Behind the Scenes of Public Speaking
About the Project
Near the beginning of Spring Term 2008, the Agnes Scott College Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) sent out a call for proposals to all faculty. Summer stipends from the Center for Teaching and Learning would be awarded to three faculty members interested in researching a specific area of teaching and learning, including the integration of technology.
As an associate professor of communication and rheotic at Agnes Scott College, my teaching responsibilities include two sections of public speaking each semester. I wanted to submit a proposal that would enhance a student's understanding of the process of crafting an oral presentation. I came up with the idea to create a "director's cut" DVD for public speaking. Having taught public speaking at the college and university level for over 15 years, I am very familiar with the ancillary materials available for public speaking textbooks. As many of you are aware, these materials often include famous speeches and / or student speeches. While these materials are useful in teaching public speaking, they reveal little or nothing about the process of preparing a college-level, classroom speech.
Behind the Scenes of Public Speaking includes three speeches that are required in the public speaking course I teach at Agnes Scott. The public speaking course focuses on deliberative rhetoric and students work with one topic throughout the term. The example used in this project is Georgia House Bill 89, a controversial piece of legislation that expands the rights of licensed gun owners to carry concealed weapons.
What makes this project unique is the series of interviews with the speaker to gain insight into her rhetorical strategies in crafting the speeches. Additionally, one video is a conversation about selecting a topic, conducting research, and organizing a vast amount of information. If you have the time, I would appreciate your comments about this project. A link to the comments page is in the left–hand navigation above.
Thanks for visiting our project. — Dave Lawrence
About the Videos
If you encounter any difficulties viewing the videos, you may need to upgrade QuickTime on your computer. A free download is available at Apple’s web site.