Synopses & Reviews
The ideal supplement for any writing class that includes an oral component, Oral Presentations in the Composition Course: A Brief Guide offers students the advice they need to plan, prepare, and present their work effectively. With sections on analyzing audiences, choosing effective language, using visual aids, collaborating on group presentations, and dealing with the fear of public speaking, this booklet offers help for students' most common challenges in developing oral presentations.
Review
"Because this supplement was produced for the composition classroom, it focuses on how to create oral presentations from a written work and maps out the similarities between writing and speaking. The focus is refreshing and informative, and the supplement would be a great addition to any composition student's assigned reading."
-- Julie M. Barst, Purdue University
Table of Contents
Introduction
1. Choosing a Topic
Brainstorming
Consulting with Others
Researching Ideas
Making a Choice
2. Determining Your Purpose
Informative Presentations
Description
Demonstration
Definition
Explanation
Persuasive Presentations
Propositions of Fact
Propositions of Value
Concerns about a Problem
Propositions of Policy
A Final Word
3. Analyzing Your Audience
Types of Audiences
The Selected Audience and the Concerted Audience
The Passive Audience
The Pedestrian Audience and the Organized Audience
Box: Audience Characteristics and Strategies
Audience Attitudes Hostile Audiences
Sympathetic Audiences
Neutral Audiences
Communication Barriers
Barriers That Involve Content
Barriers That Involve Audience and Delivery
4. Adapting Your Ideas and Evidence
Listening and Learning
Choosing Forms of Support
Explanation
Examples
Statistics
Testimony
Visual Aids
Choosing Forms of Proof
Motivational Proof or Pathos
Ethical Proof or Ethos
Logical Proof or Logos
5. Organizing Your Presentation
Creating an Outline
Choosing an Organizational Pattern
Chronological Pattern
Topical Pattern
Spatial or Geographical Pattern
Cause-Effect Pattern
Problem-Solution Pattern
Compare and Contrast Pattern
Box: Patterns of Organization
6. Developing Effective Introductions, Transitions, and Conclusions
The Introduction
Language Choices
Transitions
The Conclusion
7. Using Visual Aids
Choosing Effective Visuals
Choosing a Mode of Delivery
Chalkboard or Whiteboard
Handouts
Overhead Transparencies
Presentation Software
Designing Visual Aids Fonts
Contrast and Spacing
Color
Images
Avoiding Technical Problems
8. Practicing, Polishing, and Delivering the Presentation
Modes of Speaking
Impromptu Speaking
Extemporaneous Speaking
Speaking from a Script
Speaking from Memory
Voice and Body Language
Dealing with Stage Fright
Polishing the Presentation
9. Presenting as a Group
Dividing the Work
Transitioning Between Speakers
Acknowledging Non-Speaking Group Members
10. Evaluating Presentations
Checklist for Evaluating a Presentation
The Speaker's Delivery
Content and Coherence
Argument and Persuasion
Thinking Critically about Your Own Presentation