Thursday December 06, 2007
Call to Action Self Reflection
Reviewer: Matt WeberSpeaker: Matt Weber
Topic: Instant Runoff Voting
Although there were definately some things I could improve upon, I thought that I did a solid job on this call to action speech. One of the best aspects of my speech was the extent that I made the need for my action clear. I made sure to show that the current system of voting had impairments on voter participation, representation and equality, and I showed that these huge problems needed to be fixed immediately. I showed how unfair and unrepresentative elections can ruin whole governments, and I therefore showed what a serious problem this was to us American citizens.
The actions I proposed were extremely specific. I proposed a letter to be written to the congress, and I provided specific addresses, dates to send them, and even the body of the letter itself. I also set up a petition for which I planned precise times, dates, addresses and required items. Lastly, I proposed a very specific and simple idea: stop voting. I told the audience to help the cause by refusing to vote to draw attention; this was a very clear and precise concept.
I used a multitude of persuasive techniques to call my audience to action. I gave testimony from reknowned political scientists, I gave statisitcs of how the current system has failed us, and I provided direct observation of the shortcomings of the voting system in Raleigh itself. I also used examples to show how IRV had worked in places like Ireland and San Fransisco already, and used a hypothetical situation to show that the government could collapse without voting reforms. I did not do an outstanding job of using novelty, and my enthusiasm and catchphrases could have used some improvement. Overall, I felt the speech was strong, and I was glad to try to get the audience to act for a great cause.
Posted by mrweber [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 11:34 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Reviewer: Mae Royal
Speaker: Rebecca Childress
Topic: Going "Green" To Conserve Energy
Since I reviewed Rebecca's informative speech on going green to conserve energy, I took a lot of notes from that speech and remembered a lot of the information. Because of this, I was more excited to hear her call to action speech on the topic, and she didn't disappoint. I really liked Rebecca's speech because this topic is something we all hear about nowadays and we're all pressured to do something to conserve energy, but we don't know exactly what to do or how to accomplish the overall goal. Her speech took care of this problem by outlining specific actions for us to take. She started of her speech with an attention-getter about some of her friends' idea of peeing outside to save water. This made us all laugh, but it also got us to thinking about what we could do, so I thought this was a clever way to start off her speech. She then outlined specifically the organization of her speech so her audience would know what to expect.
Rebecca used a problem-solution organizational strategy that was very easy to follow. She didn't talk much about the problems, because that was more important in her informative speech. She was very smart to just choose the most important parts of her informative speech to remind the audience of what she'd talked about previously, so it wasn't too much information or too repetitive. Once she got into the solutions part of her speech, in which she outlined actions to take, she spoke much more specifically, and I thought this was a great tactic.
In my opinion, I thought that Rebecca went from the easiest actions to take to the most difficult to take. First, she gave the simple action of telling a friend, which everyone can do. Then, she took it a step further by giving us the idea of emailing the chancellor here at State. I loved this idea because it gave us something not only specific, but also local, to do, and this is something where we could all see the direct effect because, obviously, we all are on State campus daily. Her last idea was more like a cluster of ideas, in which she listed several actions we can take on a daily basis to conserve energy. This was probably her strongest part of her speech, in my opinion. Rebecca handed out a slip of paper with a list of all these actions, from turning off the water when you're brushing your teeth all the way to collecting extra shower water. I really loved that she handed out a slip of paper because that really gives us no excuse NOT to do these actions that seem so simple and can do so much for this major problem.
Rebecca ended her speech by summing out the positive effects of these actions we can take, which I thought was a powerful way to end the speech. I don't remember many other classmates ending their speech this way, but I loved that Rebecca did this, because it showed the overall purpose for her speech. She reminded us all of the economic and environmental benefits that would result from us following her lead and taking action. She ended her speech by encouraging us to help out future generations by taking action now. This left a powerful mark on her speech and gave a kind of "bigger picture" to an issue that may seem to only be important currently. Overall, I really enjoyed listening to Rebecca's speech because she made the issues seem important to each of us importantly and also made the actions seem simple and easy to follow. She delivered her speech with confidence and had good eye contact with the audience, which only made what she was saying leave more of an impact. You did a really great job, Rebecca!
