Advanced English Communication.
Indian Studies K2023
Session 5
Public Speaking: Signposting
Overview
• Signposting phrases guide the audience through a presentation,
informing them the development and progress of the presentation.
Simply put, they let the audience know what has happened so far, and
what is going to happen next.
• Signposting phrases are used in both writing and speaking.
Examples of signposting phrases in writing: Furthermore, moreover, nevertheless,
whereas, while, hence, thus, etc.
Examples of signposting phrases in presentation: to move on, to turn to, to expand
on, etc.
• In public speaking, it is advisable to used signposting phrases throughout
a presentation/ speech.
Task 1- Recalling: Recall the basic structure of a presentation introduction. List the
signposting phrases used in the introduction.
Signposting the Body
Signposting: Basic Verbs
Task 2- Vocabulary Building: Match the phrases with the following situations
to move on, to turn to, to expand on, to elaborate on, to go back, to recap, to summarize,
to digress.
a. When you want to make your next point x2 To…………………
b. When you want to refer to an earlier point To…………………
c. When you want to repeat the main points x2 To…………………
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d. When you want to give a wider perspective To…………………
e. When you want to do a deeper analysis To…………………
f. When you want to depart from your plan To…………………
Task 3-Matching: Fill in the gap with the verbs in Task 2. Then listen and check.
1/ ___________________ to the question of the US market
2/ To ___________________ on the figures for last year.
3/ I’d like to ___________________ on the main points
4/ Let’s ___________________ on the question on clinical research methods
5/ To ___________________ for a moment, let’s consider the alternatives
6/ ___________________ for a moment to the situation last year.
7/ Let’s ___________________ now to our targets for the next five years.
8/ I’d like to ___________________ now to our projections to the year 2005.
9/ To ___________________ to the main reasons for our collaboration with the Germans
10/ I’d like to ___________________ on that a little before we move on.
11/ Let’s ___________________ for a moment to what we were discussing earlier.
12/ Let me ___________________ on some of the main points in our proposal.
13/ To ___________________ on that for a little for those of you who aren’t familiar with Russian
business practices
14/ if I could just ___________________ to some of the problems we face in Central and Latin
America
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Signposting: Extended Phrases
Task 4-Gap filling: An expert is talking about the Traffic Support Centre (TSC) in her city.
Listen to the talk and complete the sentences with the missing signposting phrases.
OK, that’s the background and the reason we developed the program. Any question? OK, so
(1)______________________________________ and take a look at the Traffic Support Centre itself.
(2) ________________________________, the TSC was set up in 2001 to help traffic flow more
smoothly, and basically to make the lives of motorists easier. (3) ______________________ I’d like
to tell you about the center’s activities, how we work exactly and how motorists benefit from
our services.
So, (4)_____________________________of the TSC’s activities. Our main activities are to collect,
analyze, and communicate traffic information. After collecting traffic data from a number of
different sources, we analyze them and then we inform the media, the police, or other
authorities, and last but not least the motorist….
(5)_____________________________________. How does the TSC collect data? Traffic-monitoring
equipment has been installed across the main traffic routes, which helps us gather real-time
information on traffic speed and traffic flow. Additionally, we use variable traffic sensors and
cameras. We also work together with other partners and authorities, for example the police,
traffic officers, and the media. Let me show you a few examples of how this works…(6)
_____________________ collecting data.
(7)____________________ to the next issue. How do we communicate in formation to motorists?
We do this in a number of ways: by using electronic road signs, the Internet and radio, and
state-of-the-art telephone technology…
(8)__________________________________________________. The TSC wants to make the lives of
motorists easier. So, in what ways does the motorists benefit? Well,…first: through real-time
information about the traffic satiation. Second, through better advice about alternative
routes. Third, through sager roads and less driver stress.
Task 5-Categorizing: Put the following expressions into the correct categories.
