How's My Voice?

Yay! Wayne State University is on Spring Break this week! Unfortunately, I have still had to come to campus to work at the library, which has been very quiet. I even contemplated not doing a blog this week in honor of Spring Break. Since I have to spend most of my day here, it made sense to just go ahead and do one. A co-worker suggested that I read an article that she thought I would enjoy. My blog for this week will focus on the article, why it’s important and what I valued about it.

First, the name of the article was Voice in teaching: Improving your classroom connection and it was written by Bob Schoofs. Schoofs is an arts and humanities librarian who was reviewing some student evaluations of his teaching at the end of the term (Schoofs, 2010). One comment struck him the most as it indicated that his voice was pretty boring (Schoofs, 2010). What really struck Schoofs was the fact that this was an aspect of his teaching that he should be able to improve (Schoofs, 2010).

Next, he began to consult with faculty members in relevant departments such as Education. To no avail, Schoofs didn’t discover any resources that required nor encouraged any vocal training for teachers. After meeting with a theatre professor, he was able to get expert help about developing more dynamic, expressive patterns of speaking (Schoofs, 2010).

Also, one of the tools Schoofs used was a tape recorder, which enabled him to analyze things like his pitch, pattern, and rhythm (Schoofs, 2010). He strongly suggests that regular, daily practice of things like rhythm and melody, pitch and pause has enabled him to develop new habits of speaking.

Moreover, this article is very important because it discusses the effects of bad vocal speaking in teaching. According to the article, twenty percent of teachers have had to take time off work because of voice problems compared with a national average of 4 percent (Schoofs, 2010). Besides that evidence, this article really promotes the idea of advancing and improving areas of weakness.

Finally, what I most valued about this article was the emphasis it put upon vocal training amongst teacher and librarians. Having a BFA Degree in Theatre, I’ve learned the importance of strong and effective speaking. As a storyteller, I try my best to implement those “theatre skills,” into the storytelling for my children audience. Last year, I had the opportunity to sit and listen to an intern read a story to some children. Overall, there was no excitement about any of the words she was reading, no inflections, just the sound of her monotone voice. I am not professing to be an expert in vocal training or storytelling, but how a person reads/speaks will greatly influence the attention of his/her audience. A great tip that Schoofs provides the readers is reading aloud to a pretend audience (i.e. family or friends) for 20 or 30 minutes once or twice a day. Bobb Schoofs initiative to improve his speaking abilities is admirable and should be a lesson to all in any profession.

References

Schoofs, B. (2010). Voice in teaching: Improving your classroom connection. College & Research Libraries, 71 (3), 143-144.