Public Speaking Discussion Board

Questions, Extenders & Redirections

Questions (Prompts):
1. Describe the behaviors exhibited by effective speakers that you have had the good fortune to
hear. Contrast this description with a description of the most ineffective speaker you ever had the
misfortune to hear. Your description could include discussing some of the following elements
concerned with speech delivery: distracting mannerisms, hand gestures, eye contact, appropriate
dress, vocal variety, etc. Your description could also include the following elements concerning
speech content: language choice, topic selection, organization of ideas, etc. How are your
experiences similar or different than that of your fellow classmates?
Extenders:
Do you tend to remember effective or ineffective speakers more vividly? Why?
What type of distracting mannerisms do public speakers tend to exhibit when performing in
front of audiences? How can a speaker change his or her distracting behavior(s)?
Why do you think eye contact is so important to an audience in the United States?
What might the audience perceive about the speaker if he or she does not maintain good eye
contact?
Do you think the audience's response to a speech can be influenced by what time of the day it
is given? Do you think there is a difference between being first to speak in a meeting or last to
speak, and the audience's reaction to your message?
Redirections:
What are some methods that you can use to practice your speech?
How can a public speaker avoid using too many vocal fillers? Are there some tips on the
Internet that you may have found about how to try to eliminate vocal fillers?
How can a speaker enhance his or her credibility during the speech?
How does the credibility of a speaker affect his or her ability to achieve the purpose of their
speech?
What do you think is the most important component of a speakers credibility?
2. Scholars Engleberg and Wynn (2013) conducted two surveys: one of working adults and one of
public speaking students. They discovered that the working adults found the following three most
important criteria of effective public speaking to include the following: (1) Keeping your audience
interested, (2) Beginning and ending your presentation, and (3) Organizing your presentation.
Which of these three criteria do you think is the most important and why? Which of the three
criteria is the least important and why?
Extenders:
Engleberg and Wynn (2013) found that the public speaking students picked one different
criterion in their survey results than that of the group of working adults. The group of students
reported that their third most important criterion was deciding on what to say; choosing a topic
or approach to your presentation. Why do you think this criterion is different from that of the
working adults? (see pg. 230)
Why do you think the ending and the beginning of a speech are so important?
Constructed by Kelly Soczka Kaiser for Practicum in E-learning 764, Last updated on 3/3/15

What are some methods you can use to keep your audience interested in your speech? What
does your book suggest?
Can you remember a teacher that you had that kept you interested? How did they keep
interested in the material that you were learning?

Redirections:
What famous public speaker do you admire? Do you admire them for presentation skills,
persuasion skills, or their ability to keep you interested?
3. What makes you more nervous, speaking in front of a group strangers or friends? Why?
Extenders:
Do you think people, on average, spend more time public speaking in front of strangers each
year or people they know? Why? How do you know?
Why do people experience public speech anxiety?
Why do you feel nervous when speaking in front of others?
Do you have any tips or tricks to help your fellow classmates overcome their public speaking
anxiety? What works well for you?
Have you had a chance to review page 37 in your textbook? Which of the following types of
fear do you think your communication apprehension is coming from?:
1. Fear of the spotlight
2. Fear of others
3. Fear of the unknown
4. Fear of breaking the rules
5. Fear of failure (Engleberg & Wynn, 2013).
Redirections:
What are some methods you can use to find out who might be in your audience?
What type of information would you want to find out about your audience before you give a
speech in public?
How can you effectively adapt to your audience?
4. How do the advances in technology make a presentation potentially different from presentations
just a few years ago? What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of using said
technology?
Extenders:
Why do you think a speaker might start reading from their Power Point slides instead of using
extemporaneous speaking? What do you think might be the reason?
How can you prevent yourself from reading off of your Power Point slides or note cards? Do
you have any tips or helpful suggestions to provide your fellow classmates?
Do you think using multimedia software helps an audience understand a speakers message
more clearly? Why or why not?
Redirections:
What are some other types of visual aids speakers can use to enhance the understanding of
the audience that are not electronic in nature?
Constructed by Kelly Soczka Kaiser for Practicum in E-learning 764, Last updated on 3/3/15

5. If you were speaking and noticed that several audience members were texting, what would you do
to get them engaged in your presentation? Should you say anything? Why or why not?
Extenders:
Have you had an audience were people were texting while you were public speaking before?
What did you do then? Would you do anything differently today?
Do you think texting on your cell phone while someone is speaking in front of a group is rude?
Why or why not?
o What if your audience members were all school age children?
Would you be more or less offended? Would you say something if they were all
younger than you?
o What if your audience members were primarily adults?
Is there an instance that you can think of where texting during a presentation would not be
rude?
Redirections:
What other human behaviors tied to communication do you consider rude in public spaces?
Why?

Constructed by Kelly Soczka Kaiser for Practicum in E-learning 764, Last updated on 3/3/15

References
Engleberg, I. & Wynn, D. (2013). Think: Communication. New York: Pearson Education, Inc.

Constructed by Kelly Soczka Kaiser for Practicum in E-learning 764, Last updated on 3/3/15