Course Syllabus

COMM 1020 Public Speaking

Course Description

This course will introduce students to various practical principles of competent public speaking across various modalities (e.g., written, oral, digital). Students will be taught how to employ appropriate organizational strategies (e.g., purpose statements, visual aids) with special emphasis placed on building strong claims supported by solid rationale and reasoning. Students will learn to both build and critique public messages, and they will gain self-confidence in their abilities to adapt to a variety of public speaking contexts.

Justification

Public Speaking is designed to fulfill the general education requirement for Fine Arts and is often utilized as a support course for various majors and programs at Snow College. The importance of public speaking competence for occupational success has been widely support for millennia, and many studies link professional success with public rhetoric skills. The ability to effectively communicate orally is frequently considered a top skill that employers are looking for in prospective employees, and the ability to give effective presentations is an essential building block that students need in order to be successful as they continue their education and as they transition into the workforce. Public Speaking (COMM 1020) is taught across the board at other Utah colleges and universities.

General Education Outcomes

1. A student who completes the GE curriculum has a fundamental knowledge of human cultures and the natural world. Students in this course will explore several examples of public speaking throughout history to understand how public rhetoric has influenced—and will continue to influence—the contemporary human and natural worlds around themselves.
2. A student who completes the GE curriculum can read and research effectively within disciplines. Students in this course will be expected to utilize several sources (e.g., academic, peer-reviewed, professional) to support their speaking claims, and they will be introduced to several helpful resources to improve their individual research capabilities.
3. A student who completes the GE curriculum can draw from multiple disciplines to address complex problems. Students in this course will interact with others from various disciplines, and they will practice providing and receiving constructive criticism based on perspectives drawn from their multiple disciplines to solve the complex problems introduced via their speeches.
4. A student who completes the GE curriculum can reason analytically, critically, and creatively. Students in this course will be exposed to various other speakers' works (e.g., peers, selves, professionals) to increase their perspectives on numerous issues. Through analytical discussions, such as performing critiques of others' works, students will be encouraged to critically evaluate others' public rhetoric and to propose creative solutions for improvement.

General Education Knowledge Area Outcomes

1. Students in this course will learn to break down a speech into a series of iterative/recursive steps via formally outlining it. Understanding public speaking in this manner will aid them in being able to express their own viewpoints, emotions, and arguments in a constructive and simple manner. Students in this course will learn to break down a speech into a series of iterative/recursive steps via formally outlining it. Understanding public speaking in this manner will aid them in being able to express their own viewpoints, emotions, and arguments in a constructive and simple manner.
2. APPRECIATE: Apply artistic concepts and ideas drawn from traditions of artistic creation and theory to better engage with, analyze and understand a creative work. Students in this course will be introduced to several prominent professional speakers throughout the semester to aid them in (1) understanding how several of the artistic concepts/ideas introduced from class are utilized in the professional world, and (2) appreciating how proper theoretical applications can impact the contemporary public.
3. CONNECT: Examine connections between art and society and articulate how the arts are a historical and cultural phenomenon.  Students in this course will be encouraged to reflect on how the art form of public speaking can play a larger role in shaping contemporary society. Through examining different historical presentations and cultural speech artifacts, students will learn to draw connections between the work they are performing and the ultimate impact it may have on future societies.

Course Content

Content for this course may be drawn from any of the following knowledge areas:

Defining Public Speaking
Audience Analysis
Topic Selection
Outlining and Organizing
Introductions and Conclusions
Supporting Claims through Evidence and Reasoning
Speech Delivery
Visual Aids
Research Techniques
Ethics
Informative Speaking, Persuasive Speaking, and Any Other Form of Speaking