Speaking Objectives
Introduction
Hamilton students should learn to speak clearly, concisely, and with grace. To that end Hamilton’s FYC speaking objectives focus on three main areas:
- How to choose appropriate purposes and topics
- How to organize support for the argument
- How to polish the delivery
Hamilton’s FYC speaking objectives were adapted from the National Communication Association’s standards for students completing their first-year courses. These objectives are intended to provide a reference point for faculty regarding expectations of students in their first-year, particularly in relation to the skills that will be developed throughout students’ future coursework.
This page provides a description of each main area and lists specific objectives within those areas. It also includes links to relevant resources from the Oral Communication Center’s (OCC) website that may be useful as you develop speaking assignments and then support students through that process.
Just as preparing and refining a presentation is a process, so too is the development of students’ communication abilities. While a single course will not perfect a student’s speaking abilities, each step along the way contributes to shaping graduates who are excellent communicators.
FYCs provide an introduction to skills that students will use and develop throughout their time at Hamilton. You do not need to cover all of the objectives in every area, but you should aim to incorporate pertinent skills that can be further developed in subsequent courses.
Objectives
Effective oral communication begins with the messages that a speaker chooses to convey.
By the end of a first-year course, students should be able to:
- Identify the purpose of a communication event and assignment, both generally (e.g., to inform or to persuade) and specifically (e.g., to persuade the audience that policy X should be implemented)
- Adapt purposes based on audience characteristics such as prior knowledge, interest, and background
- Restrict their topics based on audience as well as the nature and time of the event
See the Oral Communication Center’s Tips and Guides for relevant resources including Spoken vs. Written Language, Classroom Discussion 101, Debating, and Presenting in a Group.
Beyond choosing topics well speakers must be able to marshal evidence to support a central idea or thesis.
By the end of a first-year course, students should be able to:
- ?Build a message that is focused on a main thesis or central idea
- Integrate a variety of types of support (e.g., varied sources, statistics, narratives) that reflect an understanding of the topic
- Organize speaking content to maximize the potential impact given the constraints of the topic, audience, context, and purpose
See the Oral Communication Center’s Tips and Guides for relevant resources including How to Outline a Presentation, Notecards as an Organizational Tool, Citing Sources in Speeches, and Shortening a Speech.
Regardless of medium (e.g., in person presentation or through FaceTime or Skype), the delivery of the message affects how listeners receive the information and respond. Decisions about tone and inflection, dress, gestures, eye contact, and presentation aids all affect the impact of a message.
By the end of a first-year course, students should:
- Enhance presentations using vocal variation in rate, pitch, and intensity
- Articulate clearly in the target language, using standard forms of that language
- Adapt language to a given audience (e.g., avoiding jargon when speaking to a broad audience)
- Utilize physical delivery elements (e.g., posture, gestures, eye contact, dress) that adhere to the style of speaking (e.g., the formality of the occasion)
- ?Select and thoughtfully integrate presentational aids (e.g., PowerPoint) that enhance the presentation in terms of both content and design
See the Oral Communication Center’s Tips and Guides for relevant resources including Dealing with Speech Anxiety, Preparing and Using Notecards, and Avoid These Common Speech Mistakes.
