UNITED COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND

RESEARCH
SOFT SKILLS
(BAS-105/205)
UNIT – 4

UNITED COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & RESEARCH,

NAINI, ALLAHABAD
(DR. A.P.J ABDUL KALAM TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY,
LUCKNOW)
(Formally Uttar Pradesh Technical University)

BY-
DR. SHWETA SINGH
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 Unit-4

Presentation and Interaction Skills

 INTRODUCTION TO ORAL COMMUNICATION,

 NUANCES & MODES OF SPEECH DELIVERY,

 PUBLIC SPEAKING: CONFIDENCE, CLARITY, AND FLUENCY

 INDIVIDUAL SPEAKING: ELEMENTS

 NON VERBAL COMMUNICATION: KINESICS

 PARALINGUISTICFEATURES OF VOICE-DYNAMICS,

 PROXEMICS, CHRONEMICS,

 PRESENTATION STRATEGIES:

PLANNING, PREPARATION, ORGANIZATION, DELIVERY.

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 Unit-4

Presentation and Interaction Skills

What is communication?

The word “communication” has been derived from the Latin word ‘communicare’ which indicates
‘sharing’. So communication means sharing of ideas, thoughts and feelings between two or more than two
persons. In short we can say that communication is the act of transferring an idea or some information
from one person to another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening and
understanding.
According to Brown,“Communication is the process of transmitting ideas or thoughts from one
person to another for the purpose of creating understanding in the thinking of the person receiving
the communication”.
The Oxford Advanced Learners’ Dictionary defines communication as: “the activity or process of
expressing ideas and feelings or of giving people information”.
Communication is very essential at all levels in human life without which one can’t survive in this social
environment encompassing personal as well as professional.
The main purpose of communication is to correctly pass the information to the receiver, thus creating
clarity of thoughts and removing misunderstanding, else the whole idea of the communication could be
defeated.

Types of communication

Types of
Communication

Verbal Non Verbal Formal Informal

Communicati Communication Communicati Communicati
on on on

Oral Written Kinesics/ Vertical, Grapevine

Communicatio Communicati Body Horizontal and
n on Language Diagonal

Oral communication includes face to face conversation, telephonic conversation, group discussions,
interviews, conferences, seminars, speeches etc. Oral communication is extremely useful while
communicating with groups at meetings but oral messages do not have any legal validity unless they are
taped and made a part of permanent record.

NUANCES OF SPEECH DELIVERY

There are four modes of delivery which can be used for giving a speech:

1. Extemporaneous:
2. This is the most popular and effective method when carefully prepared. You must prepare
and rehearse the speech but not word by word and line by line. You will sound spontaneous
as after thorough preparations, you are speaking while thinking.
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 3. Manuscript:
In manuscript delivery, material is written out and you are supposed to read it out aloud verbatim.
You are not supposed to memorize the speech and then recollect it. It's there in front of you to
read. But, you should be wise enough not to attempt to read a speech until you have become a
proficient reader.

4. Impromptu:
This means a speech delivered without any preparation done beforehand i.e. unrehearsed delivery in
speech.

5. Memorization:
This can be one of the most effective methods of delivering a speech. But it requires an extra-ordinary
power to memorize because if the presenter forgets his lines, his speech will sound
stilled/unnatural/too formal.

PUBLIC SPEAKING: Achieving confidence, clarity and fluency

CONFIDENCE

How to Develop Confidence Speaking

 Expect to be nervous.
 Prepare.
 Practice.
 Breathe.
 Rehearse
 Focus on your audience.
 Simplify.
 Visualize success.
 Connect with your audience.
 Act confident.

Fluency
Speech fluency is very important in today’s era. Those who have been struggling with speech are aware
about the negative consequences associated with the inability to communicate fluently.
Although the individual may have fewer skills than you, the ability to communicate effectively can lead
one to the top of the success ladder, and to communicate effectively, speech fluency has to be there.

TIPS to develop Confidence and Fluency in Speaking

Given below are 7 secrets for developing your confidence and fluency in your English Speaking. These 7
secrets are tried and tested. They are simple, practical and result oriented.

