Be Organized - Organizational Patterns

Organizational Patterns

For the type of extemporaneous speeches we are going to be practicing here in this classroom and you will be delivering in your 300/400 level classes as well as your professional career – the most important process to understand is that you need a well written message that is supported by well written main points that are then followed by quality support material.

How your message is written will determine your organizational pattern.  If your main points clearly support the message it will be easier for the audience to follow along – why? – because they will not have to think about it.  As I have always said, you don’t want your audience to THINK.  Your sentence that is written for the main point should explain the connection to the message.  Your message is the one thing you want your audience to remember and your main points then explains that message.

Here are some organizational patterns

 

Chronological Order = Time Pattern

Spatial Order = Directional Pattern or Utilization of Space

Topical Order = Logical and Consistent Main Points

Problem Solution Order = Problem - Solution Pattern

Geographical Order = Organized According to Topographical Use

Let’s take a look at some examples both good and bad:

Good Chronological Order:

Message: The Great Wall of China was built over several dynasties

Each main point then explains the Dynasty that was involved in the building of the wall.

I.                    The earliest building of the Great Wall started with the Qin Dynasty

II.                  The Han Dynasty repaired and extended the wall

III.                What we see today in the Great Wall of China was built during the Ming Dynasty. 

A bad message to these main points would be –

                The Great Wall of China travels from the east to the west in the northern part of China.

This message does not have a great fit to the chronological order as stated above.  But, it would work as a spatial order or geographical order.  I would plan this as spatial order and the first main point would explain where the first section was built and then what direction it went from there.  The Dynasties involved in the building would become support material.  More than likely support material A) would name the Dynasty involved in the build of this section.  Geographical references and the Dynasties involved would be support material.  

Here is a good geographical order message to this example:

The Great Wall of China travels from the Gansu Province to the Hebei Province.

Each main point is going to have a geographical reference. 

Spatial Order Example:

You might cover your road trip in a spatial or chronological order. 

You want to explain how you climbed a mountain.

Message: It took us six hours to climb …. (whatever mountain)

First main point explains the first two hours the second main point next two and so on.

Obviously, chronological

Message: Climbing to the top of Mount (whatever) was a challenge. Your main points might be in a spatial or topical order. 

You might explain how “students will use the second floor of the Student Building for their administrative purposes.”  This would be utilization of space – spatial order. 

Most of our speeches will be in topical order. 

Message: Picasso was a versatile artist. 

Main points would cover his: paintings, sculpting, and printmaking works. 

Remember: your message is different than your main points.  Your main points NEVER go in the message.  Your main points only support your message.

You are wrong all day long when you write message this way: Picasso does paintings, sculpting and printmaking. 

Then, your main point one is about his paintings; two is about sculpting, and three is about printmaking.  What is the message???? – There is not one. 

Earlier I said, you don’t want your audience to think.  In this example they have to think and the audience will not remember because they now have to figure it out – they will have to think about it. 

Microwave popcorn takes about a minute and a half to pop and we hate to wait that long … do you think they will think that long about your speech? … NO. 

You will understand this even better when we talk about the ‘introduction’ and ‘conclusion.’ 

The textbook of, Public Speaking The Evolving Art is a perfect example of why we don’t use a textbook in this class.  We want to do professional presentations not a textbook speech. 

Here is their example:

I use the word Message and they use the word ‘Thesis.’ As I have always said, the English program is a weak academic program because you can write a lousy long winded thesis statement with all the main points in your thesis and you still don’t have one single message.  But, you can read their essay 50 times and say, I think I know what they are saying.  But, in speech you only have one shot at it and they better get it or they just might have to think about it and you will have people leaving with twenty interpretations about your speech. 

Here we go with the textbook example:

Thesis: The people of the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair include the organizers, volunteers, performers and the fair-goes. 

And, just guess each of the main points.  Yes, a sentence written about the organizers, volunteers, performers and the fair-goes. 

What is the one; the single message?  You got it.  I don’t know!  There is not one.  You delete the main points out of a thesis and you are left with NO single message or idea.  Then, the audience has to ‘think’ and all is lost.

How about this message:

It takes a lot of people to make the Ann Arbor Street Fair a Success. 

When you cover main point one about the organizers – does that support the message? Yes.

When you cover main point two about the volunteers – does that support the message? Yes.

Main point three: performers; main point four: fair-goes – yes and yes. 

You have one single message to get across and each main point supports that message. 

What order? Topical. But, who cares the speech is organized properly. 

The textbook has proper organizational structure but, no message. 

Forget about organizational structure. Make sure you have a well written message (one idea) and each main point supports that message.  Then, your audience does not have to think about what you are telling them.  They know because you told them.