Oral Communication - Lesson with Quiz

Principles of Speech Writing

By the end of the lesson, you will have been able to

–         identify the principles of speech writing;

–         differentiate the stages or processes in speech writing;

–         use principles of effective speech writing focusing on audience profile, logical organization, duration, word choice, and grammatical correctness;

–         plan a speech;

–         evaluate a written speech;

–         apply principles of editing to a given speech;

–         apply learning and thinking skills, life skills, and ICT literacy in understanding the principles of speech writing; and

–         reflect on your learning on the principles of speech writing

The Speech Writing Process

–         Writing an effective speech follows certain steps or processes.

–         The process for writing is not chronological or linear; rather, it is recursive.

–         That means you have the opportunity to repeat a writing procedure indefinitely, or produce multiple drafts first before you can settle on the right one.

The following are the components of the speech writing process:

• Audience Analysis
• Purpose
• Topic
• Narrowing down a topic
• Data Gathering
• Writing Patterns
• Outline
• Body of Speech
• Introduction
• Conclusion
• Editing/Revising
• Rehearsing

Audience analysis entails looking into the profile of your target audience. This is done so you can tailor-fit your speech content and delivery to your audience.

The profile includes the following information:

Ø  Demography (age range, male-female ratio, educational background and affiliations or degree program taken, nationality, economic status, academic or corporate designations)

Ø  Situation (time, venue, occasion, and size)

Ø  Psychology (values, beliefs, attitudes, preferences, cultural and racial ideologies, and needs)

The purpose for writing and delivering the speech can be classified into three to inform, to entertain, or to persuade.

Ø  An informative speech provides the audience with a clear understanding of the concept or idea presented by the speaker.

Ø  An entertainment speech provides the audience with amusement.

Ø  A persuasive speech provides the audience with well-argued ideas that can influence their own beliefs and decisions.

Ø  The purpose can be general and specific.

The topic is your focal point of your speech, which can be determined once you have decided on your purpose. If you are free to decide on a topic, choose one that really interests you. There are a variety of strategies used in selecting a topic such as using your personal experiences, discussing with your family members or friends, free writing, listing, asking questions, or semantic webbing.

Narrowing down a topic means making your main idea more specific and focused. The strategies in selecting a topic can also be used when you narrow down a topic.

Ø  In the example below, “Defining and developing effective money management skills of Grade 11 students” is the specific topic out of a general one, which is “Effective money management.”

Data gathering is the stage where you collect ideas, information, sources, and references relevant or related to your specific topic. This can be done by visiting the library, browsing the web, observing a certain phenomenon or event related to your topic, or conducting an interview or survey. The data that you will gather will be very useful in making your speech informative, entertaining, or persuasive.

Writing patterns, in general, are structures that will help you organize the ideas related to your topic. Examples are biographical, categorical/topical, causal, chronological, comparison/contrast, problem-solution, and spatial.

Pattern	Description
Biographical	Presents descriptions of your life or of a person, famous or not
Categorical/ Topical	Presents related categories supporting the topic
Causal	Presents cause effect relationships
Chronological	Presents the idea in time order
Comparison/ contrast	Presents comparison/ contrast of two or three points
Problem-solution	Presents an identified problem, its causes, and recommended solutions

An outline is a hierarchical list that shows the relationship of your ideas. A good outline helps you see that all the ideas are in line with your main idea or message. The elements of an outline include introduction, body, and conclusion. Write your outline based on how you want your ideas to develop.

•      Table Format

•      List Format

The body of the speech provides explanations, examples, or any details that can help you deliver your purpose and explain the main idea of your speech. One major consideration in developing the body of your speech is the focus or central idea.

•      The following are some strategies to highlight your main idea.

•      Present real-life or practical examples

•      Show statistics

•      Present comparisons

•      Share ideas from the experts or practitioners

The introduction is the foundation of your speech. Here, your primary goal is to get the attention of your audience and present the subject or main idea of your speech. The following are some strategies:

•      Use a real-life experience and connect that experience to your subject.

•      Use practical examples and explain their connection to your subject.

•      Start with a familiar or strong quote and then explain what it means.

•      Use facts or statistics and highlight their importance to your subject.

•      Tell a personal story to illustrate your point.

