OUR PURPOSE & MISSION

From American clashes on civil rights to the creation of democracy in Ancient Greece, oral communication has been the most poignant and effective way to share one's message. Unfortunately, as the world has become progressively digitized and politicized, American education has deprioritized public speaking from a skillful art to a hobby. Between modulistic curriculums, slashes to arts budgets, and a lack of capable personnel, schools cannot aptly meet their students' present needs, let alone prepare them for college, career, and beyond. Thus, teachspeech, a collaboratory of speakers, coaches, and communication initiatives, seeks to create a dialogue on the present nature on the present state of public speaking education. Having experienced the incomparable benefit of speech and debate interpersonally, academically, and practically, teachspeech wants to turn flippant conversation on communication programs to deliberate action. It's time to speak up, speak out, and teachspeech!

Great communicators have better careers

From a career perspective, public speaking has consistently topped the list as a crucial skill, irrespective of the job description. When Harvard Medical School surveyed more than 2,000 patients, they found that poor communication skills would be the number one deterrent for returning to a physician. Even outside of the STEM world, Fortune 500 executives concluded that diminished ability to delegate authority, listen, give direction, and problem solve were rooted in deficient oral communication skills. With technology increasingly deemphasizing the importance of verbal communication, the education system has a responsibility to underscore this imperative skill for career, life, and the creative.

Speech is power: speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson