Public Speaking september 2nd

Course Administration and Logistics

• Peer Feedback and Evaluation Mechanics:

  • Each student receives two peer feedback forms to evaluate two classmates who follow them in the presentation order.

  • Evaluation mapping rules:

    • Student #2 evaluates Students #3 and #4.

    • The second-to-last speaker evaluates the last speaker and the first speaker.

    • The final speaker evaluates the first two speakers of the round.

  • Peer evaluation forms require both the evaluator's name and the speaker's name.

  • Grade sheets labeled "Grade form" at the top must be filled out with the student's name and handed directly to the instructor before beginning a speech.

• Presentation Roster:

  1. Joshua Conner

  2. Audrey Lazarus

  3. Ian Listingy

  4. Cormac Hummel

  5. Daniel Beckiou

  6. Aaron Bashir

  7. Ethan Josephat

  8. Steven Cordy

  9. Logan Drain

  10. Eli Smith

  11. Miley Hilton

  12. Jade Boyce

  13. Irene Cheech

  14. Madison Naboa

  15. Valentina Cabrera

  16. Matt Howard

  17. Quinn

  18. Emma Howard

  19. Millicent

  20. Caroline Flick

  21. Gianni Nelson (absent due to illness)

  22. Lincoln Duran

• Attendance Policy and Grade Penalties:

  • Missing a speech day without a verified justification results in an automatic letter grade penalty or a $10\%$ drop in speech grade.

  • Missing two speech rounds out of three drops the student's maximum possible speech grade down to an $80$.

  • Students with contagious illnesses are requested not to attend class, referencing a prior summer COVID outbreak in student dormitories.

• Timekeeping and Speech Mechanics:

  • Speeches have a hard maximum time limit of $3\text{ minutes}$.

  • A designated student timekeeper uses a digital device to track timing.

  • When a speaker reaches the $3\text{-minute}$ mark, the timekeeper must call out "Time" loudly.

  • Upon hearing the time prompt, the speaker must conclude within a couple of words immediately.

  • Speakers wait for a physical hand signal from the instructor before commencing their speech to ensure recording equipment is ready.

• In-Class Audience Mingle Exercise:

  • Prior to presentations, students are required to stand up, walk around the classroom, and interact with peers rather than remaining in isolated pods.

  • Desensitization: Walking around and conversing helps calm nervous energy before presenting.

  • Audience Analysis: Engaging directly allows speakers to understand the background and expectations of their audience.

  • Material Integration: Conversations provide spontaneous insights or shared anecdotes that can be incorporated into presentations to establish rapport.

Classroom Discussions and Clarifications

• Evaluation Order Clarification:

  • Question: Should peer feedback forms be filled out for the person before and after the speaker?

  • Answer: Feedback forms must be completed for the two speakers who present immediately after the evaluator.

• Presentation Roll-Over Schedule:

  • Unfinished presentations roll over to the subsequent class session.

  • Due to the Labor Day holiday on Monday, roll-over speeches occur on Wednesday, accommodating a maximum of $20$ presentations per session.

Peer Feedback and Collaboration Mapping

• Joshua Conner & Emma Howard:

  • Emma Howard ran a small baking business in high school.

  • Collaborated on brainstorming ideas and developing mutual communication skills.

• Audrey Lazarus & Jade Boyce:

  • Jade Boyce enjoys going to rodeos and hiking.

  • Rehearsed speeches multiple times after class to pinpoint areas for structural and vocal improvement.

• Ian Listingy & Miley Hilton:

  • Miley Hilton has $2$ siblings.

  • Met prior to class to refine speech structure, goals, and concluding remarks.

• Cormac Hummel & Ethan Josephat:

  • Ethan Josephat owns a luxury clothing brand and enjoys fishing.

  • Critiqued script flow and ensured appropriate speech length.

• Daniel Beckiou & Valentina Cabrera (Pagano):

  • Valentina Pagano is an award-winning cello player of $8\text{ years}$ and served as an editor for $3\text{ years}$.

  • Provided peer review and reminders regarding submission deadlines.

• Aaron Bashir & Steven Cordy:

  • Steven Cordy has performed live music since age $14$.

  • Worked together on phrasing, organizing main points, and refining goal statements.

• Ethan Josephat & Cormac Hummel:

  • Cormac Hummel assisted with script revisions and timing.

• Steven Cordy & Aaron Bashir:

  • Aaron Bashir stands in the top $1\%$ of male heights in the United States.

  • Collaborated on goal formulation and speech outlines.

• Logan Drain & Eli Smith:

  • Eli Smith is a Psychology major.

  • Met in the library on Monday to refine delivery, vocal tone, and speech pacing.

• Eli Smith & Logan Drain:

  • Logan Drain assisted with grammar, directional flow, and audience delivery strategy.

• Miley Hilton & Ian Listingy:

  • Ian Listingy is an only child who owns a pet dog.

