Simulations Materials

2.3. STRUCTURE OF A SPEECH

A speech has got a very simple and linear structure. It begins with a formal greeting (“Honorable Chair, fellow delegates”) and finishes with a grateful ending (“Thank you Chair, Thank you delegates”). 

In the middle of a speech there is the main body which constitutes the important message from a delegation to others. It is suggested to add, at the end of the main body and before the final thanks, a particular phrase which can summarize the whole message and advice other delegates to act. The more creative and incisive the main body of a speech is, the bigger and heavier the political weight it can have. 

All the efforts of delegates must be focused on being clear and concrete on the exposition of the main body. For this reason, the following suggestions can be useful: Short and incisive sentences with preferably active form verbs. 

Adding codes and elements of the previous Regulations which were approved and adopted in the past at the European Union. Statistical data and quotations of political authorities with facts and figures can increase the weight of a speech and make the position and potential solutions more credible. Paying attention to the evolution of the simulation and to all speeches so that a delegation can modify its own discourse according to the development of the committee and showing the training and attention level. 

The duration of all speeches is set by the speaker’s time and it can be changed. In this case a speech should be modifiable in order to add or eliminate parts of it, and short sentences can facilitate this process. It is useful to write speeches with 5-10 seconds less than the fixed speaker’s time. 

It is useful to perform and act the speech with pauses and while looking at the audience. Change of tone, visual contact with other delegates, right pauses, and possibly a final phrase with effect, contribute to strengthening the content of the speech. 

Indeed, the speech is an important tool to attract attention and to let all delegates know about the delegation and its position, so it is important to act and perform a speech in order to be a potential leader as well.