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Speaking to inform: Discussing complex ideas with clear explanations and dynamic slides

Approx. 14 hours to complete

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Course Summary

This course teaches learners the principles of effective oral communication and develops their interpersonal and presentation skills. Topics include methods of audience analysis, message construction, and delivery techniques.

Key Learning Points

Learn the principles of effective oral communication
Develop interpersonal and presentation skills
Understand methods of audience analysis, message construction, and delivery techniques

Learning Outcomes

Develop effective oral communication skills
Analyze audience and construct appropriate messages
Deliver presentations with confidence

Prerequisites or good to have knowledge before taking this course

No prior knowledge required
Basic understanding of English language

Course Difficulty Level

Beginner

Course Format

Online
Self-paced
Video lectures

Similar Courses

Effective Communication: Writing, Design, and Presentation
Public Speaking
Interpersonal Communication Skills

Related Education Paths

Notable People in This Field

Carmine Gallo
Nancy Duarte

Related Books

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.

Outline

Week 1: Targeting your presentation
Welcome to speaking to inform
What's this course about?
Informative speech assignment
Your speech should be audience-oriented
What do I know about my audience?
What does my audience know about the topic?
Identifying goals. What do you want the speech to achieve?
Planning goals. Be concrete to be successful.
Revising goals. Be realistic given the time and audience.
Start with an outline that clarifies key themes.
Simplicity. Focus on a few key ideas
Order. Make the speech easy to follow along with.
Balance. Are you spending time in the right sections?
Sample introductory speech
Recording good speech videos (optional)
Week one overview
Informative speech assignment description (Optional reading)
Case study. Juliana Rotich at TED
Week one lesson summaries
Week one assignment check-in
Valuable talks
Speech goals
Week 1 quiz

Week 2: Designing informative speeches
Support overview
Include clear examples and illustrations
Summarize complex information
Give the audience time to process what you're saying
Refining your speech
Good introductions set you up for an interesting and clear speech
Good conclusions allow you reinforce and end on a strong note.
Briefings and updates
Product and design presentations
Explaining research to a general audience
Teaching talks
Conference talks
Week two overview
Case study. Explaining bee death
Case study: Hans Rosling's magic washing machine
A note on these models
Speech analysis #1 overview
Matt's feedback (Optional)
Week two lesson summaries
Week two assignment check
Introductions and conclusions
Week 2 quiz

Week 3: Clarity through support and slides
What's the purpose of your slides?
Slides aren't simply your notes
Keep slides simple
Use slides to clarify the speech's arrangement
Using text in slides
Using images in slides
Using video in slides
Presenting with slides
Case study. Slides and text
Michael Alley, Penn State: What's wrong with slides?
Michael Alley, Penn State: How to make slides better
Sara Battersby from Tableau Software
Week three overview
Week three lesson summaries
Week three assignment check-in
Week 3 quiz

Week 4: Delivering informative speeches
Ethos. Demonstrating your credibility
Arete: Performing your passion
Phronesis. Showing your knowledge
Eunoia. Displaying your goodwill
Presidential ethos analysis
Using podiums
Using microphones
Using notes
Where and how to interact with your audience
Audience getting sleepy? Try a delivery change up
Sample informative speech
Week four overview
Speech analysis #2
Matt's feedback (Optional)
Week four lesson summaries
Week four assignment check-in
Interacting with your materials
Week 4 quiz

Week 5: Review and assessment
Course review
Other recommended courses

Week 5: Review and assessment: Lesson Choices
Sample informative speech
Sample informative manuscript

Summary of User Reviews

Discover the art of informative speech with this Coursera course. Learners praise the course for its engaging and informative content, expert instructors, and useful assignments. The course takes a deep dive into the process of creating and delivering speeches that inform and persuade. Overall, many users recommend this course to anyone looking to improve their public speaking skills.

Key Aspect Users Liked About This Course

The engaging and informative course content.

Pros from User Reviews

Expert instructors who provide valuable feedback.
Useful assignments that help learners improve their skills.
Engaging and informative course content that covers a range of topics.
Flexible schedule that allows learners to complete the course at their own pace.
Great platform for practicing public speaking skills.

Cons from User Reviews

Some learners found the assignments too challenging or time-consuming.
The video lectures can be lengthy and may require multiple viewings.
Some learners felt that the course could benefit from more interactive components.
The course may not be suitable for those with advanced public speaking skills.
Some users experienced technical difficulties with the platform.

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Speaking to inform: Discussing complex ideas with clear explanations and dynamic slides

In the professional realm, most speeches and presentations we give are informative in scope. A scientist needs to explain her recent research findings....

Save Course