  • Practiced speech delivery and bounced topic ideas off each other.

• Jade Boyce & Audrey Lazarus:

  • Audrey Lazarus enjoys rock climbing.

  • Engaged in constructive criticism sessions to boost delivery confidence.

• Irene Cheech & Gianni Nelson:

  • Gianni Nelson was absent due to illness, having joined the course recently.

• Madison Naboa & Lincoln Duran:

  • Lincoln Duran is a first-year Entrepreneurship major from Appleton, Wisconsin.

  • Met both in person and virtually to review speech scripts and trade delivery feedback.

• Valentina Cabrera & Daniel Beckiou:

  • Daniel Beckiou provided detailed feedback through mock speech evaluations.

• Matt Howard & Caroline Flick:

  • Caroline Flick is a history enthusiast and fellow Christian believer.

  • Brainstormed opening statements and provided targeted feedback on goal refinement.

Detailed Student Presentation Summaries

• Joshua Conner:

  • Background: One of $4$ children; struggles with public speaking anxiety.

  • Goal 1 (Pacing): Control speaking pace to eliminate rushing and word blending, enhancing articulation and clarity.

  • Goal 2 (Physical Movement): Reduce excessive fidgeting to prevent audience distraction, replacing restless movement with purposeful body language.

  • Goal 3 (Eye Contact): Increase direct eye contact to foster connection and ensure audience members feel engaged rather than disregarded.

• Audrey Lazarus:

  • Background: Freshman Criminology major at USF St. Petersburg. Attended $7$ different schools, lived in $5$ houses across $4$ cities and $2$ states during childhood.

  • Goal 1 (Focus): Maintain central message alignment and avoid tangential tangents when speaking passionately about a topic.

  • Goal 2 (Filler Words): Eliminate vocal fillers such as "like" and "and". Recalled a high school economics teacher who repeated "and" after every sentence, disrupting learning.

  • Goal 3 (Engagement): Keep the audience captivated using eye contact, enthusiasm, body language, and relevant topics.

• Ian Listingy:

  • Background: Finance major at USF.

  • Research Data Cited: A $2017$ study published in the Journal of Voice surveyed $1,135$ college students, finding that $64\%$ suffered from public speaking anxiety.

  • Goal 1 (Posture & Eye Contact): Maintain upright posture and consistent eye contact to display confidence and sustain interest.

  • Goal 2 (Filler Words): Reduce filler words by implementing deliberate pauses and thorough preparation. Recalled an American Government student teacher saying "like" over $100\text{ times}$ in a single period.

  • Goal 3 (Nervous Laughter): Eliminate nervous giggling prompted by looking at friends in the audience, which degrades professional credibility.

• Cormac Hummel:

  • Background: Sophomore Marketing major from Seattle, Washington.

  • Research Data Cited: A study in the Journal of Applied Psychology demonstrated that effective networking skills correlate directly with higher baseline salaries and greater earnings growth.

  • Goal 1 (Real-World Practice): Seek out public speaking opportunities in daily life to improve interpersonal communication and career growth.

  • Goal 2 (Nonverbal Communication): Refine body posture, eye contact, and purposeful hand gestures to increase persuasive delivery.

  • Goal 3 (Script Preparation): Develop authentic speech writing skills without relying on AI tools like ChatGPT, which create functional outlines but lack authentic personal voice.

• Daniel Beckiou:

  • Background: Possesses $3\text{ years}$ of editorial experience; self-described "industry expert" on talking.

  • Principle 1 (Audience Tailoring): Custom-fit speech content to the audience demographic (e.g., tailoring delivery to a crowd of teenagers).

  • Principle 2 (Clear Structure): Structure arguments clearly so external listeners follow along smoothly, treating the audience like "an alien" encountering the topic for the first time.

  • Principle 3 (Enthusiasm): Frame speech delivery as an enjoyable activity to neutralize anxiety, drawing a parallel to riding a roller coaster.

• Aaron Bashir:

  • Goal 1 (Academic Standard): Attain grades of $B+$ ($3.33$) or higher across all classes to repair GPA damage resulting from prior dual enrollment coursework.

  • Goal 2 (Financial Management): Develop budgeting skills, curtail unnecessary spending, and manage money independently after relying on parental funding.

  • Goal 3 (Audience Perception): Learn to read audience nonverbal facial expressions and emotional cues to adjust speaking pace and explanations dynamically.

• Ethan Josephat:

  • Background: First-year Entrepreneurship major from Broward County, South Florida; current business owner.

  • Quantitative Concept: An individual living $80\text{ years}$ speaking $17,000\text{ words per day}$ utters approximately $500,000,000\text{ words}$ ($\frac{1}{2}\text{ billion}$) in a lifetime.

  • Goal 1 (Iterative Growth): Progressively improve organization and natural movements with each successive speech.

