WJHS Pathfinder for English 10B
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What am I supposed to do?
This assignment requires the preparation and delivery of a speech to both inform and teach your targeted audience (classmates) about a specific topic and to persuade them to adopt your point of view, thoughts, ideas, opinions or standards on that same topic. Because you will be both informing and persuading your audience simultaneously, it is important that you choose your subject matter carefully. Select a topic in which you have an interest but which also has merit (some possible topics are listed in the section which follows). Submit three topics for possible approval. There can be no duplication of topics, and your topic must be approved by the instructor. You will also be required to submit an informative/persuasive written paper on the same topic.
Not only are you providing your audience with necessary background information on a relevant topic, you are encouraging them to agree with you. In other words, you are using two separate approaches (informative and persuasive) to address the same topic. It is important in this type of speech to strike a harmonious balance between an appeal to the intellect and an appeal to the emotions. The topic you select should be controversial with at least two sides to the issue. You will persuade from one point of view, although you will need to acknowledge and refute the opposition.
Speech Requirements: 
You must employ the use of at least one valid, relevant visual aid in your speech. For example, you may choose to use the blackboard, the overhead projector, or a handout. You may also create your own visual display (i.e. a poster) or you may use the audiovisual equipment. Your visual aid must have relevance, it must be referred to, and it must be integrated into your speech. You are encouraged to be creative.
The time constraint for the speech is five minutes in length; it will be timed. There will be some margin of leeway for speeches that go slightly over the five minute time constraint. You are encouraged to use notecards for your speech. You want to be familiar enough with your speech so that you do not rely too heavily on the actual text but appear natural in your delivery. You should also incorporate the use of hand gestures and eye contact -- tools you have already used in the past.
It is important to use a variety of methods to convince/persuade
your audience.
The following techniques should be used: 
Examples:
Provocation/Mollification
Statistics
Anecdotes
Visual Aids
Counter-Arguments (this occurs when the speaker addresses an issue regarding the opposite sides of the argument and then refutes it by systematically poking holes in its visibility. This technique must be employed during your persuasive speech.
Follow this link for an Oral Presentation Check-list:
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Composition Requirements:
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The following are some suggested topics. You are encouraged to develop your own.
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What are the possible sources of information I can use?
ONLINE REFERENCES– INTERNET SITES (on the list)- BOOKS
Location and Access
Where will I find these sources?
Find information in encyclopedias, biographies, newspapers, personal interviews, and the Internet. The Library Media Center and other libraries.
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ONLINE RESOURCES:
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Some suggested books from the Walter Johnson Media Center:
Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment by Stephen A. Flanders; 364.6 FLA
Criminal Sentencing edited by Robert Emmet Long; 345.07 CRI
Reviving the Death Penalty edited by R.A. Baumgart and Gary E McCuen;
364.6 REV
Marijuana
Marijuana: Its Effects on Mind and Body by William J. Hermes and
Anne Galperin; 362.2 COH
Homelessness
Homeless in America by Anna Kosof; 362.5 KOS
The Homeless: Opposing Viewpoints by Tamara Roleff, editor; 362.5
HOM
Homeless Teens by Gail B. Stewart; Photographs by Carl Franzen; 362.7
STE
Nuclear Power
Nuclear Power: Promise or Peril? by Michael J. Daley; 333.792 DAL
Nuclear Energy, Salvation or Suicide? edited by Carol C. Collins;
333.79 NUC
Battered Women
Battered Women: Living With the Enemy by Anna Kosof; 362.82 KOS
The Battered Woman by Lenore E. Walker; 362.8 WAL
Internet
Sites
Topics
for Persuasive Speeches
National Coalition to End the Death Penalty
Support Network for Battered Women
Battered Women's Justice Project
Incurably Ill for Animal Research
Medline Plus Health Information
Department of Health and Human Services: Homelessness
Child Welfare League of America
Use of Information
How will I record the information?
How will I evaluate the information?
Gather information
Submit 3 possible topics for approval
At least 5 reference sources
Speech and Paper: 3-5 pages typed, double spaced
Informative and Persuasive Speech
Final copy of the paper (3-5 pages, typed)
Credit sources: Cite or quote 3 sources in your paper using correct bibliographic citations(for tips see Works Cited Format) for your article at the end of your essay.
Evaluation
Finished assignment fulfills task.
- Information found matches information needed?
- How well did my paper turn out?
- Did I revise with a critical eye?
- Sources are credited.
- Was I happy with my process of finding and using information?
- Work is complete and includes name and date.
- Work is handed in on time.
- How would I do a similar project in the future?
