Public Speaking and Debate: To Develop Youth Leadship, Social, Organizational and Critical Thinking Skills.

Public Speaking and Debate Teachers

Mr. Roman Pazuniak graduated with Bachelor’s degrees in Film & Television and English from Boston University. Later he received a Master’s in Cinema Studies from New York University. In high school and college he was very active in Lincoln-Douglas and Parliamentary debate. Lately he has dabbled in writing articles for magazines. His interests include architecture, cinema, literature, and philosophy. In his spare time he reads, watches movies, or strolls through historic neighborhoods. He hopes to one day become a tenured professor at a university.

Course Descriptions

Public Speaking in General:

Public speaking is a crucial skill for your child’s success in many aspects of life. Whether it is simply building confidence in everyday interactions, succeeding in an academic environment, or completing a job interview, public and extemporaneous speaking is a necessary ability. These classes seek to provide a groundwork for public speaking and argumentation based on the level of the students. For the youngest students, posture and correct speaking voice will be emphasized, while for the older students organizational ability, critical thinking skills and teamwork will be the primary foci.

Public Speaking for Grades 4-5

This class will seek to develop rudimentary public speaking skills for 4th-5th graders. The students will learn to read eloquently and persuasively from pre-written texts and in later parts of the class will develop some of their own presentations to give in front of the class. These presentations will be developed by students in groups, so that they learn teamwork skills. The students will not be required to memorize their speeches, but will have to learn to speak smoothly and naturally from a text, while making eye-contact with the audience. Finally, the class will be required to develop a presentation of either a pre-written play, or if they are so inclined, a play of their own making. This activity will not only be fun, but will also increase confidence and presentational skills in front of an audience. As in all the public speaking classes, courtesy and respect to the students presenting will be enforced.

Public Speaking for Graders 6-8

This class will seek to develop strong presentational and public speaking skills for junior high school students. The students will be required to present on a variety of topics and learn different modes of public speaking such as prepared and extemporaneous speeches and group presentations. Special focus will be given to learning and developing PowerPoint skills. Students will be required to present on topics of their choice, without reading directly from the projector screen. Students will develop skills in group presentations in order to improve teamwork and leadership abilities. For the extemporaneous exercises, students will be given a topic and then given a few minutes to develop a speech. This will help them become quick on their feet and improve critical thinking skills crucial for college and most careers.

Public Speaking and Debate for High School

This level of public speaking will focus most on organizational skills, critical thinking abilities and group interaction. Students will be required to speak clearly and persuasively about a variety of topics without a pre-written text. The class will begin with a review of rudimentary public speaking skills and tricks, such as making eye-contact, using appropriate hand gestures, and maintaining correct posture. The class will then move on to extemporaneous speeches, which the students will have to develop on a given topic after a few minutes of preparation. Other students in the class will be given a chance to ask questions, which the presenters will have to answer. The focus will be on organizing a speech to be coherent and persuasive. Next, the students will develop debating abilities. The critical skills of debate are very helpful for things such as SAT essays and job interviews. The students will write up arguments about topics of their choice and then debate their classmates in a commonly used debate style (parliamentary).