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This was a great buy, with a great price and fast delivery. I will never buy a book at my school bookstore again.
I agree with the audience-centered focus to public speaking. I like Beebe's perspective on the field of communication studies, and I value his work. I worked in developing instructional materials to support this book and used the book in my teaching.
This book contains so much information, but it is set out in a way you can easily read and retain it.
As another reviewer points out, Audience Centered public speaking dates back at least as far back as Aristotle.In keeping with the new-fangled approaches towards learning, 'Pubic Speaking: An Audience Centered Approach' offers the student a full multi-media experience, that is reflected in the price. What is more, you can actually see the speeches being delivered through examples provided by online video clips.
You might fid it worth it, or you might not. Without a doubt the price for this package is a little steep.
'Audience Centered' seems to be an obvious off-shoot of the teaching styles, that have become hyper-popular over the last decade or two, that claim to be 'Student Centered'. This renewed package though, is a veritable collection of expert advice on all aspects of public speaking, from preparing to completion.
Value is so subjective after all, but 'Public Speaking: An Audience Centered Approach' certainly takes advantage of the many more learning channels available today, than a book alone can, or even an audio/book course. Is it just a buzz word, or is there something in it.
However I love such an approoach as it allows the student to learn in his or her preferred learning style.While I don't need to go into the contents of the course because the product description by the publisher is more than adequate.
Of course, this does not mean that the speaker tells the audience only what they want to hear; to do that would not convey anything to the audience but a good feeling. The highly illustrated book is carefully organized with a mixture of text, tables, drawings, comments and questions to maintain the students interest while educating him. You can't say that the audience-centered concept used in this book was pioneered by them. Some of the example speeches, 'I Have a Dream,' Martin Luther King, Jr., speak to people holding views very opposed to his. Indeed these techniques are some that can be used by the student in his speeches. After all, in the first paragraph the authors give credit to Aristotle for defining the elements of speechmaking as 'of speaker, subject and person addresed - it is the last one, the herer, that determines the speaker's end and object.' The first edition of this book, about 15 years ago, set the tone for what has now become the sisth edition, with each edition improved by audience feedback and new educational concepts. The general concept of keeping the audience at the center of of the speakers mind through all of the steps in the process.
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