Issue 1, Fall 1990

William A. McEachern, Editor

Say it Well

The key to saying it well is to generate and sustain student interest. Alfred North Whitehead noted, "There can be no mental development without interest."

So how do we generate and sustain interest? When possible, open your lecture with a hook -- a question, a problem, a controversy, an outrageous statement -- something to get students' attention. Don't read from your notes. The students' interest and zest for learning is sapped when lectures are reduced to the routine transmittal of predigested information. Such lectures often amount to a process by which the instructor's notes become the students' notes without passing through the brains of either. As Juvenal said two thousand years ago, "That cabbage hashed up again and again proves the death of the wretched teachers." Another problem with reading from notes is that to do so you must stand in one place: at the podium. Your presentation will be more dynamic if you are free to move around. So move around, but don't pace (walking back and forth like a caged tiger can have the same numbing effect on students as standing in one place).

Interest flows from variety -- variety in the types of material presented and in the way material is presented. Your presentations could include theory, facts, statistics, graphs, anecdotes, examples, analogies, questions, opinions, discussion, and other approaches. Vary both the pitch of your voice and, on occasion, your volume. The best voice is your natural speaking voice with all the modulation and variance you normally have. For some reason, certain instructors turn on a "stage voice" when they step in front of a class; this stage voice is louder, more monotone, and often more irritating than their normal voice.

Enthusiasm is your best ally for generating and sustaining student interest -- an enthusiasm for the material, for the students, and for your ability to get things across. Enthusiasm is the oil that lubricates the machinery of teaching. An average speaker fired with enthusiasm can be more persuasive and more arresting than can a skilled orator without it. Emerson wrote, "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." Your presentation should be bold, aggressive, animated. You must demonstrate an interest in what you are saying. Pepper your presentation with evidence from common experience to reinforce the point in question.

The great orator Demosthenes, when asked to list the three most important qualities of public speaking replied, "Action, action, and action!" The color and animation of your language are evidence of action, but your nonverbal actions often speak louder than words. Direct your nonverbal action in positive ways. Students are able to sense how organized you are. Send the message that you are in control. Get to class on time; be prepared, organized, and alert. Put your outline of the day's lecture on the left-hand side of the blackboard. This gives the lecture more organization and provides students with a handy guide. Gestures are a form of body language that reveal mental activity and convey your interest and enthusiasm for the topic. Gestures can also be an effective way to reinforce a point, such as with the sweep of an arm. Your gestures should appear comfortable and spontaneous, not planned and artificial.

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