Posted by maroyal [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 11:22 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Reviewer: Matthew WeberSpeaker: Ashley U
Topic: Hands free Communication
Ashley gave a very interesting speech, and I like how she seemed genuinely interested in the topic she was discussing. She energized the audience extensively, using changes in pitch and changes in speed of dialogue. She read off of the notecards at somepoints, but she seemed enthusiastic about the speech, and that enthusiasm definately carried over into the audience. She used emphasis and exclamations to try to get the audience excited, and I thought that was a very positive trait.
Ashley gave very specific action proposals to the audience. She set up very detailed petitions with exact dates, times and locations, and she told us how to spread the word and refuse to buy specific cars that do not offer hands free communication devices. The specic and focused nature of her plans made the call to action speech a lot better, and it made it a lot easier for the audience to understand how they could help.
Ashley's speech only had one aspect that was weaker than the others. She did not do an outstanding job of showing the need for her action. She explained the deaths that cell phones can cause, but she didn't provide detailed statistics, testimony or anecdotes to show why it was so important and why it was needed right now. Everything else in her speech went smoothly though, and overall I found it to be extremely convincing.
Posted by mrweber [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 11:12 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Self Reflection - Call to Action
Speaker: Wes B
I feel as if I had a decent speech. Certainly not my best but I felt it was alright. I believe I had a pretty good speech written out, but my delivery was not as good as I was sick. I feel like it was relatively easy to speak about universal healthcare, and that it was a pretty good topic as far as time sensitivity goes. I feel this way because it is a pretty key issue in the 2008 elections for the very first time. It is a key part of all of the Democrats platforms. But yeah, it was a decent speech that could have been better if I would have had a stronger delivery.
Posted by jwbarbou [Self Reflections] ( December 06, 2007 11:11 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Reviewer: Matthew WeberSpeaker: Ramon Rubio
Topic: Steroids in Baseball
I found Ramon's speech to be very convincing and interesting. He went to a great extent to show a clear need for his action. He used testimony from league officials to show that the current rules don't stop people from using steroids. He also used direct observation and anecdotes from his personal experiences in baseball to show a great need for stricter rules against steroids since steroids destroy the quality and fairness of the great game.
Ramon's weakest aspect was how unspecific the actions he proposed were. He stated that stricter punishments were needed and provided the rules that could be used, but he didn't provide a lot of means to achieve these results. He didn't plan any events or strikes, and he didn't provide a pamphlet or visual aid. I was totally agreement in his cause and ideas, but he did not give me a way to reach those goals.
Ramon did decently when it came to energizing the audience. He spoke in a relatively monotone fashion, and he didn't use a lot of gestures to emphasize his ideas. Luckily, the argument and his deep passion for the cause were enough to energize me, and the ideas were strong enough to keep me interested. More novelty could have been provided to make it more interesting, but overall this was a good speech with a solid argument. The delivery was the only thing that could be greatly improved.
Posted by mrweber [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 10:52 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to action
Speeker: Ashley Upchurch
Reviewer: Ashley Upchurch
i think i had a good cause but my delivery wasnt as convincing as i hoped. i caught myself reading to much from my outline then i should have been focusing on the audience. when i read over my topics i caught myself stumbling on words and not being clear enough. i think that i was good on time. i had an agenda and i accomplished it thoroughly and comletetly.
Posted by laupchu2 [Self Reflections] ( December 06, 2007 08:05 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call 2 Action
speeker: Micheal
Reviewer: Ashley
Topic: drag strip
so the speech was very upbeat. like my self you struggle with not smiling when talking about an important issue. besides the one pause though i think the speech moved smoothly. you did weel picking a current issue at the community and state level rather than a nationwide issue that can be ahrder to solve as college individuals. the last plan of action that included going out and building it ourselves seemed a bit like you ran out of ideas. i don't know how possible or realistic this could be. however, the petition with a specific time and date with a plan of action was awesome. despite content i thought the delivert was enough to reel me into the cause. i saw your enthusiasm and what taking lowes motor speed way out could be. it would be fullish not to build the drag strip.
