out what aspects to discuss. However, I think I did do a pretty good job giving people a basic knowledge and understanding of my topic.

2) I felt somewhat confident during my speech. I'm usually extremely confident when speaking in public, but the time constraint really stresses me out and makes me feel uncomfortable and rushed. The time constraint aside, I was pretty comfortable speaking about my topic and being in front of the class.

3) If I had to do it again I would probably trim the fat a bit in my speech so that I would have an easier time staying within the allotted time slot. I feel that I was well prepared, and I practiced my speech quite a bit. I just couldn't seem to get the timing down. I would also not look at my presentation media, because I did get marked down for that. I think the issue is that I feel like I need to acknowledge my presentation media during my speech, which makes me draw my attention there.

4) One goal I have for improving the content of my speech is to try and focus more on the point and less on fancy wording. I think that the way I try to use such descriptive phrasing ends up coming around to bite me because it takes more time to say, which causes my speech to run long.

5) In order to better my delivery I'm mainly going to work on eye contact with the audience and try to stay within the time limit. I'm also going to pay more attention to the time cards that come up because I missed a couple this speech and I think it had a negative affect on my time management.

6) From my last speech I feel I did a better job orally citing sources. However, I did worse at maintaining eye contact and my time management was worse as well.

7) I can't think of anything that I did that could be very distracting. The only thing that may have distracted the audience a bit was when I broke eye contact and looked at my presentation media instead.

8) I'd probably give my eye contact a six or so. Immediately after the speech I would've said that I did a very good job maintaining eye contact. However, looking back now I do remember looking at my media more frequently than I originally thought I did. The funny thing is that I didn't even realize I was doing it.

9) Based on my performance I would give myself a B. This is because I feel that I did a good job presenting my topic, I don't think I paused or stammered much, and I think my presentation media as well as speech content was effective and interesting. The only things that I could see as a real problem were that I went over my time limit and I payed a little too much attention to my media.

10) I mentioned seven source citations throughout my speech. I cited a total of seven sources both orally and in my bibliography.

11) I feel like my last speech was better than this one. Although I went over on time during the demonstrative speech as well, it wasn't as long. Also, my eye contact was better and I was a bit less nervous.

Speaking Event Analysis

Some time ago I attended a speaking event that was on some of the atrocities of the Rwandan genocide, told from the perspective of a survivor who lost his entire family during the tragic event. The speaker’s media was effective in the way that it inspired true emotion and sympathy from the audience. Personally, the images that were shown both touched and disturbed me, and even brought me to tears (which is not an easy task).  He used photos and video interviews that he had taken himself that depicted the pure evil and unimaginable actions perpetrated during the Rwandan Genocide. Although he effectively inspired emotion in the audience, I did feel that he relied a bit too much on his presentation media, while under-preparing his actual oral presentation.  Also, although much of his presentation was very informative and awe-inspiring, it seemed at some points that he was just kind-of adding filler. I feel that there was a point where the audience was just a little bit overburdened with the presentation media. I would suggest that he work more on his oral presentation and limit his media presentation. Although much of the media was effective, the sheer volume of it made the information begin to just kind-of blend and lump together, rather than enhancing individual aspects of the topic. Also I would suggest that he weed out some of the less significant and impacting images so as not to take away from the really powerful ones. I think part of the problem there was that because he was so deeply affected by the tragedy, he focused his speech more around his own agenda rather than catering to the audience. 

Digital Slide Design Tips

I’m going to go over digital slide design tips. First, avoid relying on text or numbers. Presentation media is most effective when it is for visual representation as opposed to textual or numerical.

Limit the number of bullet points for each slide. Using too much text on a slide can possibly bore your audience. Make sure that if you decide to use text in your media presentation, you use only a maximum of four to six bullet points per slide.

Limit the number of words for each bullet point. Use only a few words or a brief phrase for each bullet point so as not to distract or bore your audience.

Make the type font large and clean. For the title use font size forty or larger, and for the text use font size twenty or larger. Stay away from overly abstract font so that they are not distracting or difficult to read. For best results use either Arial, Verdana, or Geneva as your font.

Choose transitions that fit the tone of your topic and visual material. Presentational software offers a few different ways to move from one slide to the next (transitions). “Fade through black” and “dissolve” or effective choices. Also, if you have keynote there are three-dimensional transitions you can use such as the “revolving door” and “page flip”. Make sure you use the same type of transition after each slide to create consistency for your presentation and your audience.

Avoid special effects. Special effects can be quite distracting and even annoying for your audience. If you insist on using special effects make sure that they serve a purpose directly related to the purpose of your speech.

Use color well. Choose colors that create a high contrast between the font and the background to maximize readability. 

Ethical Responsibility in Developing Presentation Media

Presentation media is a useful tool in drawing attention to your topic, illustrating an idea, evoking emotional reactions, clarifying points, supporting an argument, and assisting with audience recall. So essentially, the all-encompassing purpose of using presentation media is to enhance your speech in a variety of ways. It is exceedingly important to develop accurate presentation media for a speech. Just as supporting evidence in a speech provides speaker and topic credibility, so does presentation media. If media is altered or incorrect it can damage both the speaker credibility and the credibility of the speech topic. This will leave the audience with little confidence in the speaker and the “factual” content of their speech, as well as some confusion and a weak understanding of your topic. The best way to present effective presentation media is by checking the sources for the media (as you would for textual evidence) and using authentic media from a valid source. 

