Information Competency
for Speech Construction
John A. Cagle
Vincent L. Bloom
Department of Communication
Stages in Preparing a Speech
Decision to
Speak
Purpose &
Subject
Create thesis &
arguments
Organize
Evaluate
information
Language
Personal
Practice
Interviews
Books
Information
Needs
Periodicals
Internet
Deliver
Speech
Evaluate
Results
Exigency:
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Something motivates the need for
communication
You make a decision to begin
Purpose and Decision to Start
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Problem exigency gives rise to need for
solution and communication
Build your personal motivation for the
tasks ahead
Purpose of speech determined:
informative, persuasive, entertaining
Plan how to use your time well
Research
Finding
Information
Need for Information
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Before you can speak, you've got to
have something to say.
Speaking should be based on truth.
Use scholarly tools to facilitate
research--the quest for information and
knowledge.
Problem Question
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Purpose, interests, what you know
about your topic and are interested in
Process begins with forming a problem
question to guide your research.
The problem question is what we expect
to answer through our research.
Often the question is initially general,
but it gets refined as you begin and
continue your research.
Techniques to Explore, Discover,
and Develop Ideas
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brainstorm lists
focused freewriting
clustering
thinking
Generate Information Needs
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Determine questions to identify what
you need to know
Consider all the sources of information
available to you
– Personal resources
– People to interview
– Documents available
– Books, periodicals, reference materials
– Internet resources

What kinds of things will you need to
know to answer the question?
– Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?
What are the facts?
– What are the critical events? What is the
timeline in the history of the problem?
What are the causes and effects in a
problem?

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Identify topics or specific questions
Seek information to answer by using
personal, documentary, library, and
Internet resources
RESEARCH STRATEGY
CHECKLIST
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Start early
Determine where you
need to go.
Understand the layout
of the library.
Develop primary
bibliography.
Identify priorities.
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Read progressively.
Read selectively.
Read efficiently.
Be open to new ideas.
Look for multiple
sources & varied types
of supporting material.
Know when to stop.
RESEARCH STRATEGY
CHECKLIST





Start early
Determine where you
need to go.
Understand the layout
of the library.
Develop primary
bibliography.
Identify priorities.






Read progressively.
Read selectively.
Read efficiently.
Be open to new ideas.
Look for multiple
sources & varied types
of supporting material.
Know when to stop.
Taking Notes and Keeping
Records

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“Access” books, periodical articles, and
other materials
Read carefully in light of your purpose
and topic
Build bibliography as you go
Keep notes clear, accurate, and
organized
Invention
Planning
what to say
Thesis

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State WHAT you want to say in the
speech in a single sentence.
The central idea of the speech is called
a thesis.
Remember that the thesis should be
appropriate to the scope and purpose of
the assignment and the occasion.
Development

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Development is the expansion of the
thesis, identifying the main lines of
development, the major arguments
proving your point, and so forth.
Types of developmental material include
definitions, facts, quotations, statistics,
comparisons, contrasts, examples,
illustrations, and so forth.
Types of Supporting Material
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
“Last semester I went out with some buddies of mine to have a
good time. We were partying hard: I got really wasted. I mean
I’ve never been so trashed in my life! A few weeks ago, I saw
some pictures of myself that I don’t even remember being in. It
was great! That is --- until I rolled my new sports car. The
police tell me that I was lucky to walk out of there alive. I was
even more lucky to avoid hurting someone else. Many drunk
drivers aren’t so lucky.”
Common Knowledge

