Examples of Signpostingīelow are some example of a signpost that you would use when you are speaking in public. So just as sign posts are used on the road to show you that your exit is in 3.4 miles (or km) signposts in public speaking are used to give the audience a sense of orientation. If the audience doesn’t understand where you are going with your talk, or how long they will have to listen they will often tune out. Why Use A Signpost In Public Speaking?Īudience members have short attention spans and as a public speaker you need to work hard to continually capture their attention.īy taking audience members on a journey, as well as letting them know where abouts on the journey they are allows you to maintain their attention on you so you can continue to deliver your message. Phrase or word used to Introduce the topic:Ģ.Signposts are important verbal statements used during a public speech to engage the audience and bring them through the different stages of your presentation. Your browser does not enable you to play the audio file. So you need to listen and identify the phrases or words you here such as 'What I’m going to be talking about today is…', 'I’m going to divide this talk into three parts', 'To begin.' etc. Have a listen to the start of this lecture. Let's summarise briefly what we've looked at.So it is clear from what we have discussed today that….To signal the end of the talk / Summing up: The next issue/topic/area I’d like to focus on ….The first advantage / reason / cause etc.Introducing the first section / subtopic or first of a list of points: I’m going to divide this talk into three parts.In today’s lecture I’m going to cover three points.What I’m going to be talking about today is…Įxplaining the lecture structure (sections / subtopics):.Today I’ll be talking about / discussing.This morning we are going to take a look at….Remember there are lots of different ways to say these things, so what you hear could be phrased slightly differently. However you are every unlikly to hear this used in IELTS because as section 4 of the listening is only around 4-5 minutes, you only usually hear the first part of the lecture or presentation. The table includes the signposting language to signal the end of the talk. This list sets out some of the key language that guides you on the overall topic and content of the lecture, and when different sections of the lecture are being discussed. The signposting language we'll look at in this lesson is the words and phrases that introduce the topics and subsections of the lecture. Knowing then the lecture structure and the language the speaker uses to tell you they are moving onto the second section will help you to follow where you are. It may be the case that these two sections follow the sections that the speaker divides their talk into i.e. This is particuarly important if your listening skills are weaker than they should be because you will easily get lost if you don't know where you are.Īlso, the lecture may be split into two parts (see for example the section 4 of this lecture). If you know the type of language that is used to guide you, it will help you to follow the lecture. This lesson is designed to help you with Section 4 IELTS listenings that are a lecture, though the language for a presentation or talk may be the same or similar. So it is possible that signposting will be used within this. It is usually a lecture by a professor, a presentation by a student, or a talk by a university staff member. In section 4 of the listening you have to listen to a talk in an academic setting, such as a university. So in other words, it acts as a guide so the listener can follow what you are saying. It is used to make clear what has just happened, and what is going to happen next.

Signposting language is the words and phrases that people use in order to guide the listener coherently through what is being said. IELTS Computer Based Test + Band Score Signposting Language

Signpost writing