Posted by laupchu2 [General] ( December 06, 2007 07:57 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call 2 Action
Speeker: Dejan
Review: Ashley Upchurch
Topic: Minimum wage increase
Dear Dejan,
the presentation was awesome. i always become engaged into your speeches. althought i felt i had no opinion about the topic by the end i was ready to be proactive in the fight to raise it. the ideas you gave us to help included emailing, calling eveb demonstrated yourself. the demo made caling not seem so much like a hassle or anything to be nervous about but something everyone can do easily.
the information you gave us about people on minimum wage being below poverty line was very striking. i was not aware of some of the issues you had brought up.
because of this excellent speech i voted you to the top 2 in the class. you go DJ 
Posted by laupchu2 [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 07:51 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Speech
Speaker: Wes B.Reviewer: Dejon B.
Topic Nationalized Help Care
I thought Wes delivered an excellent speech he developed a convincing argument and his thesis was one were it illustrated a clear and need for N.H.C. I thought his thesis focused on motivating a not so committed audience to complete his plans for N.H.C. I thought Wes also was very organized. He had great coordination and connection of main and subpoints. He used transitions and previews well. He also threw in some sign posts to let us know when he was about to finish.
I though Wes had a compelling introduction and conclusion that really focused on inspiring us as an audience to action; he used sound evidence, reasoning and persuasive strategies that made the call to action relevant and timely; Wes use linguitic strategies with a clear rhythm and structure that I'm use to seeing from him, which created a motivating climate... without the visual aid.
I thought overall Wes did a great job... even though he wasn't as excited to be up there... He still cared enough to provide the audience with sound reasons why we need the nationalized healthcare.. I really enjoyed listening to his speech because he flowed so well and he spent SUCH A LONG TIME PREPARING FOR I T. I was amazed at the quality of his speech it was a true pleasure to listen to. And I am sure if that speech was given to congress they would pass it through... great job Wes!!
Posted by adbivens [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 07:24 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Self Reflection
Speaker: Dejon BivensReviewer: Dejon Bivens
Topic Minimum Wage Increase
In my call to action speech I didn't think I needed to go into much detail about the need for the minimum wage increase... That was what the persuasive speech was for... So I really didn't go into much details with it at all, I did this to give myself time to get to the actions that I wanted the audience to participate in after all it was a call to action speech. I thought my lead-in was a bit risky because it was kind of dry in a cheese ball kind of way. I really put a lot of faith in my classes political knowledge and I ran with it. I used two of senators Richard Burr and Elizabeth Dole.. Since I was first in line with political actions, I was hoping that they knew that these were our representatives. So I took a big risk in assuming that everyone knew our representatives. I then got alittle violent with my tactics using the gun analogy... and came up with the C.A.P. E.M. campaign.. It was risky, but I think the class got it...
I tried to be very detail with my planning and I tried to really get the class fired up for the upcoming speeches... I also tried to have a little fun up there in front of my class.. they really embraced me and I was really excited for some reason this was one of my best audiences that I could remember. In term of usign persuasive strategies I was very committed to using the compassion and the excitment in my voice to get them to buy into what I was saying, and on top of that I tried to make the actions doable.
I really had to give credit to my audience for making this speech one of my best ones because they are the ones that feed me when I am up there speaking in front of them ... they really seemed to be engaged some of them laughed at the parts I made funny they really seemed to enjoy what I had to say to them and because I could feel and seed the non verbal feedback I was really calm and excited at the same time. My style and energy for the first time was even and at the appropriate levels for a speech. My voice was strong I didn't stumble that much and I was clear and concise and most important I was organized.
If I could have done something better it would probably have been... refreshing their minds more about the need for minimum wage increase again.. I tried to do it at the end with my example of the working woman,but according to the grader of my speech that wasn't enough.. so if that is the case then I would have tried to include more information about the need... but overall I thought this was a decent speech considering I only had a day to prepare and I really didn't know how to construct the speech.. So without that information or a lesson or watching someone else's speech I thought I wasn't to bad...
