ORAL COMMUNICATION AND THE VISUAL ARTS

Grading Criteria for Presentations

The standards for your presentations in this class are based on several criteria, each of which will be evaluated separately.  The general categories for judgment are the selection of topic, the structure of the speech, the basis in solid research, and the methods of delivery.  Some evaluation points cross over the categories, as outlined on the evaluation form.

There are levels of competence in each category, and they will be evaluated on a continuum scale.  As a more general analysis of the expectations for your presentations, the characteristics of speeches that would earn various grades (A, B, C, D, F) are described below. But as this course is aimed at mastery of skills, the final grade will not necessarily be an average of your grades throughout the term.  Rather, it is expected that you will show a measure of improvement over the period of time.

The “F” Presentation:  The speaker either fails to give the speech altogether, or delivers a presentation which falls very far short of the standards.  It might not fit the category, might reflect personal opinion to the exclusion of scholarly research, deviate from the assignment, be too short or too long, lack an apparent central theme or sense of purpose, have no sense of theme development, have poor or no visual aids, make poor  use of visual material, or be delivered in an incoherent manner.  Speeches that are read from notes will receive an “F”

The “D” Presentation: This speech will lack a sense of competence in preparation and delivery.  There might be a central idea, but it is not made clear or well-supported.  There may be insufficient research material presented or it may be presented in a biased manner, with unsupported personal opinion dominant.

There may be extremes of description inappropriately used.  It may be speckled with terms like “unique,” “most beautiful,” “most important,” “most influential,” “awesome,” “ginormous,” “best,” and similar inappropriate terms, especially superlatives.  It may lack specific discussion of features of the work of art.  It may be mostly, although not entirely, read from notes.  There may no eye contact, poor posture, inappropriate attire.  The impression will be that the speaker did little research and preparation, or gave little thought to theme and theme development. The speaker may show little evidence of rehearsal, and use poor language, grammar, sentence structure, and include too many pauses, slang phrases, interjections such as “er”, “uh”, “you know”, etc.

The “C” Presentation:  The presentation is basically competent, and nothing major goes wrong.  It may start appropriately – capturing audience attention and stating theme clearly – but not really sustain its momentum well.  It may start awkwardly, but then get more interesting.  It may have moments of interest and clarity, but not be consistent and even.  It may be marred by minor failings, but not lack the major requirements.  It will establish your credibility, show you have done your research and thought through your ideas, preview your main points, lead relatively smoothly into the body of the speech.  The body might be organized appropriately, present support for the thesis, and move towards the conclusion. The conclusion may summarize the theme adequately and provide the listeners with a definitive sense of finish.  There should be a clear correlation between the speech and the image under discussion and relationships between the points of argument and the specifics of the image shown.   It will include reference to the visual aids and direct the audience to specific features of the image that support the line of discussion.

The delivery of the presentation will not include visible nervousness, distracting posture, gesture, movements or mannerisms (rocking, slouching, hair-twisting, fidgeting, etc.) There should be more eye contact with the audience than with your notes or the ceiling or walls.  Your voice should be relatively flowing, clear, audible, and free from vocalized pauses (“ers”, “uhs”, etc).  The audience should be kept at least politely attentive, and the topic interesting and significant enough to be worthy of their time.

The majority of presentations will be “C” performances, at least in the beginning.   For most students, being able to stand up and present their ideas in a clear and coherent manner while looking reasonably poised and confident in front of their classmates is an important and significant accomplishment, even by the end of the semester.  A “C” grade is a sign of competence and a good achievement.

The “B” Presentation:  This speech is more than simply competent, it is also interesting. The introduction is probably more fully developed, with more time and effort used to relate the topic to the audience and to prepare them for what is to follow.  The body of the presentation has a clear pattern of organization that is closely related to the central theme.  This one shows fuller development throughout and a wider variety of interesting supporting statements and better reference to the image discussed (possibly including solid facts and/or hypotheses, comparison to other works), clarity and/or ingenuity of concept.   The conclusion may be more fully developed and better integrated with the overall theme.  

The delivery of the “B” speech will be animated and fluid: you do not look uncomfortable or ill-at ease.  Your posture is good, your gestures are relatively natural, your movements are helps to convey a sense of your topic by showing your own interest and enthusiasm, without being exaggerated.  Your voice is rather expressive, with appropriate emphasis on your points of discussion and your audience shows active interest in your presentation.

The “A” Presentation:  This will be more than just interesting, it will be memorable.  Your introduction will engage the audience, whetting their appetite for learning more of what you have to say, getting everything off to a good start.  Your language choices are vivid and clear and appropriate (perhaps establishing an aural theme or metaphor which becomes a motif), statements of main points are memorable (e.g., with alliteration or grammatical parallels).  Transitions between points are varied, clear and smooth, you make good use of structural signposts; the audience can follow your line of reasoning, and does not get lost and off track.  Your conclusion will round out the speech and give a sense of completion, with appropriate impact.

 The delivery of the “A” speech goes beyond general poise and lack of discomfort – you are actively engaging and projecting you personality to the listeners, using posture, gesture, and movement to absorb their attention and keep them focussed on your ideas.  You will respond to the audience, seeing cues about their attention and understanding, sensing when to slow down or speed up or clarify a point.  Your voice will be like musical instrument, controlled for tempo, rhythm, volume and rate.  You use your pace to build emphasis on the most significant points, to allow time for absorption, etc.   You will make excellent use of the visual aids and anticipate points of interest and questions which they will stimulate, in addition to directing the audience to follow your line of inquiry about the image.  Your audience will be eager, active and responsive to your presentation.