Prof.

Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 This course will cover the following areas:

 Introduction

 Evolution of public speaking through history

 Fear of public speaking

 How to overcome fear and anxiety of public speaking

 How to transform fear into excitement

 How to make a successful speech

 Guideline for preparing and delivering an Effective speech

1
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

Cycle of Communication Process

Message/ ideation encoding medium of transmission

Sender feedback decoding receiver

The process of Communication begins with the source (sender) who

sends/encodes a message using speech or writing as medium or channel for
communication. The message is received/decoded by the listener who evaluates
the information and comprehends the meaning of the message.

Basics of Communication

 In the cycle of COM process, different elements are involved: Ideation/Message,

Sender, Encoding, Receiver, Medium and channel, Barriers, Decoding and
Feedback.

 Ideation/Message (=content of the message)

 Ideation refers to the formation of the idea or selection of a message to be

communicated.

 The scope of ‘ideation’ is generally determined by the sender’s knowledge,

experiences, and abilities as well as the purpose of COM and the context of the
communicative factors.

 Messages: have two kinds of content, logical messages (factual information) and
emotional ones (feelings and emotions). In formal communicative situation,
ideation may consist of finding and selecting a subject or general topic, looking
for ideas and thoughts, and deciding the type, scope, and sources of information.

 Sender

The person who initiates the COM process is referred to as the sender. From his
personal data bank, he selects ideas, encodes and finally transmits them to the
receiver. The entire burden of encoding of COM then rests upon the sender. His
message, choice images and words and the combination of the two is what the
receiver/recipient listen carefully to. If the message is constructed in accordance

2
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

with the expectations of the receiver, the level of acceptance is going to be

higher.

 Encoding refers to the process of taking an idea or mental image, associating

that image with words, and then speaking those words in order to coney a
message. So, if you wanted to explain to your aunt the directions to your new
apartment, you would picture in your mind the landscape, streets and buildings,
and then you would select the best words that describe the route as your aunt
could find you. Encoding involves: 1selecting a language; 2 selecting medium;
and 3 selecting an appropriate COM form).

 1Selecting the right language is essential for effective encoding. If the receiver
is not able to decode or understand the message, COM will fail. For example, a
person who does not understand German can not decode a message encoded in
German.

 2 Selecting the right medium: there are three basic options for sending
messages: speaking, writing, and non-verbal signs and symbols (=body
movement, facial expression...).

 3 Selection of the appropriate COM form depends on the sender-receiver

relationship and the overall goal of the COM (=face to face interpersonal COM,
group COM, speaker-audience COM, or telephonic COM).

 Decoding: The process of converting a message into thoughts by translating the

received stimuli into an interpreted meaning in order to understand the message
communicated. The receiver has to assign meaning to a message in order to
understand it.

 Decoding is the reverse process of listening to words, thinking about

them, and turning those words into mental images, associate these words with
streets and landmarks that your aunt knows, and then she would form a mental
map of the way to get you.

 Thus, the process of decoding involves interpretation and analysis of a

message. Thus, misinterpretation of a message leads to communication
breakdown and creates confusion and misunderstanding.

 Receiver: the listener receives an encoded message which he attempts to

decode.

3
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 Medium and channel: is very simply the means through which the
message travels. In face-to-face communication, the channel involves all of our
senses, so the channel is what we see, hear, touch, smell and perhaps what we
taste. When we are communicating with someone online, the channel is the
computer; when texting the channel is the cell phone; and when watching a
movie on cable, the channel is the TV.

 Channel could be oral, written or non-verbal.

 Transmission refers to the flow of messages over the chosen channel.

 Barriers: refer to the various hurdles the message may come across in
process of transmission. Noise may disturb the proper encoding. It may hamper
the basic purpose of the message or hinder the smooth completion of the cycle
of the process of communication.

o General barriers to COM :

 Physical barriers

 Defects in the medium (the microphone, the telephone, cell phone signals,
the postal system, or electronic media may fail.)

 Noise (COM may be disturbed by traffic, factory work, or people talking)

 Defects in the organizational communication: if a message passes down

through many levels of authority, there may be much distortion in the message.

 Hearing problems: (poor listening results from actual hearing

deficiencies)

 Semantic barriers:

 Interpretation of words: words are capable of communicating a variety of

meaning. It is quite possible that the receiver dose not assign the same meaning
to a word as the speaker had intended. This may lead to miscommunication.

