Writing preparation outlines for public speaking in tertiary classrooms

• Main Author: M., Murugesan
• Format: Book Section
• Language: English
• Published: Faculty of Communication and Modern Languages, Universiti Utara Malaysia 2007
• Subjects: LB2300 Higher Education; PE English
• Online Access: http://repo.uum.edu.my/3278/1/M1.pdf; http://repo.uum.edu.my/3278/; http://staf.uum.edu.my/tleia2/
• Institution: Universiti Utara Malaysia

This research aims to provide some ideas on the process of writing an outline for speech communication by undergraduate students at Universiti Utara Malaysia. Students face numerous problems in writing the outlines for their speaking task. Their initial hurdle is on the selection of an appropriate topic. Before selecting a topic, students would have to take into consideration the demographic factors of the target audience, their attitude and interest before writing the outlines. Besides, students need to determine the general purpose, specific purpose and the central idea of their speech. They should decide whether they are speaking to inform or to persuade their audience, and to write the outline that corresponds with the specific purpose of their speech. Students gather appropriate materials from various sources including surveys and interviews before they begin drafting their outlines. Although students are adept in collecting materials, there is an acute tendency in them to commit plagiarism. Apart from that, students should ensure that the materials gathered corroborate their stand on the topic. They should attempt to provide suitable examples, statistics and testimonies to convince their audience. Finally, they will have to decide on the organizational method that best fits their speech before writing the outlines.