MAXIM:
MAXIM:
“You can’t trust people
who made the mess to
clean it up.”
“Work expands to fill the
time available for its
completion”
The beliefs and values generally shared by
members of a society or culture. These are
often expressed in the forms of maxims:
– “If you want something done right, do it yourself.”
DIRECT OBSERVATION
“When I first came to school, I thought the dorm food was
really overpriced. So I decided to check the local eating
places out to see if I could do better. Imagine my surprise!
When I went to Jimmy John’s sandwich shop, I priced a
moderate lunch -- just a sandwich and a drink -- at $4.66.
A light lunch ar Burger King, only a salad and a drink, costs
$4.48. In comparison, lunch at the residence hall costs $4.95,
and you can eat all you want.”
EXAMPLES
Brief examples
Hypothetical example
 Anecdote
 Case Study
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DOCUMENTS
“According
to the student handbook we got as freshman,
cheating is a “serious breach of our commitment to ethical
behavior as students” and we will be punished with a “failing
grade in the class and possible expulsion from the
University.”
STATISTICS
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Statistics are patterns of recording
frequency with which something occurs;
they take such forms as medians,
averages, ratios, indices, and
standardized scores. They become
more meaningful when they are
compared to some base line or other
pattern of numbers.
TESTIMONY
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Factual testimony
– “It is a fact that event X happened on
Wednesday, and it can be verified by those who
saw the event. I am one of those who saw it.”
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Opinion testimony
– “It is my opinion that the Bulldogs will win more
football games than they will lose in 1998”
BUILDING A SPEECH:
Critically analyze and
evaluate the information
TESTING THE STRENGTH
OF SUPPORTING MATERIAL
TESTING THE STRENGTH
EXAMPLES
OF SUPPORTING MATERIAL
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
Are you sure your memory is reliable?
Is your experience generalizable?
Will others interpret it the same
way?
Are they representative?
Are there enough of them?
DOCUMENTS
Can they be trusted?
Are they properly interpreted?
COMMON KNOWLEDGE
Is the context made clear?
Are you sure the audience shares it?
Are you sure it is correct?
STATISTICS
Are appropriate measures used?
Are they reliable and valid?
Have they been interpreted
properly?
DIRECT OBSERVATION
Are you sure of what you saw?
Might you have been swayed by bias?
TESTIMONY
Does the source have access to the
data?
Is the person an expert on the
subject?
TESTING THE STRENGTH
EXAMPLES
OF SUPPORTING MATERIAL
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
Are you sure your memory is reliable?
Is your experience generalizable?
Will others interpret it the same
way?
Are they representative?
Are there enough of them?
DOCUMENTS
Can they be trusted?
Are they properly interpreted?
COMMON KNOWLEDGE
Is the context made clear?
Are you sure the audience shares it?
Are you sure it is correct?
STATISTICS
Are appropriate measures used?
Are they reliable and valid?
Have they been interpreted
properly?
DIRECT OBSERVATION
Are you sure of what you saw?
Might you have been swayed by bias?
TESTIMONY
Does the source have access to the
data?
Is the person an expert on the
subject?
BUILDING A SPEECH:
NEXT STEPS
Assess speech materials in terms
of your thesis and arguments
 Decide how much to emphasis to
each argument
 Go on to planning organization

Organizing the speech
Planning the
introduction,
body, &
conclusion
Introduction
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Exordium: Secure attention and
interest.
Narratio: Give needed background on
topic (what does audience need to
understand to appreciate your points?
Partitio: State the purpose of speech
and preview the major parts
Partitio
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Orient audience to the thesis or purpose
of speech: state the thesis directly
– "The purpose of this speech is to. . . ."

"Preview" the major developmental parts
of the speech: state this directly
– "First, the history of the problem will be
explored; second, the consequences. . . ."
Body (Confirmatio)
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Body of speech contains the main ideas
of the speech and appropriate
developmental material.
Arrangement of the main
ideas/developmental material should be
determined by the subject matter and
purpose.
Conclusion (Conclusio)
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Summarize thesis and main points
Show relevance to the course (or
reason you wrote speech)
Stimulate audience to want to know
more, do something, think of the
implications of your speech, etc.)
Transitional Material
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Throughout speech, thesis should be
abundantly clear.
Relate each main idea to thesis and to
other ideas.
Use transitional “sign post” words
(therefore, however, first, etc.)
Preparing for Delivery
“Unaccustomed
as I am to public
speaking….”
Read Through Speech Outline
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Read through the entire speech aloud to
familiarize yourself with the ideas and
their organization
Spontaneously and creatively speak
from the outline
Make note of difficult parts of outline
Prepare Speaking Notes
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Reduce written plan or outline to key
words
Keep notes to a minimum
Practice Delivery
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Deliver speech aloud as if you were in
front of audience
Strive to speak clearly
Speak directly to audience and maintain
eye contact
Try not to read your notes
Go through entire speech without
stopping
Practice, Practice, Practice

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Review written plan or speaking notes if
needed
Assess use of time and revise if needed
Delivering the speech
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Review your notes just prior to
speaking
Plan any last minute additions-e.g., a comment on something a
previous speaker has said
“Plunge in, and trust to God to
get you out.” --Patrick Henry
Judging the Communication
Product and the Process

Evaluate your speech in terms of your
initial objectives and in terms of the
standards of evaluating speeches
Stages in Preparing a Speech
Decision to
Speak
Create thesis &
arguments
Organize
Evaluate
information
Language
Purpose &
Subject
Personal
Practice
Interviews
Books
Information
Needs
Deliver
Speech
Periodicals
Internet
Evaluate
Results