Mastering Impromptu Speeches

Course Description

This course aims to equip students with the skills necessary to deliver effective and engaging impromptu speeches. In this course, students will learn how to apply various impromptu speech frameworks, including the PREP, STAR, and PPF models, to organize their thoughts quickly and communicate their ideas clearly. This course will also cover persuasive techniques, opening & closing techniques and strategies for building confidence and delivering impactful speeches on stage. Furthermore, students will develop transferable skills in critical thinking and non-verbal communication that can be applied to a variety of personal and professional settings.

Throughout this course, students will engage in a variety of hands-on activities to help them develop the ability to think quickly and communicate effectively without prior preparation. These activities include debates, mock interviews, and impromptu speeches on current events, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), and other argumentative topics. By participating in these activities, students will receive constructive feedback from both their peers and the instructor, which will help them improve their impromptu speaking skills and build confidence in their ability to communicate effectively without prior preparation.

Course Objectives

Once a student has completed this course, they should have a better understanding of the nature of English oral presentation, as well as how to communicate effectively and persuasively without prior preparation.

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

1. Display critical self-reflection, cultural humility, and ongoing learning in social issues.
2. Know how to conceive and design an impromptu speech for general and expert audiences based on their own prior knowledge and thinking on their feet.
3. Identify and select effective features of presentation skills taught in class and choose the appropriate presentation structures and techniques suitable to the topic selected.
4. Present more confidently and persuasively in English.

Weekly Schedule

Others

• Intermediate-level or higher English writing and speaking skills are required for this course.
• Class attendance and participation are required. Missing more than 3 classes may negatively impact your grade.
• All materials are in English and may include complex academic articles.
• Late assignments will receive a reduced grade only when a reasonable explanation has been provided for the absence, and it has been reported to the school system.
• This class will use NTU COOL exclusively for all assignments, materials and communication. It is the responsibility of the student to check their primary email for NTU COOL, as well as the platform itself periodically, for any notification.

1、Required Reading

• All course materials will be provided by the instructor. No textbook or course pack needs to be purchased.

2、Extended Readings

• Humphrey, J. (2018). Impromptu: Leading in the moment. Wiley.
• Sedniev, A. (2013). Magic of impromptu speaking: Create a speech that will be remembered for years in under 30 seconds. Primedia E-launch LLC.
• https://www.un.org/en/events-and-news
• https://www.bbc.com/news
• https://edition.cnn.com/.

Grading Policy