COMM 1 C1000 - (CRN: 45503) - 5 Units
Introduction to Public Speaking - 3Y – S26
Mondays & Wednesdays 1:30PM - 3:20PM - MLC110
Instructor: James Ahern, M.A., J.D.
Instructor Office HourLinks to an external si - Mondays & Wednesdays - 12PM-1PM
TBA: Wednesdays from 4PM-5PM
Contact the Instructor using the Canvas Inbox. Emails are responded to within 48 hours during the week excluding the weekends and holidays
Instructor Website - De Anza College WebsiteLinks to an external site.
Visit the Student Success CenterLinks to an external site.
Course Description: Theory and techniques of public speaking in a democratic society. An introduction to a variety of perspectives and approaches used to research, organize, deliver, and evaluate public presentations.
Textbook (free) : The Public Speaking Textbook - The Virtual TextLinks to an external site.
Materials: 4 by 6-inch note cards.
Student Learning Outcomes:
- SLO1: Organize, compose, present, and critically evaluate informative and persuasive presentations appropriate in content and style to the audience and situation.
- SLO2: Display increasing confidence in speaking extemporaneously.
- SLO3: Demonstrate effective listening skills in various public speaking contexts.
- SLO4: Identify, locate, evaluate, and use information technologies and information sources.
Course Objectives:
- Examine historical and cultural traditions of public speaking in both domestic and global contexts and their impact on our views, beliefs, and practices relating to speaking in public.
- Evaluate how making the decision to respect diversity, speak ethically, and think critically influences communication outcomes.
- Demonstrate skills in analyzing diverse audiences and creating presentations appropriate to those audiences.
- Research, analyze, organize, prepare, and evaluate informative and persuasive speeches.
- Develop confidence in delivering speeches extemporaneously.
- Develop listening skills to foster respectful, reflective, and critical listening appropriate for public presentations.
Course Requirements:
- Attendance and Participation: This class requires your attendance and participation for every class session. Because your role includes being a speaker, a listener, and an evaluator, your attendance and promptness are vital to this class. Students will be dropped from this class if they have four absences and if they are absent during the first week of this course. School policy dictates that students must officially drop classes in which they no longer attend. All students must attend the final class. Students with three successive absences without instructor notification will be dropped from this class.
- Reading Assignments: Students are responsible for assigned readings and will be called upon to participate in the class discussion.
- Written Assignments: Designated speeches must be accompanied by a typed, full-sentence preparation outline that must be submitted to the instructor before a presentation. Additionally, students must upload their speech outlines to Turnitin on Canvas before delivery to receive credit.
- Online Assignments: Online assignments will be posted in Canvas on Mondays with stated deadlines.
- Quizzes: There will be ten multiple-choice, true-false quizzes with five questions each during this course that will cover assigned readings. Quizzes will be posted on Mondays and are due on Sundays at 11:59PM.
- Academic Honesty: Plagiarism or cheating may result in failing an assignment or this course. “Plagiarism is representing the work of someone else as your own. Incorporating the ideas, words, sentences, paragraphs, or parts of another person’s writings, without giving appropriate credit, and representing the product as one’s own. Representing another’s artistic or scholarly works such as musical compositions, computer programs, photographs, paintings, drawings or sculptures as your own. Submitting a paper purchased from a research or term paper service, including the internet. Undocumented Web source usage.”
- College course policy: “Students must have access to the following: a computer, the internet, an individual email address, and a webcam-enabled device for on-camera presentations.”
- Speeches: There will be five graded speeches and other speech activities. Sign-up Genius will
be used for the four speeches that will be posted in the Module section. Students
who are unprepared to deliver their assigned speeches will receive a ten-point deduction
unless accompanied by a doctor's note.
There are no provisions for extra credit.