The conclusion restates the main idea of your speech. Furthermore, it provides a summary, emphasizes the message, and calls for action. While the primary goal of the introduction is to get the attention of your audience, the conclusion aims to leave the audience with a memorable statement. The following are some strategies:

•      Begin your conclusion with a restatement of your message.

•      Use positive examples, encouraging words, or memorable lines from songs or stories familiar to your audience.

•      Ask a question or series of questions that can make your audience reflect or ponder.

Editing/Revising your written speech involves correcting errors in mechanics, such as grammar, punctuation, capitalization, unity, coherence, and others. Andrew Dlugan (2013), an award-winning public speaker, lists six power principles for speech editing.

•      Edit for focus.

“So, what’s the point? What’s the message of the speech?”

Ensure that everything you have written, from introduction to conclusion, is related to your central message.

•      Edit for clarity.

“I don’t understand the message because the examples or supporting details were confusing.”

Make all ideas in your speech clear by arranging them in logical order (e.g., main idea first then supporting details, or supporting details first then main idea).

•      Edit for concision.

“The speech was all over the place; the speaker kept talking endlessly as if no one was listening to him/her.”

Keep your speech short, simple, and clear by eliminating unrelated stories and sentences and by using simple words.

•      Edit for continuity.

“The speech was too difficult to follow; I was lost in the middle.”

Keep the flow of your presentation smooth by adding transition words and phrases.

•      Edit for variety.

“I didn’t enjoy the speech because it was boring.”

Add spice to your speech by shifting tone and style from formal to conversational and vice-versa, moving around the stage, or adding humor.

•      Edit for impact and beauty.

“There’s nothing really special about the speech.”

Make your speech memorable by using these strategies: surprise the audience, use vivid descriptive images, write well-crafted and memorable lines, and use figures of speech.

Rehearsing gives you an opportunity to identify what works and what does not work for you and for your target audience. Some strategies include reading your speech aloud, recording for your own analysis or for your peers or coaches to give feedback on your delivery. The best thing to remember at this stage is:  “Constant practice makes perfect”

Some Guidelines in Speech Writing

1. Keep your words short and simple. Your speech is meant to be heard by your audience, not read.
2. Avoid jargon, acronyms, or technical words because they can confuse your audience.
3. Make your speech more personal. Use the personal pronoun “I,” but take care not to overuse it.
When you need to emphasize collectiveness with your audience, use the personal pronoun “we.”
4. Use active verbs and contractions because they add to the personal and conversational tone of
your speech.

5. Be sensitive of your audience. Be very careful with your language, jokes, and nonverbal cues.
6. Use metaphors and other figures of speech to effectively convey your point.
7. Manage your time well; make sure that the speech falls under the time limit.

QUIZ

1. Identification

1.    The foundation of your speech.

2.    It restates the main idea of your speech.

3.    It can be classified into three to inform, to entertain, or to persuade

4.    Looking into the profile of your target audience.

5.    It provides explanations, examples, or any details that can help you deliver your purpose and explain the main idea of your speech.

6.    The stage where you collect ideas, information, sources, and references relevant or related to your specific topic.

7.    Structures that will help you organize the ideas related to your topic.

8.    It involves correcting errors in mechanics, such as grammar, punctuation, capitalization, unity, coherence, and others.

9.    It is your focal point of your speech, which can be determined once you have decided on your purpose.

10. A hierarchical list that shows the relationship of your ideas.

2. Enumeration

1-3. The purpose for writing and delivering the speech can be classified into three.

4-9. Give at least 5 writing patterns.

10-15. List the six principles for speech editing according to Andrew Dlugan.

16-18. The profile of the target audience should include the following information.

19-20. Give the two formats of a speech outline.

ANSWER

I. Identification

1. Introduction
2. Conclusion
3. Purpose
4. Audience analysis
5. Body of speech
6. Data gathering
7. Writing patterns
8. Editing/Revising
9. Topic
10. Outline

II. Enumeration

1-3. informative speech, entertainment speech, persuasive speech

4-9. biographical, categorical/topical, causal, chronological, comparison/contrast, problem-solution, and spatial

10-15. Edit for focus, clarity, concision, continuity, variety, impact and beauty

16-18. demography, situation, psychology