Speech Communication 2.0 Syllabus

Using TED Talks inside and outside the Public Speaking Classroom

compassioninpolitics — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 17:26:47 +0000

Pat Foltz, public speaking teacher points out:

My Public Speaking students (college level) view a different Ted Talk each week and respond to those talks using the 4Rs: Reminders, Reinforcers, Rebuttals and Revelations. They usually become TEDheads by the end of a semester. They are all watching the same talk each week. I have mixed them up semester to semester, but the following are always favorites:
Sir Ken Robinson (any of his! I always start their TED experience with one by him.)
Benjamin Zander on music and passion (A HUGE crowd pleaser!)
Jill Bolte Taylor’s stroke of insight
Melinda Gates on what not for profits can learn from Coca-Cola

My surprise is the discussions that students have about the speakers. Some will love them, some will be indifferent and some will be bored. They will start analyzing why they liked or didn’t like a speaker and learn so much about knowing your audience and what strategies work and why!

SCORE Method of Presentation Organization

compassioninpolitics — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 03:48:02 +0000

SCORE Method

S-Situation
Co-Complication
R-Resolution
E-Example

In terms of the last section Example–is this more story or a case study? Also, where does the data go?

This method is borrowed from Advanced Presentations by Design. I haven’t read the book yet, but its next on my reading list. It comes heavily recommended by Nancy Duarte, who is particularly impressed with its analytical and scientific basis.

Innovation Presentation

compassioninpolitics — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 21:23:28 +0000

Tina Seelig, who is part of the Stanford GSB faculty, in her recent book What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20 writes: “During my creativity course, teams of students each pick an organization they think is innovative. These teams visit the firm, interview employees, watch them in action, and come to their own conclusions about what makes the organization creative. They then present this information to the class in an innovative way.”

Hopefully there is a critical mass of innovative and creative companies in your part of the country. I guess if you didn’t feel that to be the case, perhaps they could do interviews by Skype or other free video conferencing.

This presentation project can be divided into:

1) pre-research/brainstorming & filtering process
2) interview questions
3) optional: edited interviews (video)
4) presentation:
-visual presentation/presentation design
-delivery
-outline/handouts/visual aids (optional)
-learning activities (optional)

Of course you can use whatever project based learning grading rubric you are experienced with.

Simplify Your Presentation: Ten Year Old Rule

compassioninpolitics — Fri, 14 May 2010 13:27:17 +0000

This is a both a rule of simplicity and audience adaptation….if your presentation can’t pass the a 10 year old can understand this. Research from the Seattle Post Intelligencer confirms this as a great rule.

Say it with a Story: Story Practioners Speak

compassioninpolitics — Fri, 14 May 2010 00:46:37 +0000

Here is a link to a free ebook on story by story practioners.

Ten Step Process to Presentations

compassioninpolitics — Fri, 14 May 2010 00:45:43 +0000

Here is a 10 step process method of presentations:

1. Audience — Who is your (most important) audience?
2. Objectives — What is your objective for this presentation?
3. Problem / Solution — What business problem are you helping to provide a solution for?
4. Evidence — What evidence are you offering to support your solution?
5. Anecdotes — Which anecdotes illustrate your message?
6. Sequencing — In what sequence will you present your evidence?
7. Charts — Which charts will best convey your data?
8. Layouts — What layout will you use for each slide?
9. Stakeholders — Have you addressed the concerns of each stakeholder?
10. Measurement — How will you measure the success of your presentation?

Tip: click the link to see a visualization of this process.

Death by Powerpoint: Info Overload

compassioninpolitics — Fri, 14 May 2010 00:37:18 +0000

Here is an example of death by powerpoint highlighed by Steven Colbert recently. Yikes!!!!!

Robert Cialdini on Influence

compassioninpolitics — Thu, 13 May 2010 02:54:46 +0000

According to psychologist Robert Cialdini, the six drivers of influence are:

reciprocation
consistency
social proof
liking
authority
scarcity

How do you navigate these drivers within the three components of influence?

(“How to Harness Influence“)

Strength in Numbers: Motion Graphics

compassioninpolitics — Thu, 13 May 2010 02:50:50 +0000

Here is a cool presentation called “Strength in Numbers” I believe it was done in Adobe After Effects, but I’m not certain. The movement in the presentation is fantastic.

Thoughts? How did movement create meaning, communication, or otherwise emphasize th message this organization was trying to communicate?

In Defense of Power Point

compassioninpolitics — Thu, 13 May 2010 02:46:02 +0000

Here is an article from Business Week “In Defense of Powerpoint” (article link)

I think this would be great to read in combination with Edward Tuft’s critique of Powerpoint.

One Teacher Challenge

compassioninpolitics — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 16:52:18 +0000

One challenge for this class involves teaching to both Mac and PC users. If your campus doesn’t have lots of Macs or a Mac lab this may prove difficult.

I think its important students know how to use iWork with both its Keynote and Pages software programs. These are in many respects industry standards and so students learning them can be helpful. Although, ultimately that is a judgment call each teacher has to make.

Scenario 1: No Mac Lab Time:
• Attempting to do something outside class times
• Creating an assignment based on learning the software
• Make software demos like Lynda freely available via DVD or online.

Scenario 2: A Tiny Minority of Current Mac Users
I don’t think this is really a challenge. I think explaining to the students why there is value in learning the software may be a slight challenge.

Problem Solving and Design Thinking Classroom Activity

compassioninpolitics — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:31:14 +0000

Tom Wujec talks about the Marshmallow Challenge at TED. If you need the instructions for setting up the Marshmallow Challenge. I like the idea of doing this activity in two waves–especially if in the first wave most students don’t opt for the iterative design process:

This is a great activity for learning together.