The success of a Toastmasters meeting depends on the program participants. There are many roles to fill, and each job is designed to improve the members’ public speaking and leadership skills. Program participants must know and understand their duties so they can prepare for them.
• Ah-Counter |
• Toastmaster of the day |
• Evaluator |
• Topics master |
• General Evaluator |
• Meeting Speaker |
• Grammarian |
• Table Topics Speaker |
• Timer |
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Ah-Counter
The purpose of the Ah-Counter is to note any word or sound used as a crutch by anyone who speaks during the meeting. Words may be inappropriate interjections, such as and, well, but, so and you know. Sounds may be ah, um or er. You should also note when a speaker repeats a word or phrase such as “I, I” or “This means, this means.” These words and sounds can be annoying to listeners. The Ah-Counter role is an excellent opportunity to practice your listening skills.
People join Toastmasters to improve their speaking and leadership skills, and these skills are improved with the help of evaluations. Members complete projects in the Competent Communication and Competent Leadership manuals and you may be asked to evaluate their work. At some point, everyone is asked to participate by providing an evaluation. You will provide both verbal and written evaluations for speakers using the guide in the manual.
General Evaluator
General evaluator ensures the speech and leadership project evaluators know their responsibilities ,Supervising the timer, grammarian and Ah-Counter ,Evaluating everything that takes place during the club meeting ,Making sure each activity is performed correctly.
Point out that an evaluation should enhance the speaker’s self-esteem and encourage evaluators to prepare thoroughly for their role.
Grammarian
One benefit of Toastmasters is that it helps people improve their grammar and word use. Being grammarian also provides an exercise in expanding listening skills. You have several responsibilities: to introduce new words to members, to comment on language usage during the course of the meeting, and to provide examples of eloquence.
Timer
One of the skills Toastmasters practice is expressing a thought within a specific time. Timer is responsible for monitoring time for each meeting segment and each speaker. He will also operate the timing signal, indicating to each speaker how long he or she has been talking. Serving as timer is an excellent opportunity to practice giving instructions and time management
Toastmaster of the Day
The Toastmaster is a meeting’s director and host. As the Toastmaster, You ’ll introduce each speaker. Introductions must be brief and carefully planned. You are responsible for beginning and ending the meeting on time.
Serving as Toastmaster is an excellent way to practice many valuable skills as you strive to make the meeting one of the club’s best. Preparation is key to your success.
Meeting Speaker
The speaking program is the center of every Toastmasters meeting. They use the guidelines in the Competent Communication (CC) manual and the Advanced Communication Series (ACS) manuals to fully prepare their presentations. The CC manual speeches usually last 5-7 minutes. ACS manual project speeches are 5-7 minutes or longer depending upon the assignment.
Table Topics Speaker
Most of the talking we do every day simple conversation is impromptu speaking. Yet for some members, Table Topics is the most challenging part of a Toastmasters meeting. Table Topics is about developing your ability to organize your thoughts quickly and respond to an impromptu question or topic.
