how can you tell if you're talking loud enough and slow enough?

Question

i did presentation in class the other day and got anonymous comments from people. two people said i was talking too low and too fast and because of that, gave me unsatisfactory grades. and this just pisses me off cuz i really worked hard on this stuff. i tried to condense it and not go too long cuz we were running late. i thought i talked loud enough and slow enough. so tell me, how can you tell if you're talking loud enough and slow enough?

hahaha, thanks to all of your answers. to the last answerer: your answer doesn't help much in my case since i work in a chinese restaurant and i speak chinese.

Answer 1

Always pretend you are talking to the person in the back of the room. If you can see them and it looks like they are having a hard time hearing you, it may be time to speak up.

For the speed or tempo of your presentation, you may want to practice in front of a mirror or set up a camera and record yourself, then play it back and see if you find it easy to understand.

Usually you have to read your audience and try to accommodate their understanding and the speed they feel is good.

And of course remember that in a class of 30 classmates, or an auditoriam of 1000 people, you probably will not be slow enough, fast enough, or loud enough for everyone.

A lot depends on how interested they are in your presentation, if their minds are on other things, or if they just have something against you and want to grade you appropriately.

I would think that you should raise this issue with the teacher and ask their opinion on whether the comments were valid. If your grades are based on anonymous comments, I would think that the teacher has the ultimate last say in that. Otherwise the marks may be biased towards the more popular people in class (Kind of like the french judge in Olympic skating in Salt Lake City)

Answer 2

I was told a tip once that might help. Pretend that the only person you are talking to is the one in the back of the room. Therefore, you should project your voice to make sure they can hear you easily. (of course, this doesnt mean stare at them the whole time... have eye contact with all your audience). Take a pause after each sentence. If it is an informal presentation, you can ask if everyone understands once in a while. If it is formal, use the audience's body language to guage if you have lost them or not. It is usually easy to tell when an audience is captivated. Public speaking takes practice.

Answer 3

Speak as if you are talking to a crowd of people who are not fluent in speaking English. Think about how you talk when you order at a Chinese restaurant.

Answer 4

Usually the teacher will tell you to speak up / or you' re talking too slow. Odd you weren't told..
and by looking at everyone they normally let you know by their reactions .
such as putting their hand up to their ear.

Answer 5

Till you get the hang of public speaking you could just ask if everyone can hear you...

Answer 6

try talking into a tape recorder and listen to yourself,when you speak louder you tend to enunciate more