The primary
purpose of this course is to improve your public speaking skills. We
will be studying topic selection, audience analysis, research,
outlining, speech writing, and speech delivery. By the end of this
course, you will have improved your verbal and nonverbal communication
skills and will be able to successfully and confidently present speeches
in a variety of real-world situations.
Course Requirements:
REQUIREMENT:
% of final grade
Speeches 50%
Written Activities and Experience
Worksheets 25%
Quizzes 15%
Semester Exam 10%
Minimum 1 scheduled conference with
me during the semester
Grading:
90%-100%=A
80%-89%=B
70%-79%=C
60%-69%=D
59% and below=F.
Late Work:
Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date for full
credit. Late work will be accepted the next day for a maximum of a 60%;
after that a zero will be given. It is up to YOU to schedule a time to
make up your late speech, as there won’t be time during class. For each
legitimate absence, one equivalent day will be given for make-up work.
Hello students and parents. My name is Erin Gatfield and I am eager to begin my first year at Compass Honors High School as the English and Speech teacher. My background includes five years of teaching experience at Melba High School where I taught English courses, as well as advised the National Honor Society and the Mustang Readers Club. I received my BA in English in 2002 and my master’s degree in teaching in 2003 from the College of Idaho.
While teaching is my primary passion, I also love to travel, and have taken student groups on two international trips: one to England, France, and Spain in 2005, and another group to Italy and Greece in 2008. In my spare time, you will find me enjoying the outdoors with my husband and our boisterous golden retriever, Kaia, backpacking or camping in Idaho’s mountains.
I look forward to getting to know all of you, and building that rapport that is an essential part of successful education!
Plagiarism:
Plagiarism is the
use of someone else’s words, ideas, or theories as your own without giving
the author/artist/creator proper credit. Always
cite
quotations or paraphrased material. I (and Compass Honors High School) take
plagiarism very seriously; if you plagiarize a speech from a book, the
internet, a friend, or any other source, you have unfortunately chosen to
receive a zero on the assignment.
Course Expectations:
All
worksheets, readings, and other assignments are due on the following day
(e.g., a worksheet assigned on Tuesday is due on Wednesday). Speeches will
occur during the latter part of the week (with the exception of November 2nd-4th).
I will use a variety of methods to determine which students give their
speeches on which days. Please do NOT procrastinate in preparing your
speeches. Speeches should fit the time requirements and be on topic. All
written assignments require complete sentences and correct spelling.