Week 4 — Readings & Resources · Research & Supporting Materials

Course: Public Speaking — Fundamentals of Oral Communication (COMM 1) · Silver Oak University (fictional sample) · Prof. Marchetti
Objective covered: Objective 3 — Find, evaluate, and correctly cite credible supporting material; distinguish expert from lay testimony, credible from non-credible sources, and oral citation from plagiarism or fabrication.

How to use this page

Everything here is a link to an external resource — open it in your browser. Nothing needs to be downloaded, and there's nothing to buy.

This week's load: 2 readings + 1 library guide, grouped by lecture segment, plus one optional deep-dive. Read or skim one item per group and you'll be ready for the quiz; all three together take about 35–45 minutes.

Order that matches the lecture: ① types of supporting material → ② finding and evaluating credible sources → ③ oral citation and avoiding plagiarism.

A habit this week: don't just read about source evaluation — practice it. Pick a claim from the reading and find one credible source that supports it. Verify it. That's the skill.

① Supporting Material — Types and Uses

Maps to Lecture Segments 2–3. The three main types of supporting material are examples (brief, extended, hypothetical), statistics (used honestly and accurately), and testimony (expert vs. peer/lay). Knowing which type fits which claim is the first skill; evaluating whether the source behind it is credible is the second.

Reading — "Supporting Ideas and Building Arguments" (Stand up, Speak out, Ch. 8)
🔗 https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Public_Speaking/Stand_up_Speak_out_-_The_Practice_and_Ethics_of_Public_Speaking/08%3A_Supporting_Ideas_and_Building_Arguments
Why it's assigned: a clear, plain-language overview of how research functions as support in a speech, the types of support (statistics, definitions, examples, testimony, analogies), and how to use support to build arguments. Directly maps to the material from Session 1 this week.
⏱ ~15 min

② Finding and Evaluating Credible Sources

Maps to Lecture Segment 3. The CRAAP test (Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, Purpose) is one widely-used standard framework for evaluating any source — website, article, database entry — before you decide to use it in a speech. A peer-reviewed journal article and an anonymous blog post both count as "sources found online"; the CRAAP criteria make the gap between them impossible to ignore.

Reading — "Researching Your Speech" (Stand up, Speak out, Ch. 7)
🔗 https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Public_Speaking/Stand_up_Speak_out_-_The_Practice_and_Ethics_of_Public_Speaking/07%3A_Researching_Your_Speech
Why it's assigned: covers research strategy, types of sources (library databases, credible web, primary and secondary sources), and the ethics of source use — exactly the material from Segment 3. Sections 7.2 (Developing a Research Strategy) and 7.3 (Citing Sources) are most directly relevant.
⏱ ~12 min

Library guide — "Source Evaluation: CRAAP Test" (Pollak Library, California State University, Fullerton)
🔗 https://libraryguides.fullerton.edu/sourceevaluation
Why it's assigned: a concise, free university-library guide that walks you through all five CRAAP criteria with the specific questions to ask about each one. Read it once before the Speech Workshop — you'll use these criteria directly in the source-evaluation table. (The CRAAP test was originally developed by librarians at CSU, Chico; this guide from the CSU, Fullerton library presents the same standard framework.)
⏱ ~8 min

③ Oral Citation — Saying the Source Out Loud

Maps to Lecture Segment 4. An oral citation is said aloud during the speech — it is not the same as a written bibliography. You say who the source is, why they are credible, and when. Without all three, the audience cannot evaluate your evidence.

This week's core skill: the oral citation is the spoken proof that your evidence is real. Once you can write and say a complete oral citation, you have taken the most important step toward ethical speech preparation.

(The Ch. 7 reading above, Section 7.3, covers citing sources and includes citation strategies — re-read that section with the oral citation format in mind: source + qualification + date.)

Optional deep-dive (free online)

• "Using Research as Support" (Stand up, Speak out, Ch. 8.1). A focused look at the qualities that make research effective as support — accuracy, authority, currency, and objectivity — and why those qualities matter for speaker credibility. Worth reading if you want to understand the logic behind the CRAAP criteria.
  🔗 https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Communication/Public_Speaking/Stand_up_Speak_out_-_The_Practice_and_Ethics_of_Public_Speaking/08%3A_Supporting_Ideas_and_Building_Arguments/8.01%3A_Using_Research_as_Support

Pick-one quick path (≈20 min total)

In a hurry? Do exactly these two and you'll be ready for the quiz:
1. Read Ch. 8 "Supporting Ideas and Building Arguments" (group ①) — focus on the types of support.
2. Skim the CRAAP Test library guide (group ②) — print or copy the five criteria somewhere handy for the Workshop.

Heads-up (links rot): these point to outside sites that occasionally move or rename pages. If a link fails, tell Prof. Marchetti and search for the title or the Stand up, Speak out table of contents in the meantime. The CRAAP guide URL may change if the library reorganizes their LibGuides — if it does, search "CRAAP test library guide" at any CSU library website.