Charlie Pakluck, Campus Carrier photographer
When you think of public address, odds are that you are not thinking about how fun and exciting it is. More likely, you feel anxious and become filled with dread. You imagine standing in front of a classroom and delivering a shaky speech while all of your classmates stare at you, and all you can think about is everything you could mess up. You are not alone in
these feelings.
Steven Zauderer with CrossRiverTherapy.com wrote, “10 percent of the population loves speaking in front of people, 10 percent are terrified of speaking in front of people, while 80 percent fall somewhere in the middle.” This is exactly why everyone should take a public address class at some point in their lives.
A public address class is, to put it simply, a class that teaches about the act of addressing the public. Students learn about the various kinds of speeches, how to write a speech and how to deliver an engaging speech. Throughout the course, students become more comfortable and gradually lose the overwhelming anxiety that most people are consumed by when speaking in front of people. The skills learned in a public address class are some that a person will use for their entire life.
Public address is used constantly. College tour guides are one group that people may not consider when thinking about who uses
public address.
According to Linkedin.com, “Campus tour guides show prospective students and visitors around the campus, share information about academic and social life and answer questions.”
The guide will show tourists the campus and tell them what each building is and will then take questions, meaning they have to know how to think on their feet to properly answer them. Additionally, whether rude, dismissive or otherwise, the guide can not let a tourist’s attitude bring them down. A public address class would teach them how to stay confident no matter how people respond.
Another skill learned in a public address class is how to give a speech without breaking under the pressure. Evolutionary Psychologists believe that people have a fear of rejection from peers, which is why many are often anxious when giving speeches. The psychologists theorize that this stems from the human roots of being in a tribe; if you were rejected by your tribe, you would sometimes
be killed.
NationalSocialAnxietyCenter.com_wrote, “Speaking to an audience makes us vulnerable to rejection, much like our ancestors’ fear.”
Taking a public address class will eventually help a person to overcome the predisposition to this anxiety, aiding the student in giving an effective and clear speech.
Taking public address classes will greatly change a person’s attitude on the subject. No matter how scared they are going into it, they will likely leave with an air of confidence knowing that they can compose and present a speech with minimal complication. Knowing that, when given the chance, you can handle having to be a part of a public speaking situation helps to ease the anxiety that so many have surrounding the subject. Everyone would benefit from taking a public address class.