This is a typical agenda
for one of Parramatta Toastmasters Club's normal meetings, although such
is the variety of programming that no meeting can really be called
"normal". This agenda describes the nature of various assignments that
may be performed by members during a meeting.
Call To
Order
The Sergeant at Arms introduces the
President, who opens the meeting and introduces the theme of the meeting
and any other highlights.
Chairman's
comments
Parramatta Toastmasters meetings usually
have two Chairmen. Chairman One makes a few comments about the theme of
the meeting and conducts the early part of the meeting, gaining practice
in introducing people. Chairman Two has the more complex job of chairing
the Business Session and presiding over the second half of the meeting.
Program changes
Parramatta Toastmasters Vice President
Education announces any changes to the printed meeting program.
Invocation
An expression of thanks at the start of
the meeting.
Weak Word
A member gives the meaning of a word or
words that he/she believes are frequently misused, giving examples of
correct usage and encouraging members to use the word(s) as often as
possible during the meeting.
Point of View
A member makes a short
emotional/persuasive speech expressing a point of view on something that
concerns them.
Toast
A member makes a speech proposing a
toast to a person or group of his/her choice.
Read or Recite
A member does a three-minute assignment,
reading from something or giving a recitation. Dramatic subjects are
usually chosen to enable experimentation with vocal variety and body
language.
Introduction
and Welcome to Visitors
A member talks to visitors to the Club
and finds out a bit about who they are and why they have chosen to
attend the meeting. The visitors are then introduced here one by one and
formally welcomed to the meeting.
Larfmaster
A humorous interlude where a member aims
for a few laughs with short quick jokes.
Table Topics
A Table Topics Master randomly picks 10
members (usually those without major assignments) and asks them to
respond to different questions or statements. The subject is of a
general nature not requiring any specialised knowledge. Each participant
tries to make a structured response for one minute.
This means beginning with a Point about
where he/she stands on the question thrown by the Table Topics Master,
giving his/her Reason why the point was made, supporting that reason
with an Example and finishing the Table Topic by restating the first
Point. (This organisational structure is known as PREP, for minimum
preparation, but members also use a number of other formats.)
These Table Topics give members the
opportunity to hone extemporaneous (off-the-cuff) speaking skills. A
typical Table Topics question usually takes its tone and theme from the
Meeting Theme.
The session finishes with evaluations of
each topic by two pre-assigned Topic Evaluators.
Business
Meeting
Chairman Two presides over the Business
Session at which Club business is discussed for about 25 minutes. The
purpose of this session, apart from dealing with Club business, is to
give members an opportunity to practice participating in and chairing
business sessions. Members learn the correct ways to handle formal
business such as apologies, minutes, correspondence and reports as well
as learning meeting procedure skills through discussing motions in
General Business. A sample agenda for use by Chairman Two can be printed
out in PDF format here. It is known as
the Chairman's Cheat Sheet.
General
Evaluator
The General Evaluator is an experienced
member who evaluates the meeting as a whole and the various assignments
performed.
Parliamentarian
The Parliamentarian helps the Chairman
and evaluates the conduct of the business session.
Recess
Yes, we get one of those! Members chat
to each other and the visitors while the speakers use this time to
discuss their speech assignments with the Toastmaster and their
Evaluators.
Toastmaster
The Toastmaster for the evening hosts
the formal speaking program after the Recess, introducing the speakers
and explaining their assignments.
Speeches
We usually have five or six members
present prepared speeches; each based on an assignment from one of the
many Toastmasters speech manuals. The speech is on any topic of the
speaker's choosing, but is made to keep within the objectives of the
manual assignment. Some speech assignment objectives are to use body
language, to inspire the audience, to persuade listeners to the
speaker's point of view, etc. There is a basic Communication and
Leadership manual, which helps a new Toastmaster gain basic speech
skills. Advanced manuals include Storytelling, Entertaining, Public
Relations, Specialty and Technical Speeches. Members advance through the
manuals at their own pace, with guidance from their mentors and the
Club's Vice President of Education.
Evaluations
The General Evaluator presides over this
portion of the meeting. Speech Evaluators present an oral evaluation of
the speeches, noting what the speakers did well, explaining why, and
giving suggestions on how the presentation may have been improved. These
evaluations allow all attending to learn how to improve their speaking
skills.
Grammarian
The Grammarian presents an evaluation of
grammar during the meeting. Wrong use of words, erroneous syntax, slang,
sloppy pronunciation, redundancy; and some good use of language are
highlighted to make speakers and listeners more conscious of how they
use language.
Um/Ah Counter
One member is assigned the task of
keeping count of the "ums" and "ahs" - hesitancies - in the various
speakers' delivery. It helps each speaker focus on the way they speak.
Timer
The Timer reports on the times for
various sections of the meeting and individual assignments.
Quizmaster
Parramatta Toastmasters Club sets great
store in the development of members' listening skills. The Quizmaster
prepares a set of questions relating to the points made during the
various assignments and the audience responds. This session acts as a
brief recap of the evening's program and provides each speaker with an
indication of how clear his/her speech had been.
Awards
The Sergeant-At-Arms presents awards to
the best Table Topics speaker, best Speaker and best Evaluator. Chairman
2 also presents a Stirrer's Spoon to a member for their contributions to
the business session.
President
The President asks guests to give some
comments and brings the meeting to a close. Excluding the 10 Table
Topics, an average meeting of Parramatta Toastmasters Club goes through
around 30 separate assignments. Meetings average 3-3.25 hours long, but
the brisk pace keeps the excitement going.
