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From: Russ Hicks
Date: 15 Oct 2006
Time: 16:30:39 -0500
Remote Name: 71.252.204.114
Hello Korin, ..... You asked, "I was curious as to what exactly you talk about with SLP students when you visit different colleges?" It depends on the students and their level of exposure to people who stutter. For undergraduate "survey" classes I have a general purpose speech which has the goal of simply making them comfortable talking with someone who stutters. I give a VERY basic presentation on the causes and treatments for stuttering, but in only 30 minutes it's next to impossible to get into much depth. I also allow for another 30 minute question and answer session and you never know what to expect. <grin> ..... For graduate students I typically tell some of "my story" and we get into the Iceberg Analogy of Stuttering. See my paper on the stuttering iceberg at http://www.mnsu.edu/comdis/isad6/papers/hicks6.html for details of this. The iceberg - one of the most fundamental breakthroughs in understanding stuttering in the last 50 years - wasn't even conceived until about 1970 and wasn't really publicized until nearly 2000. I as with the survey classes, I always allow plenty of time for a Q&A session. ..... Just for the record, I am NOT an SLP. I'm a retired geek still specializing in computers. I work very closely with the professors in stuttering so that my stories support what they are teaching. I also own several internet discussion groups on stuttering so I keep in touch with the people on the Front Lines of stuttering pretty much on a continual basis. Email me at russhicks@mail.com if you would like to be on one of these lists. We'd love to have you! ..... You said, "I had never heard of Toastmasters until now. It sounds very beneficial to all." OMG... Stand back! I'm gonna pull my finger out of this dike! <grin> ..... From your description of your own anxieties about public speaking, Toastmasters would be PERFECT for you! Let me tell you why... ..... Toastmasters International is an amazing organization. The Vision of Toastmasters International states: "Toastmasters International empowers people to achieve their full potential and realize their dreams. Through our member clubs, people throughout the world can improve their communication and leadership skills, and find the courage to change." The Mission of Toastmasters International states: "Toastmasters International is the leading movement devoted to making effective oral communication a worldwide reality. Through its member clubs, Toastmasters International helps men and women learn the arts of speaking, listening and thinking – vital skills that promote self-actualization, enhance leadership, foster human understanding and contribute to the betterment of mankind." ..... Their main website is www.toastmasters.org. It is a communication and leadership organization which is HUGELY successful in helping people overcome their fears of public speaking among many other things. Officially, "The mission of a Toastmaster Club is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every member has the opportunity to develop communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth." All those things sound like a lot of high sounding words, but they are absolutely true. We walk the walk as well as talk the talk. (No pun intended! <smile>) ..... Our Callier Communicators Toastmasters club in Dallas, founded in 1995, is the first Toastmasters club in the world dedicated exclusively to people who stutter. We have a special mission statement for our club which states, "The Callier Communicators especially understand the difficulty some individuals have in communicating. It is our mission to provide an environment that offers special support and understanding to people with communication difficulties or extreme fear of speaking." The URL for our club is http://www.geocities.com/callier3216/ ..... Toastmasters has about 200,000 members in over 8,000 (I think) clubs throughout the world. If you are scared of public speaking, Toastmasters is the best organization in the entire world to help you conquer those fears. It is a VERY friendly organization full of friendly and supportive people. It has nothing whatsoever to do with stuttering but people who stutter (and blind people, blondes, brunettes, bald people, tall people, short people, skinny people, fat people - you get the picture) are welcomed into the organization with open arms. And above everything else, it's FUN!!! You learn when you have fun. That's the fundamental basis for Toastmasters. ..... There are 72 Toastmaster clubs in Sacramento alone! Gasp! If you want to know more about Toastmasters, go visit one of these clubs. They would LOVE to have you and any of your friends and classmates as guests sometime. See http://www.toastmasters.org and find a club near you. Click on Find a Club, then specify United States, California, Sacramento, and you can see all the particulars. I'll bet there are some clubs on the Sacramento State University campus. ..... Okay, I'll put my finger back in the dike now. As you can well see, I LOVE Toastmasters! It's the most wonderful organization in the world outside of the National Stuttering Association. ..... Thanks for asking that question, Korin. I feel better now that I've had the opportunity to blow my Toastmasters trumpet for a while! <grin> ..... And yes, you are making perfect sense. I've heard that same story literally hundreds of times, from both people who stutter and from fluent people as well. ..... I wish you the very best! ..... Russ