Four-minute prepared article speech

  • Due No Due Date
  • Points 6
  • Submitting a media recording or a file upload

comic

 

Practicing both critical reading and oral communication skills is an important part of a Comm-B course. In this assignment you work on both of these skills by preparing and performing a four-minute speech to your discussion section, summarizing and commenting on one of the scholarly articles from your course reader.

Your TA will match you with one of the sixteen weekly scholarly articles in your course reader.   Refer to your discussion section's general question board on the  Discussions page (it will be "pinned" at the top) to remind yourself which week is your turn to give a speech on this article.

 

Steps to follow

1. Read carefully and take notes.  Once you have learned which article you are summarizing in your speech, read it thoroughly at least twice.  The second time through, note any useful concepts or terms, any key claims or arguments, and any points where the author seems to nicely summarize their thoughts.  Also note any ideas you don't quite understand or names which aren't familiar!

2. Evaluate the author's arguments and evidence.  What is the thesis, argument, or main point of the article?  How does the author attempt to argue for that thesis?  What kind of evidence does the author present?    Who does the author cite in the article as either supporting or challenging their position?  

3. Consider counter-arguments and contrary evidence.  Does the author address any counter-arguments to their thesis, or acknowledge any evidence which might undermine their thesis?  If not, can you come up with any counter-arguments, or imagine any contrary evidence that one might search for, to challenge the author's thesis?

4. Decide what you think about this article.  This is more than just "do I believe the article or not."  Do you feel the topic of concern raised by the article is an important one?  Do you feel the concerns explored by the author are very specific and idiosyncratic to one specific situation or case, or are the author's concerns more generally applicable to a wide variety of situations and cases?  Do you feel the evidence provided by the author is convincing, ambiguous, or incomplete?  Does this article at least help you ask interesting questions about the way the world works that you would not have thought of before?

5. Outline your speech.  Now that you've thoroughly analyzed the article and come to some decisions about it, you are ready to summarize your ideas into a speech outline.  

You should devote the first part of your presentation (2 minutes) to identifying the main arguments of the article, and outlining the author's claims, reasons, and evidence. You do not have to go into great detail (since all students will have read the article) but you do have to provide an accurate summary.  

The rest of your presentation (2 minutes) should deal with your reaction to the article. Give specific reasons and examples for how you evaluate the quality and usefulness of the article.  Tell us how you think this author's arguments and evidence might be useful in other situations -- or why they would not be.  

Remember, just like a good written essay, your talk needs a short introduction and a satisfying conclusion.  You can also include in your outline any particular points of data or argument that you want to quote from the article directly.

6. Practice your speech.  Read through your outline a few times while timing yourself, to see how quickly you are able to clearly talk through the material you have gathered, making sure you fall roughly within the four-minute time guidelines.  Take this opportunity to trim or expand your outline as necessary.  It is better to talk from an outline than to write your speech out verbatim.  

7. Upload your written speech outline to Canvas to demonstrate you have prepared for your performance.  

 

Share with your classmates

Finally, after you have uploaded your speech outline to Canvas on this assignment page, you will present your speech to your TA and your peers.  ou may refer to your outline or your notes, but your goal is to do this without reading your speech verbatim -- students who simply read the text of their speech will receive a lower graded on this assignment.  Follow the appropriate instructions below depending on whether your class is meeting in-person on campus or online this term:

  • In-person course instructions.  In your next discussion section, you will present this speech to the class, at the start of the class session.  Your TA will make a digital recording of your speech and upload it to Canvas for you (and only you) to review.  This is the best way to learn from your performance!  

  • Online course instructions.  If your discussion section is meeting online, you'll need to make a digital recording of yourself performing your four-minute speech.  Use a computer, cell phone, or tablet to make a "selfie" recording of your brand speech, and save it as a movie file.  Then find your TA's text-based Discussions board for this week, and use the "Reply" feature to upload a copy of that video file to this discussion, so everyone else can watch it and leave comments.  To load your video into the reply, use the "Record/Upload Media" icon in the editing bar:
    record upload media

 

Tips for effective speaking

  • Do not read your presentation! You may speak from your outline or from other simple notes that keep you on track, but allow the words to emerge spontaneously and conversationally. A good strategy is to practice your presentation in front of a mirror, a voice recorder, or a friend.
  • Try to engage your audience with eye contact and gestures.   (If you are making a selfie video, try to look directly at the camera, so the audience feels like you are engaging with eye contact.)
  • Don't worry if you are nervous.  Everyone gets nervous before public speaking, even your instructors.  Try to recognize nervousness as the extra energy that is going to keep you engaged and motivated to give a good speech.  And remember, the more you practice these kinds of situations, the less nerve-wracking they tend to be.  
  • And remember, when you are in the audience listening to your fellow students give their speeches, be an engaged and respectful listener just like you would want them to be for your speech.

 

Grading rubric

Speeches are graded on preparation, content and delivery.

Preparation (2 points)

  • Was your speech outline uploaded on time and complete?

Content (4 points)

  • Do you accurately capture what the article author (or previous speaker) was saying?
  • Is your own claim clear?
  • Is your evidence for your claim convincing?

Delivery (2 points)

  • Have you kept to the time specified?
  • Do you project enough for everyone to hear you?
  • Does your inflection and emphasis help convey your meaning (as in normal conversation) ?
  • Are you, like, avoiding the use of slang and, basically, all those crutch phrases like "like" and "basically"?
  • Do you seem to be enjoying yourself (even if you aren't)?

 

To learn more

 

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