Speaking Skills for University Success

Go to Course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/speaking-skills-for-university-success

Introduction

### Course Review: Speaking Skills for University Success on Coursera #### Overview "Speaking Skills for University Success" is an invaluable course available on Coursera designed specifically for students navigating the unique communication demands of English-speaking universities. As you step into this academic environment, effective communication skills become crucial not only for academic excellence but also for building social connections. This course comprehensively addresses various speaking situations, including formal academic discussions, informal interactions, group project communications, and effective presentation techniques. #### Course Structure The course is structured into four detailed weeks, each focusing on essential speaking skills: 1. **Successful Academic Discussions**: The first week lays the groundwork for engaging in academic discourse with classmates. It emphasizes preparing for discussions by gathering necessary background information, facilitating participation, and navigating disagreements. Through video analysis, you’ll learn to identify the strengths and weaknesses of discussion techniques while enhancing your own skills in leading conversations. 2. **Informal Speaking**: The second week shifts to the realm of informal communication, critical for fostering relationships during your university experience. You’ll explore strategies for effective collaboration in group projects, learn the art of small talk, and discover what topics to embrace or avoid in casual conversations. The course encourages you to practice impromptu speaking, a skill that is often overlooked yet vital. 3. **Planning a Great Presentation**: Communication in an academic setting often culminates in presentations. In the third week, the focus is on structuring a compelling presentation. You’ll find guidance on creating engaging introductions, supporting your main ideas with credible details, and concluding with impactful remarks. The course also provides opportunities to watch and evaluate presentations, allowing you to hone your critical assessment skills. 4. **Delivering a Great Presentation**: The final week culminates in the delivery phase of your presentation journey. You'll receive insights on rehearsal techniques, effective slide preparation, and the application of body language and vocal variety to enhance your delivery. Through practical exercises, including analyzing a speaker's style, you’ll gain confidence in your ability to captivate your audience. #### Learning Experience The course is designed with an interactive approach, incorporating video lessons, peer discussions, and practical assignments that directly apply to the academic environment. The instructors are knowledgeable and provide a wealth of practical advice that will benefit students across various disciplines. The supportive community of classmates fosters an engaging learning atmosphere, allowing for valuable feedback and shared experiences. #### Recommendation I highly recommend "Speaking Skills for University Success" to any student preparing to thrive in an English-speaking academic setting. This course doesn’t merely teach speaking; it equips students with practical strategies and tools that are essential for successful communication in formal and informal contexts. Whether you're preparing for group projects, joining discussions, or planning presentations, this course stands out as an essential resource to enhance your academic journey. Overall, the skills gained from this course will not only aid in achieving academic success but will also contribute significantly to personal development and social integration within the university environment. Enrolling in this course is a step toward becoming a more effective communicator and a more confident participant in your educational experience.

Syllabus

Successful Academic Discussions

In this first week of the course, we’ll be talking about academic discussions—the situations when you’ll be talking about an academic topic with a group of classmates. You’ll learn how to prepare for a discussion by gathering background knowledge and how to lead a discussion and encourage everyone to participate. You’ll also learn how to help your discussion go smoothly and how to handle disagreements, which are bound to arise in any discussion. Finally, you’ll practice by watching a video of an academic discussion and rating its strong and weak points. Let’s begin!

This week you’ll learn about several situations that require informal communication. First you’ll hear how you can work more smoothly in group projects, which have become a very common type of assignment in university work. You’ll learn about the importance of small talk—all those casual conversations with friends or strangers that lead to smoother communication—and learn which topics to talk about and which ones to avoid. You’ll hear some tips for times when you need to speak without having a chance to prepare, and record your impromptu speaking practice to share with other students. So let’s get started with informal speaking

This week we’ll start thinking about presentations—those assignments when you’ll have time to prepare a speech and present it in front of a class. You’ll learn about the parts of a presentation and what elements should be included in each one. You’ll think about how to catch the listeners’ interest and introduce your main idea in the introduction, how to give more details to support your ideas in the body, and how to wrap it all up in a “fireworks” conclusion. You’ll practice by watching and evaluating a presentation on an academic topic. Let’s get ready to give a great presentation!

In this last week of the course, you’ll hear some advice about how to give the presentation that you’ve planned so carefully. You’ll hear some tips for how to rehearse your speech so that you can deliver it smoothly, and you’ll learn some basic principles for preparing attractive slides to go along with your speech and presenting them well. You’ll also hear some suggestions for speaking effectively by using both the power of your voice and effective body language. You’ll practice by playing around with the arrangement of elements on some slides, and you’ll analyze the presentation style of a speaker in a recorded speech. So let’s begin!