Grading of Speeches
Each of your graded speeches will receive two grades.
(1) The "quality" grade is a letter grade, based on criteria which
will be discussed in class (such as content, organization, presentation, effective
preparation and use of notes/ visual aids). This grade is provided for your
information only, and is not entered in my record book. (Note: If you’re in class when your name is called and do the speech, I guarantee that your quality grade will be no lower than a C. I call this the “70% cushion,” and I’ll explain it more fully during class time.)
(2) The "official" grade is a number grade, and this is the one
I enter into my record book. First, I translate your quality grade into a
number grade, according to a simple scale; for the information speech, for example, which is worth a possible 20 points, the scale is: A = 18-20 (90% or more), B = 16-17.5 (80%), C = 14-15.5 (70%). Next, I adjust this number grade, if
necessary, for time. If your speech exceeded the maximum time allowance, I
subtract 10% of the total value of the speech from your number grade; if your
speech fell short of the minimum time requirement, I prorate your number grade
accordingly; if your speech met the time requirement, no adjustment is necessary.
The minimum adjustment for a speech which fails to meet the minimum time requirement
is -0.5 points.
EXAMPLE: The persuasion speech is worth 30 points, and it is
supposed to run between 3 and 5 minutes. Say that Bill, Hillary and Chelsea
all do A- work on this assignment, but I have to stop Bill at the end of 5
minutes, Hillary finishes after only 2 minutes, and Chelsea's speech runs
3 minutes and 5 seconds. All three speakers have earned quality grades of
A-, which translates to 27 points out of a possible 30 (90%). Bill ran long, so I subtract 10% of the
total value of the speech, or 3 points, giving him an official grade of 24
points. Hillary did only two-thirds of the minimum time requirement, so she receives
only two-thirds of her quality grade, or 18 points. Chelsea's speech met the time
requirement (albeit just barely!), so she receives her full quality grade
of 27 points. Notice, then, that it can be extremely important for you to
handle the element of timing successfully in your graded speeches!
TIPS FOR HANDLING THE TIMING SUCCESSFULLY:
a) do the "cold reading" exercise at least twice a day,
b) prepare your speech carefully for timing,
c) follow the rehearsal program outlined in class,
d) be sure to avoid memorizing your speech,
e) remember that your perceptions of time can be thrown way off under performance conditions; just do the speech the way you prepared it, and don't worry about your timing.