Speaking In An Electronic Age

Technology changes everything. This is often a good thing and some changes do not come fast enough. Still, other changes will make you scratch your head and wonder. In this day of competitive education, of Community Colleges not just looking to cater to a select group of people (all colleges as well), the colleges are looking to teach more and more classes online. Where I teach (and I am sure other instructions as well), the goal is to be able to allow students to obtain a degree without ever having to step foot onto the campus.

This means more and more institutions are looking at teaching Public Speaking on-line as this is a required class for many disciplines. Teaching Public Speaking on-line seems a little odd. How do you judge certain criteria, even if you have the person on a video in front of you? Do you really get a full appreciation for body language and gestures? It seems that a lot would get lost.

On the other hand, in this day and age, when presentations and done via the web, when we have e-conferencing and webinars, there clearly is a place for an on-line Public Speaking course. Teaching people how to handle the technical aspect, having people feel comfortable when they are on a screen, is helpful and important.

The bottom line is, this is going to become a reality, regardless of my feelings. As a result, I am hopeful that I will be able to teach some of these classes. It would cut down on travel time, teach me a new skill and get me an extra class or two (hopefully) to teach.