Learn the basics of English Grammar. It’s difficult to speak without understanding the basics of
English grammar. You don’t have to know every rule of grammar book but you must know the essentials
of the grammar. When you speak with errors, it does not look presentable and others judge you. It’s better
to know some essentials of the grammar. It gives you clarity. It helps you to make correct sentences. It
helps what to include, what not to or when to put and how to put. This gives clarity and it builds your
self-confidence.

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Keep it (language) short and simple. The majority of the population has a myth that if they have to
speak English they must make long sentences or complex sentences. This you way they think that they
can impress others. Fortunately, they are wrong. The objective of communication is to communicate your
thoughts, ideas, feelings and information and not to confuse with your long sentences or complex
sentences or with difficult vocabulary.

Begin using a digital dictionary to build vocabulary. The language is a game of words. Words are
swords in the language. The appropriate usage of words makes language beautiful, impressive and
interesting. More you have better it is. Rich vocabulary cannot be developed in a day or night. It is
developed every day. You don’t have to carry a hard copy of a dictionary anywhere these days. You can
use a digital dictionary on mobile, tabs or internet. Develop the habit of using a dictionary to know the
correct meaning, pronunciation, spelling and usage of the word.

Start reading celebrity interviews in English. Mostly interviews of superstars are usually in
conversations. Conversations are between the celebrity and journalists. The conversations are simple.
easy to understand. You see how sentences are framed. You can see how grammar and vocabulary are
used. You will have more exposure to the English language. You can learn new words, new sentences,
and ideas on how to talk on different topics. By reading celebrity interviews, you will enhance your
vocabulary, appropriate use of grammar, and exposure to the language.

Start watching celebrity interviews, movies, and videos in English. In the previous statement, I
recommended to read celebrity interviews and now I am asking you to watch them on YouTube or
television. Reading has its benefits and watching has its advantage. By watching you can hear correct
pronunciation; you can see the right usage of body language. In videos words have emotions. Words
without emotions don’t carry the right meaning. We learn more by watching than by reading, listening
and thinking. Visual learning is better, faster, and more effective than auditory learning. Scientifically it is
proved that visual learning is more powerful than auditory learning. The best way to learn about
emotions, body language, tone, correct pronunciation and right application of grammar and vocabulary is
by watching celebrity interviews, movies and videos on different subjects in English.

Practice speaking daily. The best way to learn speaking any language is by speaking. We already know
at least one language. We hadn’t learnt our mother tongue by joining the class or learning grammar. Just
by speaking, we have learnt our language. We kept on practicing till we achieved the outcome. That’s
how we must do with the English language. After learning grammar, building vocabulary, reading, and
watching English videos if you don’t practice speaking, it is useless. The best way to learn any skill or
language is practice. Develop the habit of speaking. You develop the habit of speaking and that habit
develops your speaking skills. “More you sweat in the practice lesser you bleed in the battleground.”

Enjoy the process. You can’t reach your destination if you don’t enjoy the journey. You must have
passion, dedication, enthusiasm, and focus on the goal. The best way to achieve any goal is first to know
the process. And second is follow the process. If you don’t know the process and then you can’t follow
the process. Even you know the process, but don’t follow it till you can’t achieve your desired outcome.

CLARITY IN SPEAKING
 Do not speak too fast or too slow
 Get the idea clearly
 Plan the medium and delivery
 Get an idea of the audience
 Pronounce words correctly
 Establish compatibility between verbal and non-verbal means

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KINESICS
 The body language is technically known as Kinesics. Kinesics is the name given to the study of
the body’s physical movements.
 According to Raymond and John, “Kinesics is the way the body communicates without words,
i.e., through various movements of its parts”.
 E.g.nodding your head, blinking your eyes, waving the hands.

• Nonverbal communication is the widely used method in the communication process where a
person doesn’t use a single word or language to pass his/her message or information to other
people. It is also considered as an indirect method through which people communicate with
others without using words or language.
• It refers to signals transmitted through facial expressions, posture, eye contact, gestures, tone of
voice, body language, and other ways. When a person doesn’t use the words to converse with
others rather uses visual cues such as facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, posture, body
language, tone of voice to express their feelings or convey the message, then it is called a Non-
verbal communication. It is not a structured method that is guided by specific rules and
regulations rather non-verbal communication is a reflection of the person who is involved in the
communication process.
• Nonverbal communication reveals a lot about you as a communicator and how you relate to other
people. It pays to be aware of the elements of your nonverbal communication so you can
maximize the impact of your message. One has to understand how their expressions can impact
the other person and thus need to be very careful.

