TU Tuesday Speaker Evaluation

I thought that Paul Grondahl had great poise, and that he looked comfortable speaking to a group. He spoke at a good volume so that everyone could hear him, and he looked directly at the person who asked a question, instead of just looking around the room. He didn't use a lot of filler words like uh or um, and knew how he wanted to say everything. Another way that he showed good poise was connecting with us, the audience. He connected well with the audience by asking questions, and wasn't afraid to answer any questions. Whether he was answering a question about what great writing is, or how he started journalism, he conveyed the same points.

I thought that the speaker showed good clarity in his presentation, because he enunciated all his words clearly, so everyone would know exactly what he was talking about. I thought he used appropriate language for his audience, so that the language was not too simplistic that he sounded uneducated, but he did not use unnecessary big words either, so that no one would misunderstand him.

The speaker used great volume in his presentation. Everyone could hear him, and his words were not mumbled. I sat in the second row from the back, and I could hear him very clearly.

While he was speaking, the information he used was very specific. Not only did he provide a lot of information of how he began his journalism career, but also what everyone's goal should be. He said to find something you are good at, and constantly practice. He used examples like great writers, and even people in other fields, like Bradley Cooper. The information he used made his message and his overall presentation very clear.

The speaker used good organization, but I thought some of the questions may have thrown him off of his main points. He used great organization when talking about writing, and what makes writing good. The time when his organization lacked a little was when he talked about technology like twitter, and news feed sites. Sometimes, he said that they were just simple views on something that happened, and other times he said that it was the best way to get information. He made many valid points, but his views on technology seemed to be a little scattered.

My role in the discussion was asking him if he always knew if he wanted to do the personal stories that he does now. I thought that my contribution was good, but maybe a little late in the discussion. I thought that as a class we carried on the conversation very well. We asked a lot of valid questions on journalism and writing in general, like if entertainment is more important that information in an article, or what makes a good writer.

I think having a speaker like this come to class is a good thing for English 10 students. Not only does it teach us how to carry on a conversation, and what questions are good or simple answers, it also teaches us many ways to be a good speaker. The behaviors of the speaker exhibited what a good speaker should do. In my next presentation, I will try to do more of what made this presentation so good.