 Language

 Psychological barriers:

 Egocentrism: is the belief- usually mistaken – that our own ideas are more
important or valuable than those of others. This egocentric attitude is likely to
alienate the very people with whom you need to work.

4
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 Fear of appearing ignorant

 Feedback: it is conceived of as a last stage in the COM process. It is the

reaction of the receiver to the message. It helps the sender to know that the
message was received and understood.

5
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

What is Public Speaking

 Public speaking is a process, an act and an art of making a speech before

an audience. It is more formal than everyday conversations. For example, the
speaker usually talks to the audience without being interrupted.

 The purpose of a speech is to communicate with the audience to inform

them about a topic, convince them of your point of view or arouse sympathy for
an issue you feel passionate about.

 However, it is not enough to talk in front of an audience to be a

brilliant/effective public speaker.

 To be an effective public speaker, many tips, techniques and rules are

needed.

Evolution of Public Speaking through history

 About 2,500 years ago in ancient Athens, men were required to give
effective speeches as part of their duties as citizens. The key word here is
“effective” because they had much to gain or lose depending upon their level of
eloquence. High political office and wealth had tendency to come to those with
the right connections and a ready wit; those who failed to speak well could
possibly lose their land in property disputes should they be unable to argue well
their cases when sued by a neighbor and end up selling themselves into slavery
as debtors.

 During the time that Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle taught their pupils
philosophy and rhetoric, democracy was on the rise in Athens. However, this
isn’t democracy as we know it in the modern world. This was a form of
democracy where only a limited number of people could participate because
citizenship was defined narrowly. In general, think of those citizens of Athens as
a family – there would have been ties of kinship, religion, and culture. And this
family of citizens would have been exclusively male.

Rise of Athens

 Athens was the intellectual center of the Greek world by the 5th century.
Athens had been at war with its neighbors for over a century, new philosophies
were trickling in from Ionia (modern Turkey), and religious beliefs were on the

6
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

decline. The modern parallel might be the Age of Enlightenment (or Reason) in
the 17th and 18th centuries when the rationality of man’s intellectual endeavor
and the questioning of culture and faith traditions took hold.

 Athens is located right on the sea and would have had significant contact
with other cultures because of trade routes which brought goods and people to
the city via the sea, and a population large enough to support specialized trades
and intellectual activity.

 Athenians were split into two groups: The “family” of citizens and kinship
groups. The former was tied to the polis (city), and the latter was appointed the
“lawgiver.” Here, a form of democracy started to rise.

 Because this was a participative democracy, all citizens of the polis had to
be able to speak in the legislative assembly and testify in court. Citizens met in
large Assemblies in the marketplace (agora) to debate issues of war and
economics and politics. Note that this court and the assembly were established
well before Socrates was born, so there was already an active arena for public
speaking when he began teaching.

 Rise of the Citizen Orators

 The emergence of the big three scholars (Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle)

 Plato was a student of Socrates who opened a formal school called the
“Academy” which was something of a club where invited members would
gather to engage in “dialectic” – discussion between two people or two opposing
views for the purpose of discovering the truth of the issue. Plato is also known
for his contribution to politics which has a direct bearing on the teaching and use
of oratory in government.

 Similarly, Aristotle “Great Encyclopedist” opened his own school, the

Lyceum, where he delivered his lectures. For the study of oratory, he identified
the basic elements of good speech and persuasion as: ethos, logos, and pathos.

 ‘Three Parts of Persuasion by Aristotle’:

1. Ethos (credibility /believability of the speaker)

2. Logos (logic behind any conclusion drawn by a speaker during the course of
the speech needed to be valid and clear)

7
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

3. Pathos (emotional appeal/ability to create connection between the speaker

and his audience). - Credibility

 Accordingly, good speech -Logic

-Emotions

 Credibility: to share thoughts and ideas publically a speaker should

possess a certain level of authority and knowledge about the chosen topic
(Ethos).

 Logic: for a message to be understood, it has to be conveyed in a clear

informative and logical manner (logos).