Speech Assignments
- Introductory speech of a classmate - Not Graded
- Time limit: 2-3 minutes
- Narrative speech - 50 points
- Time Limit: 5-7 minutes
- Self-critique
- Preparation outline
- Demonstration speech - 50 points
- Time limit: 5-7 minutes
- Self-critique
- Preparation Outline
- Informative speech - 50 points
- Time Limit: 5-7 minutes
- Self-critique
- Preparation Outline
- Persuasive Speech (Audience Analysis) - 50 points
- Time limit: 6-8 minutes
- Self-critique
- Preparation Outline
- Impromptu speech - 10 points
- Time limit: 2-3 minutes
TOTAL: 210 points
Grading
Your final grade for the course will be based on the following:
- Speeches 210 points
- Preparation Outlines (4 @ ten points) 40 points
- Self-critiques (4 @ ten points) 40 points
- Action Items (10 @ three points) 30 points
- Quizzes (10 @ five points) 50 points
- Discussion (10 @ 10 points) 100 points
TOTAL: 470 points
|
Grade |
Points |
|---|---|
|
A |
444-470 |
|
A- |
420-443 |
|
B+ |
406-419 |
|
B |
392-405 |
|
B- |
373-391 |
|
C+ |
350-372 |
|
C |
326-349 |
|
D+ |
312-325 |
|
D |
298-311 |
|
D- |
279-297 |
|
F |
0-278 |
|
Date |
Topic/Discussion |
Reading |
Weekly Assignments |
|---|---|---|---|
|
4/6 |
Introduction to Public Speaking, Communication Apprehension, review Course Syllabus, review instructor website, Zoom, Genius Sign-up and Student Help Desk, communication process, & cultural diversity |
Read Chapter: 1 – Introduction to Public Speaking |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #1 Narrative Speech Assigned. Online Quiz #1 – Chapter 1 Discussion #1: Self-Introduction Introduction of a Classmate |
|
4/13 |
Delivering First Speech, listening, & ethics, principles for public speaking, and sample preparation outline, support groups |
Read Chapter 2 – Origins of Public Speaking – 3 Ethics of Public Speaking |
Review Canvas Online Assignments Complete Action Item #2 Online Quiz #2 – Chapter 3 Discussion #2 |
|
4/20 |
Principles of public speaking, methods, delivery, samplepreparation outline, support groups/Storytelling/Ethic |
Read Chapters: 4 – Listening Effectively – 5 – Audience Analysis – 7 – SupportingYour Ideas |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #3 Online Quiz #3 – Chapter 4 Discussion #3 Demonstration speech assigned |
|
4/27 |
Narrative speeches |
Read Chapters 8 – Organizing & Outlining – 9 – Introduction & Conclusion – 10 – Using Language Well |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #4 Online Quiz #4 Discussion #4 |
|
5/4 |
Narrative speeches/issues of the day |
Read Chapters: 11 – Speaking with Confidence – 12 – Delivering Your Speech – 13 – Visual Aids |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #5 Quiz #5 Discussion #5 Informative Speech Assigned |
|
5/11 |
Demonstration speeches |
Read Chapter 14 – Speaking to a Global Audience |
Review Canvas online assignments Complete Action Item #6 Quiz #6 Discussion #6 |
|
5/18 |
Demonstration speeches/speech activity/impromptu speeches/support groups |
Read Chapter 15 – Informative Speaking |
Review Canvas online assignments Complete Action Item #7 Quiz #7 Discussion #7 Persuasive speech assigned |
| 5/25 |
Informative speeches |
Read Chapter 16 – Persuasive Speaking |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #8 Quiz #8 Discussion #8 |
|
6/1 |
Informative & impromptu speeches /support groups |
Impromptu |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #9 Quiz #9 Discussion #9 |
|
6/8 |
Audience Analysis Questionnaire Due Persuasive speeches |
Audience Analysis Due |
Review Canvas Module Assignments Complete Action Item #10 Quiz # 10 Discussion #10 |
|
6/15 |
Persuasive speeches |
Persuasive speeches | Persuasive speeches |
|
6/22 |
Final: COMM 1 – 6/22 1:45PM-3:45PM- MLC110 |
Finals Week |
Course Review and Impromptu speeches |
Important college dates during Spring Quarter 2026:
- May 23-25 - Memorial Day Weekend - no classes, offices closed
- June 19 - Juneteenth Holiday - no classes, offices closed
- June 22 - June 26 – Finals Week
This course depends on your active participation, and it will be as exciting, interesting, stimulating, and as fun, as the energy and enthusiasm that you bring to the class. The more you give, the more you will learn about your own strengths and limitations. You will also learn about and from your classmates and that you can be a part of their learning experience as well. Wishing you all the best in the days ahead!