en210 oral communications career technical college monroe, louisiana
TRANSCRIPT
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.