Public Speaking Learning from Youngsters in the BBC “The Speaker” Competition

A great public speaking competition series, close on the heels of the “The Lost Art of Oratory” has started and whilst it is a competition to find the best speaker of Britain – The Speaker. From thousands of fourteen to eighteen year olds, they were whittled down to twenty by giving in one minute the speech of their life.

It showed many applicable points to help public speaking, not just in public speaking competition.

It often highlighted  the benefit of believing and having passion in the topic you are talking about. Whether it was Emily, from Norfolk, who was talking about teenage mums, she is pregnant, posing the question - are you going to be respectful or judgemental about the pregnant teenagers you see in the street?  Or
Callum who at four foot five inches tall, talked about how people judge him, by my size, being small is not that bad, small is beautiful.

However the judges raised the question whether they were one horse ponies, if they had to talk about other subjects.

There was a bit of sibling rivalry, two sisters, the first one, the musician talked about Rosa Parks story and the start of the black movement in the states, through the strength of her will.   It was deemed a perfect presentation. Then her sister, the athletic, talked about the Olympics and the issue of obesity, but she blocked herself, several times. As one judge said, “she was destroyed by her nerves”.

Practise makes perfect. Many of them did the practise on their own, their mothers heard, through the bedroom door. The benefit of feedback being missed.

The pressure out there was hard, forgetting the lines, can happen to anyone, but they showed the perseverance to continue. Jonathon – talked about extreme hairstyles, he also stumbled at the end, but his dynamic use of the stage was praised by the judges. Using the full space at your disposal is always  a good principal, rather than staying static. Public Speaking competition is hard.

Duncan, a fourteen year old had volume and energy, though the content was a bit dodgy, with more a recent ice age than history records.

The girl who talked about sex raised a discussion between the judges whether  you should answer the question that is posed, give a view or leave open. They didn’t give a clear view, I think it depends on the situation.

One of the contestants pushed the Welsh cause and the language, and showed the musicality of his accent.

Appropriately, as the origin of great orators,  one of them, talked about why the gods and goddesses of the Greek myths were important. He was praised for the use of  his hands.

The intangible measure  of connecting with the audience was shown by a Yorkshire girl who was talking  about how great it is to be a geek. The judges thought it was important, as she went through to the next stage. I can’t wait until the next one, a riveting public speaking competition

Regards

Steve