Students have to think critically, articulate their opinions and convey concepts more effectively. Speaker Progress and Speaker Coach are tools that can improve student speaking and presentation skills.
The components Speaker Progress aims to promote in students are:
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Confidence
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Presentation
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Review Progress
How to start a student recording
1. To start recording, choose the My work link to open the attachment.
Note: If this is your first time using Speaker Progress, you will see a short explanation of what Speaker Progress is and how to use it.
2. You will be presented with a screen to check your microphone and video settings before starting.
3. Choose the Start button to start recording.
4. Begin speaking.
The student will receive some positive feedback and suggestions to improve their speech. For example, they will be encouraged to avoid saying “um” too often and to speak faster.
There is a deadline for the recording. A red bar above the recording will show the student that they are running out of time. The session will end automatically when the time is up.
You can decide if you want to retry, review your report (if enabled), or keep this recording if you’re satisfied with the outcome.
Feedback list
Speaker Progress Generative AI evaluates the student on the following:
Body Language: Body language critiques in Speaker Progress provide feedback you can use to better engage with your audience and minimize distractions. The body language critiques have been modified for a stationary, seated position to help you prepare for your visual presentations.
Filler words: When you tell the story to an audience, sounding confident helps make your message persuasive. Filler words such as "um," and "like" are pinpointed by Generative AI and the student is encouraged to avoid these habits.
Pace: Speaker Coach recommends that presenters speak at a rate of 100 to 165 words per minute; this is the rate at which most audiences we've tested find it easiest to process the information they hear. But different people can speak comfortably and clearly at different rates, so your audience may be able to understand you clearly at a different rate. Over time, Speaker Coach will learn from your experience using it.
Pitch: Speaking in monotone can make it harder for the audience to stay engaged or know what to focus on. In order to keep their attention and improve your communication be sure to emphasize the key words and phrases by adjusting your volume and pitch. If you're working from notes or a script be careful not to just read from the script as that can lead you to be more monotone and less natural.
Repetitive language: Repetitive language differs from filler words in that the words or phrases you use repetitively are part of a sentence, rather than things you say to fill the space between sentences.
Speaker Coach uses a database of about 200 common words and phrases. It counts the instances of your use of the words or phrases in that database. If you use them too much, you'll see them called out in the Repetitive Language section of the Your Rehearsal Report window. Some words in the database are checked for whether they occur at the beginning of a sentence. These are words like "basically," "nevertheless," or "technically." Other words are checked for whether they occur at the end of a sentence, such as "right."
Retrying a recording
If you are not satisfied with your recording, you can choose to retry it by choosing the Retry button. However, be aware that this will erase and replace the existing recording. You will not be able to go back and use a previous recording.
For example, if you record yourself saying "Hello" and then retry and say "Hi", you will only have the option to submit the "Hi" recording. The "Hello" recording will be gone forever.
The rehearsal report
The report that we have prepared for you contains a detailed analysis of your recording and some helpful tips on how to enhance your performance in the future. You can use the report to review your strengths and weaknesses, identify areas of improvement, and practice your skills with specific exercises and feedback.
Turning in your Speaker Progress assignment
After you finish the recording, you can submit it along with your assignment from the same page.
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To submit your assignment, select on the Turn in button that is located in the top right corner of the page.
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Once your assignment is submitted, you will see a confirmation message at the top of the page that says: "Turned in at (Time) and (Date)." This means that your teacher can view your work and grade it.
Learn more
Speaker Progress in Microsoft Teams for Education - now globally rolled out and generally available
