Public Speaking

Public Speaking is a semester long elective course that will provide students with the basic skills needed in a variety of personal and public interactions within today’s society. We will introduce students to skills that will increase their effectiveness in communicating information and that will help them become better speakers and better listeners. Students will learn the fundamentals of public speaking including use of voice, nonverbal delivery, use of language, audience analysis and topic selection, organization of thoughts, speech delivery, and speech evaluation. As a result, students should see growth in their organizational and research skills, their critical thinking ability, their listening skills, and their self-confidence.

Students will gain practice in conducting interviews, introducing themselves and others, effectively using their voice to read aloud, giving demonstrations, and preparing and giving various types of speeches (demonstration, informational, devotional, persuasive, special occasion etc.). Students will also gain practice in analyzing the impact and effectiveness of a speech.