 Emotions: to hold the audience’s attention the speaker must first establish
an emotional connection with the listeners (pathos)

When in Rome…

After the ascension of Rome, public speaking techniques developed in

Greece were copied, modified and developed by the Romans. Here, oratory lost
its value and dominance in the political arena, but gained wide popularity as a
form of entertainment, allowing famous orators to gain political power and
wealth by using their public speaking skills. Amongst such people was Marcus
Cicero- a lawyer, politician and philosopher, who wrote his treatise ‘De Oratore’
where he developed his ‘Five Canons (=rules) of Rhetoric’ that are widely used
by many public speakers up to this day.

 Cicero suggested that the process of effective speech preparation consists

of five main steps:

1. Invention: selection of arguments (to persuade).

2. Arrangement: is a process of putting those arguments in the order

best suited for the situation.

3. Style: to determine how to present an argument, using rhetorical

techniques and choosing the words that have an impact on the audience. (use
expressive language).

4. Memory: the process of learning and memorizing the speech to make it

sound natural.

8
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

5. Delivery: the process of making effective use of voice and body

language.

Modern elements of Public Speaking

 Most public speeches can be split into five basic elements, usually expressed
as:

‘Who is saying What to Whom using What medium with what Effect’

Who ? What? Whom? Medium? Effect?

Feedback

WHO SAYS TO IN WHICH WITH WHAT

WHAT WHOM CHANNEL EFFECT

COMMUNICATOR MESSAGE RECEIVER MEDUIM EFFECT

9
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

Types of Speech delivery

 Extemporaneous speeches are speeches that are carefully prepared and

practiced by the speaker before the actual speaking time. A speaker will use
notes or an outline as a guide while they are delivering the speech. The notes or
outline will usually include any quotes and sources the speaker wants to cite in
the presentation, as well as the order the information in the speech should be
delivered in. The speech is delivered as if the speaker is having a conversation
with the audience.

Since the speaker is not reading the entire speech, the extemporaneous
speaker uses the notes as a guide only – a sort of memory trigger – and the
speaker will also be able to respond to the audience since her head isn’t trapped
by reading every word on a paper. This is the type of public speaking you should
strive to use in oral communication for your informative and persuasive
speeches as this is most practical type of public speaking – the type you are most
likely to use in a real life situation when you might be asked to give a formal
presentation.

 Impromptu speeches are speeches that are delivered without notes or a

plan, and without any formal preparation – they are very spontaneously
delivered. This is one of the most nerve wracking situations for most students to
find themselves in because there isn’t a plan or agenda to follow – they just have
to get up and speak without any “thinking” time. They are afraid of not knowing
what to say when they get up in front of the audience so they might make a fool
of themselves.

If this type of speaking situation makes you nervous, you are not alone!
The reality is that this is the type of public speaking you are the MOST prepared
for. Your daily life is filled with impromptu experiences and conversations.
Every phone conversation, exchange between you and another one, and
discussion amongst friends is impromptu by its very nature – even if we
“practice” our conversations, they are still impromptu in their delivery. So,
while most students are nervous about impromptu speeches, they are the type
they are the most prepared for from their daily experiences.

 Manuscript speeches are speeches that are delivered with a script of the
exact words to be used. If they have to give a speech, most students prefer to
have every single word in front of them so they can basically “read” the speech
to the audience. While this is very reassuring for a speaker and they feel like

10
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

they won’t “forget” anything if they have every word in front of them,
manuscript speaking is one of the worst traps to fall into for a speaker.
The speaker who uses a complete manuscript will often spend more time
looking at the script than at the audience. By doing this, the speaker is unable to
react to the audience or respond to the audience members questions. Therefore,
the manuscript becomes a trap for the speaker.

 Memorized speeches are speeches that are committed to memory. The

speaker completely memorizes the text of a speech and then delivers the speech
from memory without reliance on notes. This is a very fearful speaking situation
for most people because they fear they will forget what they had planned on
saying when they get in front of the group.

11
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

Fear of Public Speaking

 If you get nervous before you get up on stage to speak in front of an

audience, you’ll probably be well acquainted with the symptoms of
glossophobia (the fear of public speaking). But do you know why you feel fear?
When you’re in a socially stressful situation — especially one as stressful as
public speaking — your body goes into a protective mode; you’ve probably
heard of the “fight-or-flight” response. This is exactly what’s happening when
you experience public speaking anxiety. Your body is going into emergency
survival mode.

