Before arriving on College Hill, I scrolled through Courses@Brown, searching for classes that might help me navigate the next four years. When I came across TAPS 0220: “Persuasive Communication,” I thought it would be the perfect class for me and my public speaking nerves. The course, taught by Barbara Tannenbaum, helps students develop confidence through public speaking and persuasive presentations. But due to high demand, the class is generally filled with seniors who joined a waitlist early on in their undergraduate career. I was already excited about the prospect of embarking on this rite of passage in four years as a senior, but it seemed silly that I would have to wait until the end of college to learn the skills that would be of so much use in those very four years.
Longtime professor Barbara Tannenbaum teaches the course and introduces students to public speaking. Students deliver speeches introducing themselves, teaching their classmates something new, and persuading audiences to change their attitude or take action. The class builds a special bond through tradition because the structure requires students to share their ideas and experiences while giving their peers the same attention. With a class limited to 15 students, every student becomes an active participant in the learning experience. The structure of this course allows it to become a defining part of a student’s time at Brown.
What makes TAPS 0220 particularly meaningful is that students experience the challenges of public speaking together. In 2007, Michael Zapendowski ’07, who took the class his senior year, wrote that every type of student should take the class: “There are people in (TAPS 0220) who have had experience giving speeches and those who are naturally shy. There are those who mumble, those who slur words and those, like myself, who speak way too fast.” Public speaking can be hard for everyone, even someone who seems most confident in a room, because it is natural to be vulnerable when standing in front of others. Throughout the course, students watch their peers improve, creating an opportunity to build relationships that extend beyond the classroom.
If this experience is meaningful to seniors, it could be even more meaningful as a tradition to first-years. When students arrive on campus, everything is new: Students have to build relationships and get comfortable with an unfamiliar environment — often while feeling intimidated by anything and everything. TAPS 0220 would give first-year students a built-in community of people who get to know each other on a deeper level through shared experiences. Popular classes at Brown, such as CSCI 0150, are considered campus traditions that students mainly take in their first year. TAPS 0220, on the other hand, is popular, but it can only be taken in senior year, so it hasn’t gained that status. Making it a class for first-years could help it become a true pillar of the undergraduate experience that is ingrained as a shared experience, community building, immensely helpful, and a true tradition, rather than just a class in high demand.
TAPS 0220 teaches skills that students can use in their undergraduate careers. According to its course description, students practice different types of public speaking such as “impromptu, extemporaneous, and manuscript”, while learning to adapt their delivery to different audiences. These abilities are undoubtedly beneficial for students entering the workforce and pursuing higher education, but they are equally if not more valuable to students just beginning college. As freshmen begin to explore internships and campus organizations, it is more valuable than ever to be able to give a good interview. Freshmen can use impromptu thinking to speak more confidently in the classroom. Beyond the classroom, TAPS 0220 would help first-year students introduce themselves to professors, make friends, pursue research opportunities and internships, network, interview, and so much more. So many opportunities arise to use public speaking skills during students' first year at Brown, so students shouldn’t have to wait until they're seniors to develop them. “It's about learning how to speak well in general — over the phone, during an interview, even in day-to-day conversations,” Zapendowski wrote.
Brown already has the framework for making this possible: its first-year seminars. The University has a number of first-year seminars available this year, which “aim to promote close interaction between faculty and students in a small setting that encourages pedagogical innovation and community-building.” Instead of removing TAPS 0220 from the senior experience, the University can create a first-year seminar modeled on the course. Brown’s first-year seminars already foster close interaction between students and faculty, between feedback and exploration. Of course, creating additional sections would require instructors and resources, but Brown already recognizes the importance of giving first-years a small-class experience through first-year seminars. The University wouldn’t have to invent a new educational experience, but make the benefits of TAPS 0220 more accessible to first-years.
College traditions don’t have to be reserved for graduation or the months leading up. Some of the most beneficial and meaningful experiences can happen at the beginning of the college experience. TAPS 0220 has the potential to bring freshmen together and help them find their voice — Brown should give freshmen the opportunity to experience it from the beginning.
Maya Rosenberg '30 can be reached at maya_rosenberg@brown.edu. Please send responses to this column to letters@browndailyherald.com and other opinions to opinions@browndailyherald.edu.