(1) As I mentioned before,
(2) As I said earlier
(3) I’d like to elaborate on…
(4) I’d like to expand on…
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(5) I’d like to start/begin by…
(6) I’d like to sum up the main points so far.
(7) In this part of my presentation, I’d like to tell you
(8) Let me briefly summarize what I’ve said so far.
(9) Let me give you some more details/information about...
(10) Let me just try and sum that up before we move on to...
(11) Let me now come back to what I said earlier
(12) Let me tell you a little more about…
(13) Let’s consider this in more detail.
(14) Let’s move on to the next point
(15) Let’s now turn to.
(16) Let’s start/begin by looking at…
(17) Now, I’d like to …
(18) So far, I've presented...
(19) So much for
(20) This brings me to the end of my second point.
(21) This leads directly to the next part of my talk.
(22) This now leads us to my next point
(23) To digress for a moment, let’s…
(24) What I'm trying to say is...
SIGNPOSTING PHRASES
Introducing the first section of your presentation:
Indicating the end of a section
Saying what is coming
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Expanding on a point:
Moving on to the next point
Referring back
Summarizing a point
Adding information (not part of the main outline)
Practice
Task 6-Analyse. Watch and read along the following transcript. Answer the questions:
- What is each paragraph about? (Idenfy the function/ main idea of each paragraph)
- Which signposting phrases are used to connect the paragraphs together/ to draw the
audience attention? (Indentify and highlight the signposing phrases/ sentences.)
Why students should have mental health days?
By Haily Hardcastle
(Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qq7lDL-bzY)
(1) ________________________
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When I was a kid, my mom and I made this deal: I was allowed to take three
mental health rest days every semester as long as I continued to do well in
school. This was because I started my mental health journey when I was only
six years old. I was always what my grade-school teachers would call "a
worrier," but later on we found out that I have trauma-induced anxiety and
clinical depression.
(2) ________________________
This made growing up pretty hard. I was worried about a lot of things that
other kids weren't, and school got really overwhelming sometimes. This
resulted in a lot of breakdowns, panic attacks -- sometimes I was super
productive, and other days I couldn't get anything done. This was all happening
during a time when mental health wasn't being talked about as much as it is
now, especially youth mental health. Some semesters I used all of those rest
days to the fullest. Others, I didn't need any at all.
(3) ________________________
But the fact that they were always an option is what kept me a happy, healthy
and successful student. Now, I'm using those skills that I learned as a kid to
help other students with mental health challenges.
(4) ________________________
I'm here today to offer you some insight into the world of teenage mental
health: what's going on, how did we get here, and what can we do?
(5) ________________________
But first, you need to understand that while not everyone has a diagnosed
mental illness like I do, absolutely everyone -- all of you have mental health.
All of us have a brain that needs to be cared for in similar ways that we care
for our physical well-being. Our head and our body are connected by much
more than just our neck after all. Mental illness even manifests itself in some
physical ways, such as nausea, headaches, fatigue and shortness of breath.
(6) ________________________
So since mental health affects all of us, shouldn't we be coming up with
solutions that are accessible to all of us?
(7) ________________________
That brings me to my second part of my story. When I was in high school, I
had gotten pretty good at imagining my mental health. I was a successful
student, I was the president of the Oregon Association of Students Councils.
(8) ________________________
But it was around this time that I began to realize mental health was a much
bigger problem than just for me personally. Unfortunately, my hometown was
touched by multiple suicides during my first year in high school. I saw those
tragedies shake our entire community, and as the president of a statewide
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group, I began hearing more and more stories from students where this had
also happened in their town.
(9) ________________________
In 2018, at our annual summer camp, we held a forum with about 100 high
school students to discuss teenage mental health. What could we do? We
approached this conversation with an enormous amount of empathy and
honesty and the results were astounding.
