What you'll learn
Week 1: Targeting your presentation
Week 2: Designing informative speeches
Week 3: Clarity through support and slides
Week 4: Delivering informative speeches
Week 5: Review and assessment
Description
In the professional realm, most speeches and presentations we give are informative in scope. A scientist needs to explain her recent research findings. A financial officer needs to report on quarterly earnings to his company’s board. A technology professional needs to educate a consumer about a new product. Any time you need to convey ideas or demonstrate a process, you’re dealing with informative speaking. Informative speaking is a fun puzzle.
You need to think from the perspective of your audience to identify what they need to hear in order to understand the key ideas. How much does the audience already know? What are the most important elements to convey? How should one convey these ideas with appropriate breadth and depth given the time constraints of the speech? This demands a strategic approach to speech design that we’ll undertake in this class. By the end of the course, you should be able to explain complex ideas vividly and accessibly, design clear and compelling presentation slides, convey your passion for a topic while maintaining your professional credibility, and speak dynamically from notes and/or a manuscript. Learners will record speeches, providing and receiving peer feedback.
Requirements
Access to a computer or mobile device with an internet connection.
Motivation to learn!
There are no special materials or prerequisite knowledge required for this course.
Who this course is for
Students who are new to this field
Students willing to put in a couple hours to learn about Speaking to inform: Discussing complex ideas with clear explanations and dynamic slides
Advanced students wanting to add another skill to their portfolio
Content Creator
Dr. Matt McGarrity – Principal Lecturer – UW Department of Communication
This course includes
Participation Confirmation/Certificate
Option for learning at your own pace
Videos and reading material about the course
Practice tests
Assessed tasks with feedback from other course participants
Evaluated tests with feedback
Evaluated programming tasks