5: Self-Evaluation Speech Critique

 Hannah Diffee

Professor Reppert

Advanced Public Speaking

May 2024

Self-Evaluation Speech Critique

Professor Reppert’s Advanced Public Speaking course helped me improve tremendously as a speaker. Throughout the semester, I gave four in-depth speeches that challenged my speaking style and presentation skills.

My presentation about Sadie Robertson Huff was the most challenging and fun of the semester. When creating the presentation, I realized that Google Slides did not give me the level of interactivity I desired, so I switched the presentation to Canva. Using Canva was an excellent choice because it allowed me to embed TikToks directly into my presentation, giving it a more appealing look. Thankfully, I had experience with Canva, so the transition was not drastic. I used Canva for the remainder of the course.

Before taking the course, I rarely thought about vocalics: auditory pauses like “uh,” “um,” and “you know.”  On the first day of class, Professor Reppert said that speakers must limit these vocalics and contractions like “gonna” and “wanna” to be refined and professional. Over the semester, I became more aware of my speaking patterns and attempted to lessen my use of informal language.

Professor Reppert’s comments on my speech critiques provided invaluable feedback on the areas where I excelled and the ones needing improvement. He mentioned I was “confident and likable in front of the class” and “very composed and poised.” These comments made me happy because I always aim to be friendly and approachable. My number one rule is to be kind, so I hope my positivity shows through my speaking style. Professor Reppert remarked that I used words like “sorta” and “kinda,” which I was unaware of. I am glad he noticed my contractions because they are such an integral part of my language that I often do not notice when I use them.

Professor Reppert’s comments helped me realize that, over the semester, I began to use vocalics more. My first speech was very polished except for a few “you know”s. I used no contractions or colloquialisms, which may have been because I was so nervous. I had little experience speaking in public outside of the Introduction to Public Speaking course, so I was hyper-aware of my words. Over time, I grew more comfortable in front of an audience, so my last three speeches contained more conversational language. As I gain more experience in public speaking, I hope to remain friendly and conversational but speak more professionally to establish credibility.