Posted by adbivens [Self Reflections] ( December 06, 2007 07:24 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Self-Reflection
Speaker: Brittney Kelly
Reviewer: Brittney Kelly
Topic: keeping sexually abusive teachers out of schools by conducting more thorough background checks.
In my call to action speech, I believe my thesis was very clear in expressing the fact that action needs to be taken to bring us closer to keeping sexually abusive teachers out of classrooms by conducting more thorough background checks. I also brought up evidence from my past persuasive speech to prove how large an issue this really is. My evidence consisted of statistical analysis concerning the number of students subjected to sexual abuse and also the age range in which the abuse can occur. By presenting the age range to the audience, there was a possibility that moving an audience member?s emotions could persuade them to see that something must be done to solve this problem.
The actions I mentioned that would contribute to solving the issues concerning my topic were clear. I started on the local level by telling the audience that they can make a difference in this problem that exists throughout the nation by just speaking out on the issue in their small community. This can be done at school board meetings where the public is allowed to express their opinions concerning the changes they want made regarding the school system. The more that people speak out on this issue, the more this issue will be in the spotlight. I then gave the audience the option of speaking out on a higher level by writing their representatives. By writing our representatives, we can influence them to vote in favor of the idea of creating a national registry listing all sexually abusive teachers. This would be an even larger step towards solving the issues concerning my topic.
I don?t believe, or recall, my voice expressing much emotion concerning my topic, and I think that is something I need to work on. If I?d had more emotion in my voice, I believe that my speech would further persuade others to take action in solving the problem concerning the presence of sexually abusive teachers in classrooms. I also think it could?ve left a lasting impression on the audience. I don?t know if it did or not, but placing more emphasis on certain aspects in my speech would?ve made it better and also point out the most important points in my call to action speech.
Overall, I think I did a pretty good job presenting my speech. The only other problem was that I went over the allotted time when I decided to add in a few more points that I originally hadn?t planned on making reference to in my speech. I feel like it was probably the best speech out of the four that I?ve given this semester, partly because I felt more confident this time than any other time. Even though I still cannot present a speech the way I would like to (without the outline and the paper), I know that I have grown over the semester, which I believe is the most important thing.
Posted by bdkelly [Self Reflections] ( December 06, 2007 07:06 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Speaker: Jeremy
Reviewer: Brittney Kelly
Topic: passing a bill that will provide healthcare insurance to all children
Jeremy?s topic for his call to action speech was that a healthcare insurance bill should be revised and passed in order to provide free healthcare to children. He reminded the audience of what he spoke about weeks earlier in his persuasive speech about how necessary it is to have this bill passed since many parents cannot afford healthcare for their children. In his thesis he made it clear that actions needed to be taken to ensure that this bill is passed. He proposed ways in which taking action can have an effect on whether or not this bill is passed.
Contacting our representatives and expressing our opinions concerning the issue of passing a children?s healthcare bill was an action that Jeremy posed. The difference in the number of votes for and against passing the bill was small compared to the number of people voting on the issue. By contacting our representatives and letting them know that we are in favor of passing this bill, we can strengthen their commitment to the issue if they have already voted in favor of it. If they were originally against the issue, we can possibly persuade them to vote in favor of it because they are there to represent us, and if they cannot represent us and express what changes we want to see in our government, then they won?t be re-elected. To diminish any thoughts going through an audience member?s mind of ?one little phone call from little me won?t make much of a difference,? Jeremy calculated that collectively we can make a difference. If ten people call, and then each one person gets ten more people to call and so forth, the numbers add up greatly.
Jeremy?s illustration of a need to take action in passing a healthcare bill for children was evident through the gestures he made and the style in which he spoke. He expressed much emotion in his voice that showed you just how crucial it was for this bill to be passed and how necessary it was for us to act quickly.