 Adrenaline, the hormone that triggers the fight-or-flight response, is

released. In essence, adrenaline prepares your body to fight for survival or run as
fast as you can. It does this by increasing blood flow to certain parts of the body,
which can induce sweating, shaking, dry mouth, the need to use the bathroom,
and becoming pale or flushed.

 Physical Reactions

Psychologists know that the very fact of being in the spotlight often triggers the
following reactions:

 Pounding heart ‘=rapid heartbeat’

 Rapid and shallow breathing
 Dry mouth
 Shaky/Trembling hands
 Sweaty Palms
 Stomach cramps ‘=butterflies in stomach’
 Squeaky/Shaky voice

Why does public speaking make us so nervous?

 Common Reasons
 According to researchers, mental health professionals and speech coaches,
there are several contributing factors that include the following:
 Worry about judgement and evaluation from others: being rejected. Our
anxiety and fright may be caused not by fear of public speaking but by the
audience reaction to our performance (feedback).
 Past negative public speaking experiences.
 Comparaisons to others.

12
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 Lack of preparation.
 Feeling self-conscious about your abilities.
 Feeling uncomfortable or awkward physically.
 Fearing failure.
 Psychological State: we are afraid that our nervousness will impede and
obstruct our ability to perform and we will end up embarrassing ourselves.
Being the Center of Attention: a lot of people — introverts and extroverts alike
— are uncomfortable with being the center of attention. Being the center of
attention means being singled out, and often means being separated from a
group. When you’re standing on a stage or in front of a conference room, it can
feel like there’s no way to take the spotlight off of yourself.
 Making Mistakes: the fear of making mistakes during your presentation
— or getting called out on an error or inaccuracy — is one that terrifies a lot of
people, and is the reason behind a lot of totally memorized speeches. There are a
few things that you can do to minimize the chances of making a mistake. But
even more importantly, it’s important to realize that if you do make one, it’s not
a big deal. People make mistakes all the time, and your audience will almost
certainly be very understanding. Correct yourself and move on.
 Feeling Unworthy: this is a common one — you feel like an expert in a
topic until you get up in front of a crowd. At just about this point you feel like
you’re a complete impostor and start “feeling” that everyone in the audience
knows more about it than you do. You fear that they’ll be judging you, thinking
that you don’t have the authority to be up in front of them telling them about
something they already know, and maybe even scoffing at your rookie mistakes.

13
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

How to Overcome Fear: Turn fear into excitement

 Negative effects of Fear:

 Fear constitutes a barrier and an obstacle to your professional and

personal growth.
 Fear may impede, worsen, and ruin instead of promote and improve your
performance/presentation.
 Fear is a disturbance that prevents a speech from reaching the intended
audience.

Practical ways to transform Fear into excitement

 Deep breathing: It is custody that anxiety and fear trigger in your body a
physical reaction: your muscles tighten, your heart rate increases, your blood
pressure goes up and your breathing becomes hard. The best way to control your
emotions and regain confidence is through deep breathing.

 Shifting focus outwards: Paul L. Witt, professor of communication

studies at Texas Christian University, believes that many speakers perform
worse than they could because they focus too much on their physical reactions
(shaky hands, sweaty palms…) instead of concentrating on their speeches. To
wipe out this problem, the speakers must shift focus from how he feels to the
message he wants to share with his audience.

 Visualizing: to make speech looks smooth, the speaker needs to visualize

the room he is speaking in and the audience to whom he is addressing speech.

 Focusing on facts, not fears: try to concentrate your thoughts on positive

facts such as: ‘I have practiced my speech many times’, ‘I am an expert on this
topic’

 To regain confidence

 To wipe out the irrational scenarios about what can go wrong.

 Building your speech on clarity and relevance: speech needs to be clear

and includes relevant points.

 The instructor needs to help students realize that being stressful is natural.

 Better preparation and understanding of the topic eliminates the chance of

making a mistake or getting of track during a public speaking activity.

14
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 A moment of silence is nothing to be afraid of. If speakers

lose track of what they are saying or begin to feel nervous, it is likely that the
audience will not mind a pause to consider what the speakers have been saying.

 Practicing complete speech several times would certainly

give the speakers a confidence. They can practice it with a small number of
people they are at ease with.
 Speakers should seek feedback of the audience during practice sessions or
can ask someone to record the talk. Watching it several times for self-criticism
also helps facilitate the learning and improvement process.

