Traditionally, informative speeches are relegated to be passive. The classic scope of informative speeches does not consider "live" or "lived" rhetoric. After teaching public speaking for most of my career, there are times when one needs to reinvigorate assignments. This assignment challenges how we utilize memory and place to…

This activity aims to assist students with persuasive tactics for argumentative speeches. The activity involves students creating an argumentative speech to defend a hot-take assertion chosen from a list provided by the instructor. In small groups, students will craft an argument supporting their hot-take assertion and present it to the class.…

This article presents a curated collection of nine teaching innovations presented at the Association for Business Communication 89th conference in the "oil capital of the world," Tulsa, Oklahoma, as well as online, in October 2024. Many of the MFA presenters demonstrated how AI can be used, integrated, and analyzed in business…

Communication instructors have long insisted on the importance of audience adaptation. But they have said less about (a) the dimensions along which adaptation might proceed or (b) how a student might learn the art of adapting. In this article, I contribute toward addressing these two deficiencies. I suggest a dimension for adaptation - the value…

Introducing ChatGPT offered higher education students a chance to use artificial intelligence to automatically generate assignment texts, and some might cheat in behaviorist tasks by using generative artificial intelligence. However, the introduction of ChatGPT could also lead instructors to expect more (rather than less) academic integrity in…

This article offers a semester-long approach to using generative AI in the public-speaking course. Using critical communication pedagogy, the authors provide practices to navigate the turbulence that has followed the emergence of publicly available generative AI tools. These tools have received negative attention because of their potential to…

Courses: Introduction to public speaking, advanced public speaking, hybrid/survey introduction to communication. Objectives: At the end of this activity, students will be able to (1) explain the elements of a speaking outline and discover these elements in real-world speech examples, (2) recreate outline formats effectively in their personal…

Courses: Public Speaking. Objectives: This unit aims to (1) illustrate the classical and contemporary utility of "ekphrasis" ("description") as a genre of civic communication; and (2) introduce students to essential skills in public speaking, including invention, arrangement, and, in particular, style

Students rarely question the relevance of most communication courses. For example, most students realize that courses focused on improving public speaking and interpersonal skills will benefit them personally and professionally after graduation. Convincing them that a rhetorical theory and criticism course is equally empowering can be a bit more…

Ahmedabad University has evolved a framework "ENABLE." Through ENABLE, concepts are taught from the context of real world. Industry projects are assigned to groups of students where they get engaged in real scenarios. Theoretical concepts are introduced as and when needed during the project implementation. Faculty serve as facilitators…

Fast-presentation formats such as "Ignite Talks, Data Blitzes, PechaKucha", and "Speed Geeking" can be an efficient and effective alternative to standard presentations given by students within a class. The limitations put on these style presentations, such as time or number of slides, can actually encourage creativity and…

This article presents a unique approach for teaching crisis intervention in that it involves students reading novels and autobiographies to use as case studies in order to apply the theories and concepts. A rationale for the use of literature as a projective device to help students experience personal growth and to target the affective domain of…

In recent decades, nationalism has emerged from the distant purview of history to become the primary driver of some of the world's biggest news. Given the prominence of nationalist conflict, students in political science increasingly study the subject with modern references in mind. This article describes the design for a timely undergraduate…

Courses: This semester-long assignment series was developed for an online introductory public speaking class, but it has also been used successfully in a hybrid (combination of online/face-to-face meetings) format. Objectives: Students will practice delivering speeches in an online format by applying key concepts from course materials to personal…

Many instructors and textbooks encourage the use of debate and critical thinking in the classroom by creating artificial public space in which students then act out engagements. The tools gained from such activities do encourage better thinking and speaking, but they do not adequately prepare students for "real" situations when they must…