Extension has a role to play in workforce development by preparing the next generation to be successful communicators. While Extension 4-H youth programs have contributed to public speaking development since their inception, there has not been a validated instrument to assess young people's public speaking self-efficacy. We utilized an…

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…

In the context of scholarly and scientific discourse, students often have to deal with graphic-visual modes of communication, which requires their ability to comprehend and utilize inscriptions, that is, scientific visual representations, to convey information effectively--what we call graphical literacy. Despite its pivotal role for training…

We developed and tested an NSF IGE-funded year-long program to improve the oral communication skills of STEM graduate students. By the end of the program, we organized our curricular materials into a 3C framework: "connect, convey," and "captivate." Within this framework, the Fellows learned rhetorical strategies, created…

This research examines the implementation of virtual reality into an effective speaking course at a small business college in New England. The researchers detail how they piloted the use of MetaQuest 2 headsets to students for round-the-clock availability of public speaking software in an Effective Speaking course. Students were administered a…

Traditionally, feedback is regarded as crucial in the context of learning and teaching public speaking. In the current course, we analyzed the feedback provided to students by an artificial intelligence (AI) coach and students' learning experiences in developing public-speaking skills via this tool. The MySpeaker Rhetorich speech coach application…

We describe how a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) "enrolling" educational institution can transform its practices to embrace and include student voices and become HSI "affirming and thriving" by focusing on the introductory semester-long public-speaking course as a site for liberatory learning outcomes and by using digital…

Background/purpose: This study sheds new light on communication apprehension (CA) by specifically analyzing the role of public speaking courses in addressing anxiety concerns among university students. It offers a nuanced understanding of student viewpoints within the context of a public speaking course in a non-Western setting. Methods/Materials:…

This paper introduces generative AI for the graphic design of student presentation aids in a university public-speaking classroom. Students learn to use generative AI as an efficient enhancement to the creative process while preserving the integrity of the content. Students' slide presentations show improvement resulting from the activity, and…

Development of effective oral presentation skills is an essential component of entrepreneurship education, but class size and time constraints can limit opportunities to practice and receive quality feedback. Immersive virtual reality can provide time- and place-independent opportunities to hone presentation skills in diverse settings with…

Globally, the volume and availability of data has grown exponentially over the last few decades. In turn, workforces are looking for graduates to be well versed in working effectively with data, with the skills needed to work both efficiently and creatively within data-driven environments. This has been reflected within the context of higher…

In this work, the authors document an expansion of the Public Speaking Competency Rubric (PSCR). First developed in 2012 by Schreiber, et al., the original rubric has only one item related to non-verbal communication. The authors of this work expanded the rubric to include 10 items related to the non-verbal aspects of public speaking and had it…

During the two-year COVID-19 pandemic, lecturers must train themselves with information technology, assessment, and teaching expertise in order to move from face-to-face learning to virtual online learning. As a result, the current study aims to investigate the effect of student motivation on grouping e-learning in the ethics and civilization…

Recent analyses of common public-speaking rubrics, grading practices, and course content have found widespread bias and inequities. This article contributes to the efforts to remedy some of the causes of these biases. It begins with a discussion of the disciplinary biases and institutional pressures that reinforce discriminatory assessment…

The digitalization of teaching continues to shape its future, demanding continuing adaptation to its growing needs. To meet the evolving expectations, many online learning modules have been produced. Nonetheless, many fail to capture learners' interest as they lack creativity since they contain lengthy texts and uninteresting explanatory videos.…