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Students are also
encouraged to begin, some weeks before this assignment, to form groups of no
more than FIVE people, and to practice presenting on a wide variety of
topics. Such preparation will enable groups to be versatile (able to
present on any given topic) and acutely aware of their own group dynamics (i.e.
who are your strongest speakers? These individuals should begin and end
the presentation).
Presentations of this kind
should be organized much like an essay, with a beginning, a middle, and a
conclusion. Five people should divide the tasks, such that one will
introduce the topic and structure of the presentation, three others will present
the 'body' of the work, and the final speaker will conclude.
It is up to all speakers in
the group to help each other, in order to strengthen overall group performance.
INSTRUCTIONS:
1)
In the two weeks prior to the Impromptu, prepare by getting your group together and pretending
that you are under pressure to present random topics.
Get everyone in the group to write down a "socially relevant"
but 'easy to grasp' topic (re: politeness, pollution, human cooperation,
automobiles, clothing) on a small piece of paper.
Each member should write these down in the form of a thesis (e.g.
"Speaking with Confidence has no bearing on success in the modern world,
and should not be taught at a college level").
Draw them randomly from a hat. Take
no more than 15 minutes to prepare, and then present the topic, agreeing with
precisely what is written on the paper.
Advice: (1) exchange emails
addresses & confirm that your group members will attend;
(2) rehearse... rehearse... rehearse.
2)
On the day of the Impromptu, sit with
your group; select a leader to represent you in topic selections, etc.
3)
Leaders will select an 'order number,' when Reeves offers the deck of
numbers-- this indicates both the order in which you will select topics and the
order in which your group will present.
4)
Select a topic from the topic deck of cards-- your group will support
exactly the position indicated on the card, and design a 'presentation.'
Technically, this is not a debate, as is the later "Group
Panel" assignment -- all members will 'agree' with whatever position is
indicated on the card, and not deviate from it.
5)
You will have 30 minutes to prepare.
Please formulate a beginning, a middle, and an end to your presentation.
Each group member should present for a total of 2 minutes (maximum 2.5 minutes)-- i.e. if you have
5 members, your presentation will be 10 minutes long.
6)
All group members should be equally represented -- no group member's work
should be longer in duration than that of other group members.
7)
You may use 'false' (made-up) information to support your position, but
you should have some evidence, stats, references, etc., in order to make your
arguments seem 'scientific' and solid, and to avoid fallacies of logic.
8)
Attendance is mandatory-- there will be no opportunities to complete this
assignment after Intersession week.
9)
Individual evaluations will be given. Each
student will receive his/her own mark. Nevertheless,
you are still responsible for the performance of your group-mates, since the
entire context of your group's presentation will enhance or detract from your
individual performance. Cooperate
with one another.
Best
of luck to you!
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