Jeremy also used a lot of repetition throughout his speech. He repeated several times the number of votes short of having this bill passed. This repetition was used as a way of assuring the audience that not much needs to be done to get this bill passed and that we are so close to making it happen. He also placed emphasis upon how much collectively we can make a difference if each person does his or her part; it is a simple task that will make a huge difference.
Overall, Jeremy presented a good speech that was clear, was very organized, and made the audience think about the issues concerning his topic. Good job!
Posted by bdkelly [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 07:05 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Speaker: Mae Royal
Reviewer: Brittney Kelly
Topic: contraception in middle schools
Mae?s topic for her call to action speech was on the subject of middle schools providing students contraception and doing so without parental consent. Mae made the statement that the students were too young to receive contraception because many of them do not even know much about the issues concerning sex. She made it clear in her thesis that there was a need to take action towards informing students and parents on the issues involving the subject of sex.
Mae proposed three steps by which we could take action. She introduced them by calling it a process that goes ?from the top to the bottom.? The first step Mae proposed was going to the local school board and suggesting that schools reinstate sex education in schools, so that students will be more informed on the subject of sex. Many of them do not know much about it, partly due to the fact that many parents can?t talk to their kids about sex. Therefore, the second step is to provide a class for parents to help them feel more comfortable about talking to their kids about sex. The third action would involve speaking to the students themselves. Mae came up with the idea of getting students to fill out a survey about sex in exchange for free movie tickets. By taking this survey, the students would begin to think more about the subject, and hopefully, be moved to ask questions to learn more about it.
I think Mae?s proposal of action was very clear and organized. It outlined the steps we should take that would effectively make an impact and bring us steps closer to solving this issue of students receiving contraception in school. Not only did she clearly outline the process, but she also explained the effectiveness of each action and the outcome of the action should it be taken. This provided clarity for the audience, and we were able to visualize how these actions would and could be taken out.
The information that stood out to me was when Mae mentioned how many (or rather how few) parents are able to speak to their kids about sex. I hadn?t thought about this issue when I thought of how to take action towards informing the students about this subject. This proves just how much more important it is to provide sex education in schools before students are given contraception.
I believe the way Mae presented her speech left an impression upon the audience that kept the subject on their minds. Many speeches can good but easily forgotten, so even if the subject didn?t stay on their minds long, it still left an impression, and therefore, it was not a speech easily forgotten.
Good job, Mae!
Posted by bdkelly [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 07:03 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Speaker: Jamaine
Reviewer: Jeff G
I was not originally supposed to review Jamaine but due to my absence on monday i decided to pick the one that stood out the most to me and i thought Jamaines was definetely a very strong speech. He spoke on the issue of prayer in public schools and how it should be reinstated due to the increase of violence and sexual acts since the removal of it. He had very specific and extreme actions such as removing your children from public schools and taking congress over. The best thing about Jamaine's speech,however, was his delivery. It is obvious that this is an issue that Jamaine feels very strongly about which definetely adds to his credibility and overall effectiveness of the speech. He definetely had my attention during the whole speech as well as everyone elses and was very effective in motivating his audience
Posted by jrgonza [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 03:15 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]
Call to Action Peer Review
Speaker: Kyle
Reviewer: Jeff G
Kyle 's call to action speech on what needs to be done in order to get Ron Paul elected in the 2008 presidential election. After listening to his persuasive speech and now his call to action speech it has definetely made an impact. He gave a good overview of Ron Paul and some of the things he is in favor of in his introduction of his call to action. He then gave three very specific action which were to get political and disscuss the issues, Donate, and to Take it public. Also the bigget way to take action was to go out and vote in the closed primary on May 6th. All of this was also illustrated in the handout we were given. The thing that really made his speech credible and made me want to take action was just that he spoke clearly and spoke like he knew what he was talking about. He was energetic and adament about Ron Paul and why we should elect him as our new president. Before listening to Kyle speak about Ron Paul i had never heard of him or knew anything about him but he has definetely made me more interested and willing to find out more about him.
Posted by jrgonza [Peer Reviews] ( December 06, 2007 02:56 PM ) Permalink | Comments[0]