For this assignment, you are going to evaluate the verbal and nonverbal aspects of a speaker’s presentation. An evaluation form is provided below to help guide your assessment of the content (what is being said) and the delivery (how it is said).
You have the option to go out and observe a live event, or you can watch one of the speeches from the Library provided below. The links will take you to important speeches from history.
John F. Kennedy—Inaugural Address
Martin Luther King Jr.—I Have a Dream
Fred Rogers—Address to Congress
John McCain—Return to the Senate
Emma Gonzalez—March for Our Lives
You may also prefer to use a TED Talk, like the following:
Debbie Millman—How Symbols and Brands Shape Our Humanity
Chuck Plunkett—When Local News Dies, So Does Democracy
Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor—Why It’s So Hard to Talk About the N-Word
David Wallace-Wells—How We Could Change the Planet’s Climate Future
Do the following, to complete this assignment:
Print out the Speaker Critique Form (linked above), and familiarize yourself with the elements of the presentation that you will be assessing.
View a presentation, a lecture, a sermon, or some sort of public speaking event. A live event would be great, but one of the Library Video Options (linked above) is acceptable.
During the presentation, complete the Speaker Critique Form; consider including notes to help you remember specific details later.
Write a 2-page paper, using proper spelling and grammar, that addresses the following:
Provide an introduction describing who spoke, what they spoke about, and where you heard the presentation. If you chose to use a library video, be sure to clearly identify its title and provide a link to the specific video within the series.
After the introduction, talk about what parts of the content were done well and what the speaker could have done better. Address at least 2 different elements of content.
Next, talk about what parts of the delivery were done well and what the speaker could have done better. Address at least 2 different elements of delivery.
End with a concluding paragraph, giving your opinion about whether the speaker was effective or not. Explain your reasoning.