Kinesics includes:-
• Facial expressions: Face is the index of mind. It reflects what going inside the mind of the
speaker. Facial expressions—happy, sad, angry—help you convey your message. Be aware of
your facial expression when you talk and particularly when you listen, which is when it’s easy to
forget.
• Gestures: Gestures are the physical movement of arms, legs, hands and head. The greater the
gesture, the louder will be the speech and vice-versa. When you speak, a gesture can make your
message stronger. Gestures help further engage your audience when you speak.
• Proximity: Proximity means closeness. How close you are to your audience when you speak
sends a nonverbal message.
• Touch: Shaking an audience member’s hand, putting your hand on his shoulder: these are
nonverbal cues that can affect the success of your message. Touch communicates affection, but it
also communicates power.
• Eye contact: Making and maintaining eye contact with an audience when you’re verbally
communicating or listening communicates to the other party that you’re interested and engaged in
the conversation. Good eye contact often conveys the trait of honesty to the other party.
• Appearance: By appearance we mean external appearance in which our dress, jewellery and
make-up plays a pivot role. Your clothing, hair, and jewelry are also a part of nonverbal
communication. All of these things speak nonverbally about you as a communicator.
• Body Posture: By the right posture, we can impress the audience. A person with good and
appealing body shape but with bad postures and unfavorable image will communicate a negative
message.

PARALINGUISTICS

Paralinguistic features are non verbal vocal cues that help you to give urgency to your
voice.Your voice is your trademark. It is that part of yourself that adds human touch to your words.

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Features of Voice Dynamics
Quality
Quality is a characteristic that distinguishes one voice from another.
The distinctive tone of speech sounds produced by a particular person yields a particular voice.

Pitch
Pitch refers to the number of vibrations per second of your voice.There may also be emotional factors to
the pitch of a person’s voice. When surprised, a person’s voice may be in a higher pitch; but, that same
person’s voice may be a lower pitch when they are tired or upset.
Pitch, in speech, the relative highness or lowness of a tone as perceived by the ear, which depends on the
number of vibrations per second produced by the vocal cords. Pitch is the main acoustic correlate of tone
and intonation.
While in spoken English the pitch contour does not convey semantic meaning, it nevertheless contributes
much to the "emotional tone" of a message

Pace
Rate is the number of words which you speak per minute. The normal rate is from 120 to 150 words per
minute.

Intonation
Intonation: the rise and fall of the voice in speaking.
In phonetics, the melodic pattern of an utterance. Intonation is primarily a matter of variation in
the pitch level of the voice but in such languages as English, stress and rhythm is also involved.
Intonation conveys differences of expressive meaning (e.g., surprise, anger, wariness).
Intonation in English language carries the meaning of a particular phrase.
In many languages, including English, intonation serves a grammatical function, distinguishing one type
of phrase or sentence from another.
Thus, “Your name is John,” beginning with a medium pitch and ending with a lower one (falling
intonation), is a simple assertion.
“Your name is John?”, with a rising intonation (high final pitch), indicates a question.

Falling Intonation
Falling intonation describes how the voice falls on the final stressed syllable of a phrase or a group of
words. A falling intonation is very common in wh-questions.
Where’s the nearest p↘ost-office?
What time does the film f↘inish?
We also use falling intonation when we say something definite, or when we want to be very clear about
something:
I think we are completely l↘ost.
OK, here’s the magaz↘ine you wanted.

Rising Intonation
Rising intonation describes how the voice rises at the end of a sentence. Rising intonation is common
in yes-no questions:
I hear the Health Centre is expanding. So, is that the new d↗octor?
Are you th↗irsty?

