
Heather Tippett – Wertz teaches Introduction to Public Speaking, an elective available to juniors and seniors.
It is a level three elective. It is also a dual enrollment course, so students have the option of earning three college credits through Penn Highlands Community College.
Jessika Ferguson and Mazin Ahmed both took the class the first semester.
“I am very comfortable speaking in front of an audeince, I have always been comfortable speaking to the public,” Ferguson said. “Though it is different when it is your peers.”
Students made self-introduction speeches and dramatic monologues where they find a scene from a movie, tv show or book, and perform it. They have also done tribute speeches for people who have impacted them and mock interviews to help prepare for jobs.
“I prepare for a speech by just taking deep breaths before my speech,” Ahmed said. “Mrs. Tippett taught us about ‘Power Poses’ which we do everyday before class to help with anxiety and confidence.”
“I honestly struggled with my body language throughout the course, I was never good at it, and I sadly didn’t improve,” Ahmed said. “I did learn body language plays a huge role in how your speech is delivered and interpreted.”
Tippett-Wertz gives feedback to the students as they present.
“I have received feedback that I have a fast pace when I speak. Along with that I just need to breathe and take pauses for the information to reach the audience,” Ferguson said.
According to Ferguson, public speaking will help with future jobs.
“This class will help when I give my senior project at the end of the year,” Ferguson said. “It will help when I have to give speeches or presentations in college or again in future careers.”
Ahmed engages with the audience during speeches by asking questions to grasp his audience’s attention at the beginning of his speech.
“Having a very intriguing introduction statement is very important also,” Ahmed said.
This course offers dual enrollment option
“It’s optional because you do have to pay for it, but if they do that, and they successfully complete the course, they’ll have three college credits under their belt that they earned in high school,” Tippett-Wertz said. “And I’m biased, but it’s one of the most important electives and useful electives that we offer here because everybody needs to improve their communication skills. Communication skills will get us through life. So a lot of people might misinterpret public speaking as just giving speeches, but it’s job interviews, it’s leading group discussions, it’s participating in discussions.”
Tippett-Wertz hopes that one of the biggest takeaways from the course is confidence.
“All of the tips and tricks that I teach help students to understand that their voices should be heard. Mistakes are fine, and they’re normal, their natural perfection is a goal that we will continue to chase and never catch, ” Tippet-Wertz said. “Most students start off with very little confidence, and by the end, they have a ton of confidence. That’s important in just getting through life and being brave enough that you don’t mind raising your hand to ask a question or answer a question.”
The course instructs students on how to organize cohesive speeches.
“As critical thinking skills are concerned, several of the speeches require research on an arguable topic, and so not only do students have to choose which side they’re arguing, but they have to find evidence from sources online that support their argument,” Tippett-Wertz said. “It definitely fosters critical thinking.”
“If someone is a confident public speaker, it opens up so many opportunities for them that they might shy away from otherwise,” Tippett-Wertz said. “Even just in the classroom, raising your hand to ask for an answer question, leading a group discussion, job interviews, everybody’s going to have a job interview at one point or another, being confident puts you steps ahead of the candidate who’s not confident. Those are some ways it can help, and then there will be opportunities in life where you’re asked to stand in front of a group of people and speak, and the most liberating thing is to be able to say, ‘Yes, I will do that, and I’m not a little bit nervous, everybody gets nervous, but no, I’m not scared to death.’ Anytime all eyes are on you, you’re nervous. That’s normal. If you’re not, then you must not care about how you’re going to do, but, otherwise, it’s just one less thing in life you have to worry about. Life is full of all kinds of concerns and worries, but public speaking shouldn’t be one of them. 85% of people say they’re afraid of public speaking, so by taking my course, you can be part of the 15% that aren’t. It’s my little plug, my little advertisement.”
name1 • Jan 29, 2025 at 1:15 pm
WAHOO!