Public Speaking Tips for Performing Arts Educators

The college course load for performing arts educators today probably included classes on how to perform on their instrument on the stage or at the podium, ways to support others in learning how to share their talents, and methods on developing curriculum, class plans, handouts and evaluations. It may also have included opportunities to conduct an ensemble, direct a production or organize a debate competition.

It likely did not include a course or even a workshop on how to address the audience members who came to see and support your students’ collective and individual efforts. And as a working educator, you now know that your words of introduction, clarification, explanation or instructions are a significant part of the overall experience your parents desire. And they expect you to provide those words in a clear, intelligible, enjoyable manner, highlighting all of your students and possibly theirs. Their efforts deserve your best.

And your best does not include “hemming and hawing” your way through your welcome, introductions, thanks and instructions. Saying “uh” every time you take a breath, mispronouncing names or titles, saying something and then having to correct yourself, not sharing all of the information in the right order, or having to go back to include something you missed all make your audience members uneasy. And while there are some giggles and laughs when you make a mistake or have to backtrack, those are there because they know you, not because they find your presentation humorous or enjoyable. They, too, have been in the same situation and done the same things.

Just like your concert or debate or play, preparation is the key to a better presentation. And like all three, practice is a part of that preparation. The preparation involves several steps and once completed, practicing can include you and a mirror, you and a colleague, you simply going over the material in your head.

Many public speakers have the ability to memorize their speech, memorize the information they need to share, memorize the names of people they need to mention and simply recite that back to the audience. They still do the same preparation and the same practice, but are able to make their presentation without notes, bullet points or text. Most educators do not have that ability, so part of their preparation is creating the support they need to be able to sound like they have it all memorized.

Preparation steps include:
Listing what needs to be shared with the audience

What information do they need to know prior to the performance that will help them understand and appreciate it more?

Organizing that listing so that each item leads into the next

What makes sense first? Last? What can be combined?

Write out the speech in long-hand as you would speak it

Include the way you speak, don’t write it in a manner that is unnatural

Check for completeness

Introduction? Names and purposes? Needed instructions?

Read it out loud

Listen to how it sounds – Record yourself if you wish

Reorganize it to clear it up

Make it flow by removing stumbles, changing the order

Consider an anecdote or humor

Make it personal to you to make it easier to share

Read it out loud again

Better? Worse? Too long? Missing something? Places to pause make sense?

Edit and create the final version

Make sure it gets the job done and is how you would say it

Practice it with the full version several times

Each time use the paper less and your memory more

Create your speech notes

Reduce the text to phrases or bullet points or a list - just what you need to go through it successfully

Practice with those notes

Look up each time your notes remind you of the text

Practice short sections to include your personal phrasing

Challenge yourself to improve

Look at your notes less and less with each presentation

Once you are comfortable with your speech, be comfortable presenting it. Look at your audience; look across the back row when speaking so you don’t actually see any faces. Move and gesture; point, raise your ams, move from side to side around the microphone instead of just straight on to it. Smile and bow; your facial expressions are important, and you don’t have to always have eye contact, especially when pausing. Adjust as you go; extend a pause or emphasize or repeat a line based on the audience reaction. Be you when you are making the speech and if you need to stop to recall, breathe but do not open your mouth to fill the silence. Dead air is better than “hemming and hawing.”

Once you have done one, the additional ones become easier. The audience reaction and recollection will be better. And the process will become second nature, and take less and less time for preparation. You will find that your ability to memorize larger sections, organize your points into a smoother flow, and be able to include more gestures will improve as well. And after a while, you might even enjoy public speaking and start to look forward to those opportunities to bring your best in support of your students’ best.

Steffen Parker is a retired music educator, event organizer, maple sugar maker, and Information Technology specialist from Vermont who serves as the Performing Arts/Technology representative on the NFHS High School Today Publications Committee.