Purpose
AISI Toastmasters Club 8233
At each meeting of AISI Toastmasters, members learn to speak better, think better, and listen better. Members also gain experience in running meetings and in the techniques of leadership.
Members learn to speak better through the Communication and Leadership (C & L) and Advanced Manual programs. When a member joins, he or she receives a New Member Kit in the mail, which contains the Communication and Leadership manual as well as educational manuals. The C & L manual contains ten speech projects, beginning with a simple project, "The Icebreaker", and working its way upwards through such subjects as vocal variety, organization, and use of visuals, gestures, and word choice. Each speech project contains guidelines for speaking, but the topic and actual speech preparation and delivery are chosen by the member. When a member completes the C & L manual, he or she may continue onwards through the Advanced Manual program, a series of twelve manuals on such subjects as "Interpretative Reading", "Public Relations", "Specialty Speeches", and many others. Through these speech projects, members can gain expertise in a wide range of speaking skills.
Members learn to think better though participation in the Table Topics portion of each meeting. Table Topics consist of short, impromptu speeches on topics assigned by a fellow member, given with no time to prepare. For example, the Topicsmaster might ask a member to rise and give a one-to-two minute speech on water polo, or on Argentinean politics, or on a local tax issue. Three or four members will give Table Topics speeches during an average meeting, gaining experience in thinking on their feet, speaking off the cuff, and speaking without preparation.
Members learn to listen better by serving as members of the evaluation staff. A fellow member, who sits in the audience during the speech and makes notes about weaknesses and strengths, evaluates each member giving a manual project speech. Each manual speech project includes a checklist of areas to work on during the speech. Then, during the evaluation portion of the meeting, the evaluator will be called on to give a two-to-three minute spoken evaluation of the speaker and his or her speech, concentrating on supportive advice that can be used for improvement. In addition to the speech evaluators, other members of the evaluation team include: the Timer, who records and reports the times each meeting participant used; the Grammarian, who reports on good and poor uses of language; the "Ah" Counter, who counts and reports on the number of vocalized pauses used during the speeches; the Wordmaster, who chooses a word for the day and counts and repots correct usage of the word during the meeting; and Master Evaluator, who offers comments and suggestions about the meeting as a whole.
In addition to participating directly in the educational program as a speaker, Table Topic speaker, or evaluator, members gain experience in speaking by serving as Toastmaster of the Meeting, presiding and introducing participants, and as General Evaluator and Topicsmaster. Toastmasters also offers a wide range of leadership positions, both in the club and in the organizational structure beyond the club level.