(10)________________________
What struck me the most was that every single one of my peers had a story
about a mental health crisis in their school. No matter if there were from a
tiny town in eastern Oregon or the very heart of Portland. This was happening
everywhere. We even did some research, and we found out that suicide is the
second leading cause of death for youth ages 10 to 24 in Oregon. The second
leading cause. We knew we had to do something.
(11)________________________
So over the next few months, we made a committee called Students for a
Healthy Oregon, and we set out to end the stigma against mental health. We
also wanted to prioritize mental health in schools. With the help of some
lobbyists and a few mental health professionals, we put forth House Bill 2191.
This bill allows students to take mental health days off from school the same
way you would a physical health day. Because oftentimes that day off is the
difference between feeling a whole lot better and a whole lot worse -- kind of
like those days my mom gave me when I was younger. So over the next few
months, we lobbied and researched and campaigned for our bill. In June of
2019, it was finally signed into law. This was a groundbreaking moment for
Oregon students.
(12)________________________
Here is an example of how this is playing out now. Let's say a student is having
a really hard month. They're overwhelmed, overworked, they're falling behind
in school, and they know they need help. Maybe they've never talked about
mental health with their parents before, but now they have a law on their side
to help initiate that conversation. The parent still needs to be the one to call
the school to excuse the absence, so it's not like it's a free pass for the kids,
but most importantly, now the school has that absence recorded as a mental
health day, so they can keep track of just how many students take how many
mental health days. If a student takes too many, they'll be referred to the
school counselor for a check-in.
(13)________________________
This is important because we can catch students who are struggling before it's
too late. One of the main things we heard at that forum in 2018 is that
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oftentimes stepping forward and getting help is the hardest step. We're
hoping that this law can help with that. This not only will start teaching kids
young how to take care of themselves and practice self-care and stress
management, but it could also literally save lives. Now students from multiple
other states are also trying to pass these laws. I'm currently working students
in both California and Colorado to do the same, because we believe that
students everywhere deserve a chance to feel better.
(14)________________________
Aside from all the practical reasons and technicalities, House Bill 2191 is really
special because of the core concept behind it; that physical and mental health
are equal and should be treated as such. In fact, they're connected.
(15)________________________
Take health care for example. Think about CPR. If you were put in a situation
where you had to administer CPR, would you know at least a little bit of what
to do? Think to yourself -- Most likely yes, because CPR trainings are offered
in most schools, workplaces and even online. We even have songs that go
with it.
But, how about mental health care? I know I was trained in CPR in my seventh
grade health class. What if I was trained in seventh grade how to manage my
mental health or how to respond to a mental health crisis?
(16)________________________
I'd love to see a world where each of us has a toolkit of skills to help a friend,
coworker, family member or even a stranger going through a mental health
crisis. And these resources should be especially available in schools because
that's where students are struggling the most.
(17)________________________
The other concept that I sincerely hope you take with you today is that it is
always OK to not be OK, and it is always OK to take a break. It doesn't have to
be a whole day; sometimes that's not realistic. But it can be a few moments
here and there to check in with yourself.
(18)________________________
Think of life like a long-distance race. If you sprint in the very beginning, you're
going to get burnt out. You may even hurt yourself from pushing too hard.
But if you pace yourself, if you take it slow, sometimes intentionally, and you
push yourself other times, you are sure to be way more successful.
(19)________________________
So please, look after each other, look after the kids and teens in your life,
especially the ones that look like they have it all together. Mental health
challenges are not going away, but as a society, we can learn to manage them
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by looking after one another. And look after yourself, too. As my mum would
say, "Once in a while, take a break." Thank you.
Task 7-Applying Write the script for the presentation sketched in Session 4. Use
signposting expressions to create connection between different parts of the body. You can
follow the suggestions
Body Types of signposting phrases
Main Point I [Introducing the first section]
[Expanding on Main Point I]
[Indicating the end of a section]
Main Point II [Moving on to the next point]
[Adding information not part of the main outline]
[Summarizing the main point II]
Main Point III [Saying what is coming]
[Referring to an idea in Part II]
