Effective Oral Communication Skills

IMPROMPTU SPEECH

Thinking on Your FeetThinking is a common activity for everyone

“Thinking on your feet” means being able to organize one’s ideas quickly and speak about a subject without advance time to prepare.

This is known as impromptu speech.E.g. answering questions, giving opinions, sharing knowledge

Organizing the Impromptu SpeechIt is important to be familiar with different

organizational patterns.Such familiarization will enable you to choose

the best method of organizing ideas for your topic.

a)Past-present-FutureDescribe hoe something once was, how it has changed, and how it will be in the future.

b)TimeDescribe chronological events or processes in sequential order

Organizing the Impromptu Speechd) Problem-solution

Describe a problem and ways to solve ite) Location

Divide a topic into different geographical setting

f) Cause-EffectDescribe a situation and its effects

g) Related subtopicsDivide a topic into different parts

h) Advantage-DisadvantageDescribe positive and negative aspects of a topic

Guidelines for Impromptu SpeechStay calm and begin slowly in order to

give yourself time to think.Begin with an attention-getting opener

that is related to your talk. Use humour, quotation etc.

If you get confused or forget what you want to say, don’t apologize to the audience. Re-organize your thoughts.

Finish your speech gracefully.

Marking schemeDelivery

Rate of speech 1 2 3 4 5

Posture 1 2 3 4 5

Volume of Voice 1 2 3 4 5• Content

Attention-getting opener 1 2 3 4 5

Organization 1 2 3 4 5

Supporting ideas 1 2 3 4 5

Graceful conclusion 1 2 3 4 5

• Overall 1 2 3 4 51(Poor) 2(Fair) 3(Acceptable) 4(Good) 5 (Excellent)