23
The Informative Speech
<A> OBJECTIVES
To focus on sharing knowledge and demonstrating relevance.
To identify the subject matter of
your informative
speech.
To decide how to convey the information.
To clarify complex information.
To appeal to different learning styles.
To arrange speech points in an organizational pattern.
<A> CHAPTER CONTENT OUTLINE
I.
The informative speech
A.
The goal of informative speaking
is to increase the audience’s awareness of some
phenomenon and/or deepen their understanding of it
by imparting knowledge.
Informative speeches bring new topics to light, offer new insights, provide
novel
ways of thinking, or demonstrate how to do things.
B.
An informative speaker should remember that the
primary function of the speech
is to enlighten rather than to advocate.
C.
An informative speaker must use audience
analysis to gauge the audience’s
informational needs, investigating listeners’ knowledge base, desire, and need to
acquire new knowledge
on the subject of the speech.
1.
Speakers should also demonstrate the topic’s relevance
early on, often in a
preview statement.
D.
The informative speaker should aim to uncover and present fresh and compelling
information. This can be
accomplished by including unusual (but credible)
sources, novel (but sound) interpretations, startling facts, compelling examples,
and moving stories.
1. Audience members expect to have their thinking
challenged.
2. Too much information, however, can overwhelm
your audience, so focus
on what you most want to convey.
E.
To effectively inform, the
presenter must look for ways to increase audience
understanding. Research confirms that comprehension is aided by the following:
1.
A well-organized introduction that previews the main points.
2.
Clear transitions that tie speech ideas together.
3.
The use of rhetorical devices such as repetition and parallelism.
4. An appropriate organizational pattern.
5.
The use of effective presentation aids.
II.
The subject matter of informative speeches
A. Speeches about people discuss individuals and groups—those who have made
both positive and negative contributions to society, or those whom we simply find
compelling. Speeches about people may also be autobiographical in nature.
B.
Speeches about events discuss noteworthy occurrences, past and present.
1.
Event speeches rely on reportage, an a
ccount of the who, what, where,
when, and why of the facts.
2.
A backstory, an interesting story that leads up to the event, can also be
included to provide additional information.
C.
Speeches about concepts discuss abstract or complex ideas, theories, or beliefs
and attempt to make them concrete and understandable.
D.
Speeches about issues provide a report or an overview of problems or issues in
order to increase understanding
and awareness.
1.
Of informative speeches, issue speeches have the greatest potential of
crossing the line into the persuasive realm.
E.
Speeches about processes discuss a series of steps that lead to a finished product
or an end result; they tell how something is done, how it is made, or how it works.
F.
Speeches about objects or phenomena offer a
wide variety of subject possibilities.
This type of speech discusses anything that isn’t human, including animate and
inanimate objects.
III.
Decide how to communicate your information
A.
Information is typically
communicated by defining, describing, demonstrating,
and/or explaining it. Informative speeches can either rely on a single approach, or
a combination of strategies.
B.
A speech of definition focuses on identifying the essential qualities and meaning
of something. Defining c
an take at least five forms:
1.
Operational definitions
define the topic by explaining what it does.
2.
Definition by negation
explains what something is not.
3.
Definition by example
provides several concrete examples of the topic.
4.
Definition by synonym
compares something to another term or ideal that
has an equivalent or familiar meaning.
5.
Definition by etymology
(word origin) defines something by illustrating its
root meaning.
C.
A speech of description provides an array of details that paint a mental picture of
the topic. The primary objective is to
provide vivid portrayals of the topic.
D.
A speech of demonstration explains how something works, or even provides an
actual demonstration.
E.
A speech of explanation involves providing reasons or causes, demonstrating
relationships, and offering interpretations and analysis.
IV.
Taking steps to reduce confusion
A.
Audiences find information daunting when it contains difficult concepts or
processes, or involves a counterintuitive idea. There are several strategies
speakers can use
when attempting to clarify
complex ideas.
B.
Speakers can help listeners understand new concepts by using
analogies
to relate
these new concepts to something that is already known.
C.
Speakers should counteract common misperceptions by first acknowledging them
and then offering an accurate explanation of underlying causes.
D.
Speakers should appeal to different learning styles, or preferred ways of
processing information, in order to engage as many
audience members as
possible.
1.
Visual learners grasp ideas by viewing visual explanations, either through
pictures, diagrams, slides, or videos.
2.
Aural learners understand best through the spoken word, by hearing
and
speaking.
