Introduction

The ability to communicate effectively is a skill that can be acquired. To communicate means to share information and ideas, to talk and to listen, to discuss and to persuade. Despite the new communication technologies the need to develop speaking skills seems to be greater than ever. It is generally acknowledged that expertise in oral communication is of vital importance both in one’s career and private life.

Learning to be a good speaker is similar to learning any other activity – it takes a mastery of the basics and constant practice. The more experience you have, the more proficient and comfortable you will become.

To acquire expertise in communication it is essential to understand how it works. Communication is a fairly complicated phenomenon which can be viewed as an active process and an interaction of individuals involved in it.

Public speaking refers to presentation of a speech to an audience of more than one. In this form of communication one person holds attention for a period of time. Public speaking is based on conscious planning and can be described as rhetorical discourse.

Admittedly, to be effective in communication regardless of its form you should be aware of its nature and basic principles. The following aspects of communication are to be considered: communication situation and communication goals, the process of communication and the choice of strategies.

In any speech interaction people have goals that they want to accomplish, even if they are not aware of them. We communicate to share ideas, to influence other people, to express opinions and attitudes, to create a mood and so on. In most speech situations we can single out the principle goal and subsidiary goals.

It is also essential to understand how communication works. The communication process involves a number of interdependent elements which function together to achieve a desired outcome and are generally described as communication model. The basic components of communication model are: the sender (speaker), who creates the message and sends it to the receiver (listener); message, the information which can be verbal or non-verbal; the channel, the means by which the message is communicated (face-to-face, public address, telephone, mass media, etc.); the feedback, which informs the sender how the receiver has interpreted the message; the receiver (listener), who decodes and interprets the message.

Both the speaker and the listener are active participants of the process. In fact, it is vitally important that the speaker should be able to discover the needs, motives and expectations of the listener and to adapt to them. In other words, to be interesting you should be interested. You should have consideration for others and give them a good reason to listen to you.

And finally, you have to find the appropriate strategies which will make communication effective. A strategy is a method for achieving the desired outcome in the communication, in other words, for implementing the communication goals.

There is a variety of communication strategies you can choose from. The following requirements are to be considered here: on the one hand, these strategies should fit the speech situation, and on the other hand, they should answer your purpose, i.e. your communication goals.

The aim of this book is to introduce the strategies of public presentation. Practicing and mastering them you will acquire expertise in public speaking.

Special focus will be given to academic public presentations. The art of lecturing is an important aspect of the professional training of foreign language teachers.