This week, you will provide a speech that has a specific persuasive appeal embedded within it. Your goal is to use principles of effective persuasive delivery to drive your audience towards action. At the conclusion of your speech, your audience should know what you’re asking them to do (e,g., adopt a new idea, cease engaging in a particular activity, continue engaging in a particular activity, avoid engaging in a certain activity, etc.).

You must select a controversial topic for this speech. Remember to use principles of deliberating in good faith! Though you may speak on any controversial you wish, you must take a clear “side” and your argument should reflect a commitment to that side. Though you are not limited to the topics found here, you might find the ProCon website to be helpful starting place.

In your speech, you must clearly demonstrate an understanding of the models, tactics, and strategies of persuasion. It is critical that you carefully review all course content (lectures, readings, etc.) before completing this task.

Your overall speech should be 4-7 minutes in length and incorporate all of the principles of effective delivery.  You will be expected to cite at least 3 academic articles on your topic. You will also be expected to follow all of the guidelines for effective speech delivery. Remember to utilize the speech evaluation worksheet to evaluate your performance on the first draft. You should never submit your first draft as your final draft. Submit only your best. You will be evaluatedusing the rubric available below.

You must submit an outline along with your speech! Please use the outline template provided to you.