Falling-Rising Intonation
Fall-rise intonation describes how the voice falls and then rises. We use fall-rise intonation at the end of
statements when we want to say that we are not sure, or when we may have more to add:
I do↘n’t support any football team at the m↘om↗ent. (but I may change my mind in future).
It rained every day in the firs↘tw↗eek. (but things improved after that).
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We use fall-rise intonation with questions, especially when we request information or invite somebody to
do or to have something. The intonation pattern makes the questions sound more polite:
Is this your cam↘er↗a?
Would you like another co↘ff↗ee?
Eg. Question Tags

Rhythm
The arrangement of spoken words alternating stressed and unstressed elements is known as Rhythm.
In phonetics, rhythm is the sense of movement in speech, marked by the stress, timing, and quantity
of syllables.
Etymology: From the Greek, "flow"
Example: In speech, we find that syllables take the place of musical notes or beats, and in many languages
the stressed syllables determine the rhythm. . . .
"Pitch, loudness, and tempo combine to make up a language's expression of rhythm. Languages vary
greatly in the way in which they make rhythmical contrasts

Syllable:
A syllable is a single segment of uninterrupted sound which is typically produced with a single pulse of
air from the lungs.Each new syllable will create a new vowel sound
Example:
Mississippi
(Four syllables: miss + iss + ipp + i )
Rugged
( two syllables : rugg + ed )

Stress
In phonetics, stress is the degree of emphasis given a sound or syllable in speech, also called lexical stress
or word stress. Unlike some other languages, English has variable (or flexible) stress. This means that
stress patterns can help distinguish the meanings of two words or phrases that otherwise appear to be the
same.
For example, in the phrase "every white house," the words white and house receive roughly equal
stress; however, when we refer to the official home of the American president, "the White House,"
the word White is usually stressed more heavily than House.

This does not necessarily mean that every syllable will contain a vowel, but it will include a vowel sound
when pronounced. For example, rhythm does not contain any vowel, but it is said with two vowel sound (
rith + em ) therefore , rhythm has two syllables .
 Photograph
 Photographer
 Photographic
Although they are related in meaning, they are pronounced differently. This is because the word stress is
put on different syllables within each word; this is what makes them sound different.

In the word photograph, the syllable we add stress to is ‘Pho’ (Pho – to – graph); in the word
photographer, the stress is added to the syllable ‘to’ (Pho – to – grapher – er); and, in the word
photographic, the stress is added to the syllable ‘graph’ (Pho – to – graph – ic).

Pronunciation
If articulation means speaking out all the sounds distinctly, then pronunciation requires us to speak out
sounds in way that is generally accepted.
The best way is to follow-British Received Pronunciation.

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PROXEMICS
Proxemics is the study of physical space in interpersonal relations.
Space is related to behavioral norms.
The way people use space tells you a lot about them.
Speaker should use the psychological power of this space to your advantage.

Edward T. Hall in his ‘The Hidden Dimension’ divides space into four distinct zones:
The four distinct zones are:
 Intimate (0-2 ft.),
 Personal (2-4 ft),
 Social (4-12 ft.) and
 Public (more than 12 ft.).
When strangers enter the wrong zone, we feel uncomfortable. E.g. In an airplane / elevator, this space gets
compromised and we deal with it by “dehumanizing” (making no eye contact and acting busy) those
around us. Even a loud cell phone conversation trespasses this space!

WHAT IS A PRESENTATION?

Presentation
“Something set forth to an audience for the attention of the mind “
Effective
“…producing a desired result”

Effective presentation is an integral part of modern communication. Through effective presentation the
sender would be able to convince the receiver and achieve desired result.
At each and every stage of life effective presentation enhances good result. This makes us curious to
know the strategies of effective presentation

Points to be considered
Following points are to be considered while preparing for a professional presentation:
 Planning
 Outline and structure
 Body language
 Paralinguistic

PLANNING
The content and delivery of our speech are based on five important factors:
Occasion:
Analyzing the LOCALE:
Know the physical setting; find out whether you'll have a podium or a table,whether you'll have a public
address system and so on. Also pay attention to thephysical conditions confronting your audience such as
seating, room temperature,and lighting. Have they been seated on hard metal chairs for an hour in a
freezingroom? Or is the lighting too powerful to render your slide presentation ineffective?

Audience:
 Know Your Audience:
 What are their interests, likes and dislikes?
 Are they familiar with the topic?
 Is their attitude hostile or friendly?
 What's the size of the group?
 Age range? Gender distribution?
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Purpose:
Without knowing the purpose of the presentation you are going to perform, you won’t do the
presentation well and properly.
The main purpose of a presentation is to inform. Your presentation must be well prepared in order to be
able to give information to the audience properly.

