EN210Oral Communications

Career Technical CollegeMonroe, Louisiana

Did you know?Listening to Mozart will make you smarter?

Tapping the lid of a shaken soda will cause it not to spew?

Guess What?

Neither are true!

Finding High-Quality InformationTo be considered high-quality, information

should meet the following criteria:FactualReliableWell SupportedCurrentVerifiableFairComprehensive

Applying Critical-Thinking SkillsRecognize Dubious Claims

Reject claims based solely on anecdotes Anecdotes: a short account of an incident

Reject claims based solely on testimonials Testimonials: a statement supporting a benefit

receivedReject claims based solely on opinions

Opinion: a conclusion or judgment that remains open to dispute but seems true to one’s own mind

Applying Critical-Thinking SkillsFind more than one source

Last Monday students in my English Foundations class were researching the life of the author Edgar Allen Poe.

They found that different sites gave different dates of birth.

They settled the dispute by looking at multiple sources

Applying Critical-Thinking SkillsExamine Opposing Viewpoints

Finding criticism of your central idea does not mean you shouldn’t give a speech on that topic.

Presenting the other side of an argument adds to your credibility and enhances your ethical standing.

Examining opposing viewpoints also helps a speaker to anticipate questions about their topic.

Applying Critical-Thinking SkillsBe Cautious in Using Polls

Some people do not respond honestlyResults often depend upon how a question is

askedExamine the agenda of the pollster

Applying Critical-Thinking SkillsRecognize the Fallibility of Experts

Do not assume an expert knows everythingThere are unreliable, deceptive people in every

fieldThis does not mean that you question an expert

you are interviewing or suggest that they are “full of it.”

Applying Critical-Thinking SkillsBeware of Groups with Misleading Names

The National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition Ignore warnings and eat more fish than the

government recommends – they were funded by the seafood industry!

The National Wetlands Coalition Sounds like an environmental group Funded by oil companies and real-estate developers

Analyzing Internet SitesDon’t be swayed by widespread

dissemination“It must be true-it’s all over the internet!”Look at the example on page 130.

Watch Out for Web ManipulationInfomercials are much more difficult to spot on

the internet

Analyzing Internet SitesDon’t be Dazzled by High-Tech Design

Just because a website looks very professional, does not mean that it is One good way to check the validity of a website is to

look at the web address.

Analyzing Internet SitesInvestigate Sponsors and Authors

Look for Author CredentialsGet Background Information on SponsorsExamine Internet Domain NamesLook for Country of OriginLook for Evaluations of Web Sites

Avoiding PlagiarismPlagiarism – stealing the ideas or words of

another and passing them off as one’s own

Types of PlagiarismWholesale CopyingCut and PasteInappropriate Paraphrase

Avoiding PlagiarismGiving Credit to Sources

Do this for three reasons: You protect yourself from accusations of plagiarism. You satisfy listeners’ curiosity about the origin of

your material. You demonstrate that you are a trustworthy

researcher who wants to give credit where credit is due.

Avoiding PlagiarismGiving Credit to Sources

Techniques of giving credit in a speech: Give credit as you proceed through your speech. Give global credit in the introduction Display a slide or a poster listing your sources. Provide listeners with a handout listing sources. Display all books, articles, and materials on a table

for audience inspection.

Avoiding PlagiarismUsing Copyrighted Material

Copyright infringement – unauthorized use of legally protected material

Public domain what is owned by the community at large; unprotected by patent or copyright

Avoiding PlagiarismUsing Copyrighted Materials

Fair Use: A loophole in copyright laws to enable scholars, writers, and public speakers to disseminate information without having to spend enormous amounts of time getting permission for every item used. Use only a small and relatively insignificant amount

of information Purpose is primarily educational rather than

commercial Do not cause economic harm to the copyrighted

work

Avoiding PlagiarismRoyalty-Free Material

Devoid of restrictions or feesYou pay for the right to use something and are

then free to use it as you wish.