 Better preparation also helps speakers recover quickly if they go of track

or get confused.

 It is essential to focus on the material, not on the audience as people are

primarily paying attention to the information being presented.

 The speakers should anticipate audience responses and queries that may
be generated during practice so that they could have confident answers.

 Joining an active public speaking forum would also benefit the students.
Once they get into the habit of considering themselves comfortable in an
unknown environment while speaking in public, the anxiety would
automatically go down and make the speakers feel at ease.

15
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

How to be Effective Speaker?

 « How to be an effective speaker » has been a thrilling and controversial

question many brilliant speakers asked themselves.
 To influence, motivate, entertain and persuade people, various tips,
techniques and rules have to be used and applied. Some of these rules trace back
thousands of years, yet they have not lost their validity and have been widely
used by such world known speakers as Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill,
Martin Luther, Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama…etc.
 Understand that Stage Fright/speech anxiety is natural: no one escapes the
rush of adrenaline that accompanies a speech in front of an audience. The
difference between successful speakers and unsuccessful ones is that they
trained themselves to perform through persistence, preparation and practice.

 Make emotions (fear/nervousness) under control: fear of public speaking

is negative and undesirable. The negative effects range from sweating profusely
to heaving uncontrollably shaky hands. Accordingly, fear may worsen instead of
improve your presentation.

 Use Voice as Speaking tool: your voice plays a very significant role in
helping convey the meaning of message. As a speaker, you should adapt your
voice to the situation. Research has shown that the most successful speakers
make their listeners feel that they are being addressed personally. Your voice,
therefore, must reflect that conversational quality that comes from the
realization that you are talking ‘with’ not ‘at’ an audience.

 Qualities of Effective Voice

 Successful speakers use several vocal qualities to make their speech
colorful and vivid. Amongst these qualities are:

 Intelligibility

 Variety

 Stress patterns

 Vocal emphasis

 Pauses

 Controlling emotional quality

16
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

1. Intelligibility

 The ability to understand a message depends on the following qualities:

loudness (=volume), rate, enunciation, and pronunciation.

 Adjust your volume: (to regulate the volume according to three factors):
distance /external noise / the place

 Control your rate:

 When addressing audience, limit your ordinary conversational rate (120-

150 words per minutes)

 It is, however, important to vary your rate to reflect the intensity of your
commitment, the importance of key ideas, or the emotionality of your appeal.

 Enunciate clearly (=precise vocalisation)

 Enunciation refers to the crispness and precision used in forming your

words.

 When speaking in public, you need to concentrate upon the clear and
distinct enunciation of syllables and words. For example, say ‘going’ instead of
‘go-in’ and ‘orange’ instead of ‘ornch’.

 Meet standards of prononciation

 Pronunciation refers to the regional or national pattern of how various

words should be vocalized.

 It is important to speak in a manner that is precisely accepted across the

region, nation, and across the country.

2. Variety

 There is a need to vary the characteristics of your voice to make your

speech colorful, vivid and effective: rate (speed), pitch (degree of highness or
lowness of a sound), force, and pauses.

 Objectives:
 To make speech more pleasant to listen to,
 To provide emphasis,
 To call attention to your ideas,
 To make your speech more interesting and not monotonous.

17
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

3. Stress or Stress patterns

 Stress patterns are ways in which sounds, syllables and words are
accented.

 Stress is important to put emotion and understand the message.

 Vocal stress is achieved through vocal emphasis.

4. Pauses

 Pauses are intervals of silence between or within words, phrases, or

sentences.

 When placed before a key idea or the climax of a story, pauses punctuate
thoughts:

 To create suspense,

 To add emphasis,

 To give audience time to digest the material just presented.

(Umm, ah, well-ah, you know) must be avoided. These are speech defects that
suggest lack of confidence.

5. Controlling emotional quality

 The audience may judge you as angry or happy, confident or fearful,

sincere or sad

 Your voice can also be described as full or thin, harsh, husky, nasal,
breathy, or resonant

 Emotional characteristics (laughing, crying, whispering, inhaling, or

exhaling) help an audience understand how you are feeling about what is being
said.

 Posture
 Posture is a form of nonverbal communication. How we posture the body
when seated or standing constitutes a set of potential signals that may
communicate something about our feelings and thoughts, attitudes and health.
Sitting stiffly may show tension; comfortably leaning back conveys a relaxed
mood, eagerly leaning forward shows the listener’s interest in the speaker.