3.
Read/write learners are
most comfortable processing information that is
text-based.
4.
Kinesthetic learners learn best by experiencing information directly,
through real-life demonstrations, simulations, and hands-on experience.
5.
Some learners are multimodal, in that they combine two or more
preferences.
6.
Speakers should conduct audience
analysis if possible to determine
learning styles.
7.
Speakers should plan on conveying and reinforcing information in a
variety of modes.
V.
Arranging speech points in a pattern
A.
Informative speeches can be organized using topical, chronological, spatial,
cause-effect, comparative advantage, or narrative
patterns.
B.
There
are
any number of ways to organize an informative speech; therefore,
choose an organizational pattern based on your topic, your communication goals,
and the needs of your audience.
<A> KEY
TERMS
informative speech
a speech intended to increase an audience’s understanding and awareness by
imparting knowledge. They bring
new topics to light, offer new insights on
subjects with which
we are familiar, provide
novel ways of thinking
about a topic, or demonstrate how to do things.
preview statement a statement in which a speaker informs the audience members why they
should listen to the speech.
reportage
an account of the who, what, where, when, and why of the facts.
backstory
the story that leads up to the event that listeners might find interesting.
operational definition
defining something by describing what it does (e.g., “A computer
is a machine that processes information”).
definition by negation
defining something by explaining what it is not.
definition by example defining something by providing an example of it.
definition by synonym
defining something by comparing it with another term that has an
equivalent meaning. For example: “A friend is a comrade or a buddy.”
definition by etymology (word origin) defining something by providing an account of a
word’s history.
analogy an explanation that links the unfamiliar with the familiar; using a commonplace
situation to describe an uncommon or specialized one.
CHAPTER STUDY GUIDE
I. SUMMARY QUESTIONS
What is the general goal of informative speaking?
The goal of informative speaking is to increase the audience’s awareness of some phenomenon
What strategies can a speaker use to focus on shared knowledge?
Speakers should strive to enlighten, rather than advocating
a particular attitude, belief, value, or
What kinds of subject matter can be addressed in an
informative speech?
An informative speech may be about people, events, concepts, issues, processes, or objects or
phenomena. Speeches about people inform audiences about individuals and groups—those who
Adopting the principles and practices described in preceding
chapters can help make
your
informative message understandable to an audience. These include (1) using analogies to build
of two purposes: to explain how something works or develops, or to actually
teach audience
members to perform the
process. Speeches about objects or phenomena discuss just about
anything that isn’t human—from ribbons used to commemorate AIDS and other diseases, to the
score for Les Misérables, to Seeing Eye dogs.
What four strategies or
approaches for conveying information are available to the
informative speaker?
To achieve the informative speaking
goal of increasing understanding and awareness,
How can a speaker help the audience comprehend the message and/or avoid confusion?
Before we can retain information, we must be able to recognize and understand it.
What are the different learning styles that speakers should appeal to during a speech?
Visual learners grasp ideas by viewing visual explanations of them, either through pictures,
How can speakers arrange speech points in a pattern?
Informative speeches can be arranged using the topical, chronological, spatial, cause-effect,
II. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What is the general purpose of informative speaking? Is it difficult to present a purely
informative speech—for example, one that does not reflect the biases of the speaker?
Remember that the
general purpose of informative speaking involves presenting information that
Do you think informative speaking lies in your future? If you have selected an academic
major, relate it to possible situations in which
you might give an informative speech. In
what areas of your personal life might you be called upon to give an informative speech?
We
speak informatively
all our lives, whether it is to share interesting information or to give
The following questions may help you illustrate important points in the chapter and facilitate
students’ learning of this material. These questions can be used as:
What do you think your learning style is, and
how
does this affect how you absorb the
information in a speech?
Students are likely to relate to a specific learning style, and this question will allow them the
III. ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES
QUESTIONS
homework questions
quizzes
in-class work (individually or in groups)
topics to generate discussion
question-and-answer sessions between instructor and students
What is the goal of informative speaking? What is the goal of your informative speech?
What strategies can a speaker use to focus on shared knowledge?
1.
Speakers should strive to enlighten rather than advocate.
To accomplish the goal of informative speaking, you must analyze your audience. Your
audience needs to identify with the topic and see why it is relevant. To ensure that this
happens, what do you need to do?
List the categories of informative speeches.
Speeches about people
According to the text, what’s involved in
defining information? Cite five ways in
which you
can define something.