The Six Presentation Goals are:

 To inform
Most of the presentations in business are about informing the people in the room. A client or
your manager asks you to come and present on the progress of the project. What they expect is
to get informed. They aren’t looking for inspiration or funny videos. What they want is a clear
explanation of what the status of the project is.
 To educate
When the talks become a bit more complicated, that is usually because they aren’t only to inform.
They are to educate. The goal is to have the audience go home understanding more about what
they heard. They need to leave knowing a lot more.
 To persuade or convince
There are a lot of presentations that have the goal of persuasion. Speakers want to convince the
audience to understand or believe their stand on a topic. Or simpler: to buy a product or service.
 To activate
Close to persuasion is activation. These speeches present the audience with information that
makes them want to take action. Fundraising presentations are good examples, but you can see
them in politics a lot as well. Politicians want people to take action. Or vice versa, people want
politicians to take action.
 To inspire or motivate
In essence, every speaker wants to inspire. Inspiration, after all, is one of the most powerful
emotions. It is great if you are able to inspire people to think, move or change their
behavior.These types of speeches are often seen at TED Conferences.
 To entertain
The last type of presentation is to entertain. Everybody likes to be entertained. And one way of
entertaining is to have a great speech.Many of these types of presentations are done in personal
settings.

Thesis:
Thesis Statement is the central idea of a presentation. It spells out the subject and establishes its impact
among the audience
Steps to arrive at the Thesis Statement:
 Topic
 Topic area
 General Purpose
 Specific Purpose
 Thesis Statement

Material:
 Collecting Data for presentation
 Sources to collect Material:
 Library
 Internet
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  Magazines
 Journals
 Newspapers
 Organizational records
 Statistics
 Questionnaires
 Interviews etc..

PREPARING AN OUTLINE
An outline is a mechanical framework in which are fitted the bits and pieces of your presentation material.
It serves as a guide to show you the right path for your presentation. So spending time in developing an
outline never goes waste.

The outline covers the following points:

 Introduction
 Various parts / aspects
 Function
 Facilities
 Conclusion

Organization
Organize your presentation into Three Major parts:
 Introduction
 Main Body
 Chronological
 Categorical
 Cause and Effect
 Problem-solution
 Conclusions

GUIDELINES FOR EFFECTIVE DELIVERY

 Using Simple and Suitable Words: Words convey different meanings to different people in
different situations.Speech communication is basically a word-based communication. Simple,
common and familiar words should be used in speech.
 Control of Emotion: The speaker must control has emotion to make oral communication
effective. Over emotion of the speaker may mislead or irritate the listeners and misguide the
speaker.
 Drafting the Speech:Before delivering the speech, the speaker should make a draft of the speech.
It helps to organize the speech, to allocate time on different issues and to rectify the message for
any error.
 Brevity: The speech should be brief and concise to make it effective. If there speaker takes long
time for delivering his message, the audience may lose attention toward the speech.
 Precision: The oral message must be precise enough to communicate with the receiver
effectively. Specific words should be used instead of vague or ambiguous words in speech.
 Logical Sequence: In speech, ideas should be organized sequentially so that the receivers or
audience may get clear sense of the whole speech. No irrelevant idea should be included in the
speech.

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 AKTU QUESTIONS

SR.NO. QUESTION MARKS CO

1 Explain speech delivery. (AKTU 2020-21) 2 4
2 What do you mean by the term Proxemics? (AKTU 2021-22) 2 4
3 Define Kinesics. (AKTU 2021-22) 2 4
4 State the role of clarity and fluency in public speaking. 2 4
(AKTU 2022-23)
5 Evaluate public speaking and its approaches and styles. 10 4
(AKTU 2020-21)
6 Evaluate the essential elements of speaking and nuances of 10 4
delivery. (AKTU 2020-21)
7 Evaluate presentation skills. (AKTU 2020-21) 10 4
8 Describe the paralinguistic features of Voice Dynamics. 10 4
(AKTU 2021-22)
9 Explain what is Presentation and construct its various 10 4
methods. (AKTU 2021-22)
10 Why do you think Confidence, clarity and fluency are 10 4
instrumental for effective public speaking? (AKTU 2021-22)
11 Explore the nuances & methods of speech delivery in 7 4
presentation. (AKTU 2022-23)
12 Discuss the merits and demerits of oral communication. 7 4
(AKTU 2022-23)
13 What is the role of Kinesics (Body language)in oral 7 4
communication, specify clearly. (AKTU 2022-23)

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