Components of Intro and Conclusion

According to the text, your introduction should get the audience’s attention (attention getter), indicate the purpose and thesis, establish credibility, and preview your main paints. The conclusion should contain a review of main points, it should reinforce the purpose, and provide closure. I

I’m going to use a startling statistic to achieve my attention getter. Since my speech is informative, my purpose and thesis will be to inform/educate the audience about the details of the Genocide. I haven’t completely decided on my main points as of yet, because since there is such a wealth of information, I still need to narrow it down. In order to establish credibility I am mentioning my relation (through marriage) to survivors of the Cambodian Genocide. I’m still trying to figure out my conclusion, but for the closure I would like to give the audience something to think about that will be meaningful and lasting. Something that will make my presentation AND the tragic events of the Genocide stick out in their minds and stay with them.

Here is my rough and unfinished intro and conclusion...

According to historyplace.com, around 2,000,000 people lost their lives during the vicious tyrannical campaign of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, in a catastrophic event known as the Cambodian Genocide. (Attention Getter). Now I know what many of you are likely thinking…what Cambodian Genocide? Well don’t feel bad, I too had been ignorant of the atrocities of the Cambodian Genocide for most of my life. It was only when I married in to a Cambodian family and came in close contact with survivors of the Genocide that I learned of the violence and terror that left so many scarred or dead (Credibility). The Cambodian Genocide, perpetrated by Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, devastated a country and tore through the Cambodian people attempting to destroy everyone in its path (Thesis). Today I would like to begin by discussing some of the history of the Cambodian Genocide, then I will discuss the atrocities committed by Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, and lastly I will … (I haven’t completely figured out my main points yet)

I hope that now you have a better understanding of some of the history of the Cambodian Genocide, the atrocities committed by Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, and the ----(This is part of my Review of Main Points).  With your newfound knowledge of the Cambodian Genocide you can begin to not only understand the tragedy, but to be more aware of the suffering in the world around you, and the burdens shouldered by your fellow human beings (Reinforce Purpose). So…(This is where I will provide closure).

Guidelines for an Effective Informative Speech

I’m going to discuss the “Guidelines for Effective Informative Speeches”. Because proper planning and preparation plays such an important role in the efficiency and success of your informative speech, it is helpful to follow five valuable tips to insure an excellent presentation.

First, keep your speech informative. This means that you will try and avoid interjecting your own opinion, evaluation, suggestions, or personal views on a subject. You are there strictly to share information through description, explanation, or demonstration.

Second, make your speech topic come alive.  You can do this by demonstrating a positive attitude and connecting the audience to the topic in meaningful ways. This can be achieved by exciting your audience’s imagination using vivid language to describe your main points.

Third, connect your topic to your audience. As a speaker, you can encourage your audience to pay attention and focus on your topic by connecting it to their general life experiences (if they are unfamiliar with the topic). If your audience is familiar with the topic then you can hold their attention by reinforcing commonalities between yourself and the audience. It’s also important to help them understand how the topic is significant or beneficial in their own lives.

Fourth, inform to educate. Informative speeches are good for more than just informing the audience. In an informative speech you want to educate your audience so that they will understand the importance and nature of the topic.  People usually respond best to information that they feel will enhance their lives in some way. Therefore, if you would like to educate your audience you must demonstrate how your topic is relevant to the lives and/or values of the audience.

Fifth, use presentation media to inform.  It’s important to use the right amount of visual aids and to use them at the right time. Limiting your presentation media and delivering them in a smooth, rhythmic, and confident fashion can increase the potential impact of your media and can make your informative speech a positive experience for you and your audience. 

Speech Buddy VIdeos Chps. 9 & 13

9.1

This video discusses the introduction to a speech, and it’s main components. They discussed the “attention getter”, which is often a surprising fact or statistic, a story, or humor. They then gave examples of effective “attention getters”. Then the speaker mentioned that the introduction should also contain a thesis/purpose, and preview of main points. I didn’t really learn anything new in this video per say, but it was helpful to see an example of an effective “attention getter”.

9.2

This video discussed the main elements of the conclusion, which are the review of main paints, reinforcing the purpose, and providing closure. They then showed an example of an effective conclusion.

13.1 A

This video was an example of an informative speech on techno music.

The speaker did a good job with the attention getter, purpose, and preview of main points. His transitions were clear and made his main points easy to follow. Also, he used visual aids, which helped the audience to better understand the information he was supplying them. He did a good job maintaining eye contact, and projecting, and his conclusion was also effective. Overall, I feel that he did quite well and this video is a good model for giving an informative speech.

13.1 A USE IT

In video 13.1A “USE IT” Katherine is giving a speech on “Kosher”. Although I thought her “attention getter” was kind-of strange, Katherine did a good job on her introduction. She established her credibility well, and did a good job on her thesis/purpose, and on previewing her main points. Although Katherine stuttered some in her speech, she did well with using light and expressive hand gestures, and had plenty of expression on her face. One thing I also noticed, however, was that it seemed that Katherine looked at her note cards quite often. I feel that she could’ve improved on this, but since she also did a satisfactory job with establishing eye contact, I don’t feel that it was too big of a deal. I also think she could’ve done a better job with making more clear transitions between main points. With that being said, her visual aids were effective, and she had a good conclusion.

13.1 B

            Janine did a good job giving history on the Kodak camera, establishing eye contact, projecting, and using visual aids.  However, I feel that her speech was a bit difficult to follow (organization-wise) because it seems like the video kind-of skips around. It began with her introduction, but it seems like they cut it very short and skipped right to the body of her speech. I didn’t hear a CLEAR thesis or a preview of main points.  Also, I didn’t hear any transitions so it seemed kind-of like an endless string of historical facts. Like I said, I think the video skipped around a bit instead of letting the speech flow in its natural order, so that may account for the way I perceived the speech.

I didn’t particularly LEARN much from these videos, because they felt more like review, but they are good tools and references to use when planning an informative speech.