  • Goal 2 (Audience Connection): Break down the physical speaker-audience barrier to create a peer-to-peer conversational dynamic.

  • Goal 3 (Impromptu Speaking): Develop rapid thought organization skills to deliver concise, on-topic responses under pressure in business settings.

• Steven Cordy:

  • Background: Pursuing finance or musical performance; active live music performer since age $14$.

  • Goal 1 (Audience Energy): Monitor nonverbal feedback to gauge audience comprehension, feeding off their energy to converse with them rather than talk at them.

  • Goal 2 (Transitions): Eliminate awkward pauses and stumbles when transitioning between main ideas.

  • Goal 3 (Filler Word Removal): Replace habitual filler words with silent pauses through rigorous preparation and topic mastery.

• Logan Drain:

  • Background: $18\text{-year-old}$ Finance major from Tampa, Florida.

  • Goal 1 (Tonal Adjustment): Adapt vocal tone and vocabulary based on formal vs. informal settings, avoiding overly casual delivery in professional contexts.

  • Goal 2 (Group Dynamics): Practice speaking effectively to a group rather than shrinking within a group.

  • Goal 3 (Eye Contact): Build credibility through persistent eye contact.

• Eli Smith:

  • Background: Psychology major using public speaking training to prepare for a career as a psychologist.

  • Goal 1 (Nonverbal Communication): Utilize expressive hand gestures and sustained eye contact instead of reading strictly from paper notes.

  • Goal 2 (Vocal Variety): Modulate volume and pitch to create dynamic delivery that keeps listeners awake and engaged.

  • Goal 3 (Feedback Integration): Actively apply constructive instructor and peer critiques to systematically improve presentation mechanics.

• Miley Hilton:

  • Background: Finance major.

  • Goal 1 (Sustained Eye Contact): Maintain persistent eye contact across the full duration of presentations to convey preparation and confidence.

  • Goal 2 (Vocal Modulation): Transition smoothly between casual, humorous, and formal professional tones to boost engagement.

  • Goal 3 (Structural Organization): Establish organized structural frameworks for presentations to maximize clarity when pitching finance proposals.

• Jade Boyce:

  • Background: Enjoys rodeos and outdoor hiking; interested in entering professional sales.

  • Attention Hook: Utilized a dramatic opening statement referencing mortality and a hypothetical death date for Dolly Parton ($08/25/2026$) to illustrate audience capture techniques.

  • Goal 1 (Reduction of Fillers): Eliminate filler words to increase professional credibility and prevent choppy speech cadence.

  • Goal 2 (Audience Capture): Design speeches that actively grip listener attention and prompt long-term memory retention.

  • Goal 3 (Persuasive Delivery): Master persuasive speaking strategies essential for sales transactions.

• Irene Cheech:

  • Background: Attends local church and sings on stage; previously wrote a sermon for Bible college that lasted only $3\text{ minutes and } 33\text{ seconds}$, noted by her professor as the shortest sermon in his $20\text{ years}$ of ministry.

  • Goal 1 (Filler Word Elimination): Target and eradicate specific filler phrases, notably "and I think", to prevent cognitive spiraling and preserve authority.

  • Goal 2 (Pacing & Rhythm): Control internal speech speed during nervous moments to establish a steady, easily understood speaking rhythm.

  • Goal 3 (Content Internalization): Internalize speech content to eliminate dependence on written notes and prevent page-flipping interruptions.

• Madison Naboa:

  • Background: Professional and Technical Communication major; youngest employee at her company, where she once described their field as the "hottest bombshell of the broadcast technology industry".

  • Goal 1 (Verbal Eloquence): Replace generational slang (resulting from "$6\text{ to } 8\text{ hour}$ TikTok doomscrolls") with polished, concise business vocabulary.

  • Goal 2 (Physical Demeanor): Control physical anxiety indicators, such as repetitive leg tapping during virtual Teams meetings or classroom speeches.

  • Goal 3 (Active Listening): Overcome shortened attention spans ("bullfish brain") to remain fully engaged during peer presentations.

• Valentina Cabrera:

  • Background: First-year Psychology major at USF.

  • Goal 1 (Confidence Building): Overcome bodily shaking and anxiety focus, shifting attention away from internal nerves toward message delivery.

  • Goal 2 (Thought Organization): Construct logical speech outlines to avoid going blank when presenting.

  • Goal 3 (Audience Relatability): Form authentic connections by selecting content that feels relevant and relatable to listeners.

• Matt Howard:

  • Background: Sophomore Business Analytics and Information Systems major.

  • Goal 1 (Two-Way Interaction): Enhance audience interaction and eye contact to make presentations feel like natural two-way conversations.

  • Goal 2 (Strategic Pauses): Replace filler words with brief, intentional pauses during thought collection to maintain speaking flow.

  • Goal 3 (Bookended Delivery): Construct impactful, high-energy opening and closing statements to capitalize on primacy and recency effects.