18
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 Relaxing shoulders, tensed muscles and anxious movement … might not

be obvious to the speaker, but these reflections and feelings are abruptly
transmitted to the audience.

 To keep a relaxed and upright posture, do not lean on the lectern or clutch
it for security, use it occasionally to rest your hands and avoid touching your
hair or playing with a pen as it can become distracting habits.

 Body placement
Body movement – changing your position or location during a speech – is
the most highly visible kind of physical action you, as a speaker, can perform.
Because of this, it can be either a tremendous asset or a tremendous liability to
your delivery system. When you move your entire body in a controlled,
purposeful manner during a speech, you can benefit in three ways: body
movement can support and reinforce what you say. And, of course, motion will
almost always attract an audience’s attention. Finally, using body movement is
the fastest, most effective means of burning up nervous energy and relieving
physical tension. All of these characteristics, however, also have the potential to
work against you. One rule for making body movement your ally and not your
enemy is this: Never move without a reason.

 The eye is inevitably attracted to a moving object, so any whole body

movement you make during a speech invites attention. Moving for a reason in
league with your verbal message stimulates the alertness and attentiveness of
your audience while simultaneously enhancing what you say.

 Watching a stationary object is tedious, so you don’t want to glue yourself to

one spot while you speak. On the other hand, your body movement should be
governed by moderation. Too much body movement –even the right kind – can
become distracting to an audience. Ideally, you should seek a middle ground that
consists of enough movement to keep your listeners’ attention, yet not enough to
divert attention away from what you’re saying.
 Another valid reason for body movement is to enhance understanding of your
message. The means suggested by most types of body movement are less precise
than those aroused by individual gestures, but body movement can still be an
effective visual complement to your spoken word.
 Stepping forward during a speech suggests you are arriving at an important
point. A step or two backward indicates you’ve concluded an idea and are
willing to let the audience relax for a moment and digest what you’ve just said.
A lateral movement implies a transition – that you’re leaving one thought and
taking up another.

19
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 In some instances, you can use body movement to illustrate or dramatize a

specific point. For example, if you’re describing a physical action – such as
throwing a ball, or a runner straining to break the tape and win a close race –
you can help your listeners clearly visualize what you’re saying by acting out
your description.

 Facial expression
 Facial expression is often the key determinant of the meaning behind a
message. Here’s an example. If a friend were to smile warmly at you and say,
“You’re crazy,” would you feel insulted? Probably not; in fact, you might even
take it as a sign of endearment. But what if this statement were accompanied by
a contemptuous sneer? The verbal message would be the same, but your reaction
would no doubt be drastically different.

 A happy or appreciative smile, a displeased frown, a look of surprise and

several expressions of the face can convey, with or without words, the attitude
and reaction of the communicants.

When it comes to establishing a connection with your audience and winning

their admiration there is nothing more effective than a genuine smile. As a
speaker, you should demonstrate sympathy and interest in your audience by
smiling and looking at your audience.

 Eye contact
 The most vital relation between a speaker and an audience is eye contact.
It brings listeners into the presentation while putting you in control. Look
directly at one person for three to five seconds and then move on. Do not linger
too long on one person or shift from person to person too quickly.

 Careful eye contact has benefits:

 gives the impression that you are interested.

 reflects confidence and authority.

 gives you feedback on how your audience is responding.

 Use Audio-Visual Aides:

 They often say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Adding a visual
dimension (Audio-Visual Aides) to your presentation can make it more vivid,
graphic and professional-looking. Aids include drawings, photographs, maps,

20
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

charts, graphs, models, photographic or computer slides, computer graphics,

films, records, tape recordings…

 Rehearse with your audio-visual aides so you can incorporate them

smoothly in your speech. Some tips for using visual aids:

 Have everything you will need arranged in front of you,

 Check the technology beforehand,
 Remember to keep turning back to your listeners to keep your eye contact
with them,
 Use each slide to demonstrate one idea,
 Do not pass a visual aid around during your speech. It is too distracting. If
you have material to pass out, do it before or after your speech,
 Do not stand in front of a visual or block the view of part of the audience,
 Remember to talk to the audience, not to the aid,
 Use a large font size, e.g., 24 or 28 or 30…

21
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

Guidelines for Preparing and Delivering an Effective Speech

o Analyzing the audience: in public speaking, your audience is central to

your topic and purpose. Your success in informing or persuading an audience
rests largely on the extent to which you know them and the extent to which
you’ve adapted your speech to them. Ask yourself, who are they? What do they
already know? What would they want to know? What would they want to know
more about? What special interest do they have? What opinions, attitudes, and
beliefs do they have?

