Annual Pratt-Packard Declamation Contest Ends in Draw
By Jesse Reisner ‘08
News Staff Reporter
This Winter Term, twenty-five diligent Choate students entered the annual Pratt Packard Declamation Contest, from which four finalists were chosen to deliver their written speeches to the student body.
Jake Baranoski ‘06, Will Downes ‘07, Pooja Phull ‘06, and Allison Hinckley ’08 were chosen as the final four contestants of the competition after having submitted their speeches to a reading committee composed of three faculty members.
Mr. Zachary Goodyear, teacher of public speaking and organizer of the contest, originally instituted the contest as the climactic event for his public speaking class of 1983. “At the first stage, the judges have to be persuaded that the speech has some inherent interest and organization to it,” explained Mr. Goodyear.
Eleven semi-finalists competed in the Gets auditorium on the evening of February 1st. Judges selected finalists Baranoksi, Downes, Phull and Hinckley from that group. Baranoski, Downes, and Phull were finalists in last year’s Pratt Packard Contest. Hinckley was is a new fourth former.
In the finals this year, Jake Baranoski and Will Downes presented equally good speeches on a loyal hat and current politics, respectively, and ended up tying for first place. “My hat essay was originally meant to be a college essay, but I ended up not using it and converted it to a speech,” stated Baranoski.
Both the quality of writing and delivery of the speech are considered in determining its score. The two categories account for fifty percent of the overall score each. The speech that receives the highest score wins a cash prize.
“The most important thing about delivering a speech is having confidence,” commented Baranoski, who has presented several speeches at Choate and was a lector at his church since third grade.
Over the years, a number of humorous and well-written speeches have captivated the audience’s interest. “In the competition, it’s better to give a good presentation than to make the speech too serious. Look at the past few years—it’s been the funny speeches that have won,” stated Baranoski. “The hamburger speech was probably the best one I’ve ever heard.”
When Mr. Goodyear began teaching public speaking courses, he used a mnemonic device to remind students of the important facets of public speaking—SPATE, which stands for Stance, Projection, Articulation, Tone, and Eye Contact.
One of the messages that Mr. Goodyear has been trying to spread over the years is that public speaking is an essential part of education. “Public speaking is an important skill because you’re going to have to speak before others for the rest of your life. No matter where you go in life, you’ll find yourself in need of being able to articulately express your views.”
