Persuasive Speech (SP 4) Assignment Description Planning for the Speech
You will:
select and sufficiently narrow a topic suitable for a POLICY persuasive speech. Speech must have a clear call to action.
create and employ at least one visual aid.
deliver your speech in a direct, responsive, and communicative manner.
utilize both logical and emotive appeals to persuade your audience.
Persuasion involves more than just speaking about a favored position. It requires a carefully developed plan of action. Different situations, however, call for differing approaches to persuasion. A speaker needs to develop a persuasive strategy to effectively influence their audience. Audience analysis is essential to construct this strategy. A competent speaker considers the audience’s position on the issue, beliefs, values, interests, and expectations among other concerns to develop a persuasive strategy. Sometimes it is even necessary to limit the speaker’s goal because of the situation. A good persuasive speech is responsive to the speaking situation.
Since people absorb information through a variety of mediums, skillful public speakers value visual aids. They can clarify concepts that are difficult to grasp and reinforce the speaker’s contention. Visual aids, however, must be clear, concise and relevant to be effective. They must represent a portion of the oral text in a manner that is beneficial to the audience. This requires appropriate utilization. A visual aid is useless if it is never used in the speech or does not relate to the topic clearly. Further, more than one visual aid may be necessary. This tool is especially valuable for, but not limited to, communicating difficult statistics, spatial concepts, or lists of information. PowerPoint is the preferable method of displaying visual aids.
Your speech will be graded according to the following requirements:
a 6-8 minute(your goal is a 7 minute speech) extemporaneous persuasive speech, which is delivered from note cards (no more then 3, single sided, key words only(more notecards will result in a 5 point deduction of grade). A penalty of 7 points will be given for over and under time.
design and demonstrate proficiency with at least one visual aid (remember if the visual is duplicated from another source, you must credit that source-but it will not count as a “source” for the speech. (Audio and video should account for no more than 30-45 seconds of the allowed speech time.
a minimum of 5 (FIVE) sources cited in your presentation–these should reflect a range of materials but exclude encyclopedia references, dictionaries, non-credible websites and self-references. You MUST include at least 1 (one) journal article
a strong introduction which sets an appropriate mood, reveals the topic, and establishes your credibility.
the integration of the speech’s thesis and preview in the introduction. A conclusion which creates a sense of closure, summarizes your presentation and creates a lasting impression.
effective use of oral organizational techniques including previews, transitions, and other organizational signals.
appropriate use of volume, pitch, and other vocal variety components.