 To illustrate this process of audience analysis, consider age, educational

level, attitudes and gender.
o Age and educational level: people of different ages and educational
levels have many different vocabularies and different attitudes to understand
ideas. Be sure your audience can understand what you are talking about and
adjust your vocabulary to their abilities. Also consider how much knowledge
about the topic your audience already has.

o Attitudes: if you are presenting a controversial topic, try to find what

attitude your audience already holds toward the topic. Are most of the members
inclined to agree or disagree with the position you will present? Or are they
indifferent? If they are indifferent or likely to disagree, you may have to gather
more facts and present them more forcefully to be effective.

o Size: a large group may require a more formal speech presentation than a
small group. If the group is large, you may be speaking behind a podium or on a
stage. If the group is small, you simply may be seated at table members of the
group. These factors may influence your choice of speech format and your
delivery techniques.

o Gender: basically, men and women often view topics differently. Because
each gender has special knowledge and special interest as a result of their
socialization.

o Ask yourself what’s the predominant gender of your listener? Do men and
women view this particular topic differently? Do men and women have different
backgrounds, experiences, and knowledge concerning the topic? How will this
influence the way you’ll develop the topic?

o For example, if you plan to speak on caring for a newborn baby, you’d
approach an audience of men differently from an audience of women; you could

22
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

probably assume a much greater knowledge of the subject. With an audience of

men, you might have to cover such elementary topics as the type of powder,
how to test temperature of a bottle, and the way to prepare formula.

o Choosing a Topic: points to consider :

 Choose a topic that interests you or that you already know about. You are
more likely to enjoy preparing and delivering a speech on a topic you like than
on one you do not particulary care about.

 Make sure the topic and tone fit the occasion.

 If your speech requires research, see that the necessary information is

readily available.

 Try to be limited in your topic so you can present your main idea and
support it with meaningful details.

 Make sure you can cover your topic adequately within the time allowed.

o Determining the purpose: Generally, public speeches are designed:

 To inform: An informative speech creates understanding: the speaker

clarifies, enlightens, corrects misunderstanding, and demonstrates how
something works.

 To persuade: A persuasive speech tends to influence attitude or behavior:

the speaker persuades audience to take action or adopt a particular point of view.

 To entertain: A ceremonial or special occasion speech introduces another

speaker or a group of speakers, presents a tribute, secures the goodwill of the
listeners, or entertains the audience.

o Organizing the content: Most speeches consists of three successive

parts:

 The introduction: You tell the audience what your speech is about - but
in a way that will make them want to listen. Do not begin by saying, ‘this speech
is about…’ Instead, try using a personal anecdote or lead in with dramatic
statement. Purpose: to capture the attention of the audience and convince them
immediately that your topic affects them directly).

23
 Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

 The body: You select and present your main points and supporting details
in a way:

 To be closely related to your topic.

 To be coherent.
 The conclusion: The end of your speech needs to deliver the same
dynamic impression that you delivered in the introduction. The final impression
you leave with your audience is called terminal ethos. Try to leave them with
something to think about. In many cases, a quotation from a famous person
could provide a memorable conclusion to your topic.

o Choosing a format: You have four choices:

 Reading the speech: seems safest and easiest.

 Disadvantages:
 You become so engrossed in manuscript that you forget to look up at the
audience.
 You begin speaking in a monotone, causing your listeners to lose interest.

 Memorizing the speech:

 Disadvantages:
 You may skip an important point/forget what comes next.
 You might concentrate so hard on remembering the speech that your voice
sounds unnatural.

 Speaking impromptu:
 Requires little or no preparation.
 Rarely used for formal speech.
 Enables you to provide a lively, spontaneous delivery.

 Speaking extemporaneously:
 Has the advantage of being organized or spontaneous.
 You refer to the key-words or outline to keep yourself on the right track.

24
Prof. Jaouad MOUMNI Public Speaking and Debating

25