Viewing the Teaching and Learning of Online Public Speaking With a Cinematic Acting Lens.

This essay introduces a cinematic acting lens as a framework for viewing the teaching and learning of online public speaking. Richard Boleslavsky's 1933 book Acting: The First Six Lessons provides a basis for viewing online public speaking as artistically different from, rather than inherently deficient to, traditional, face-to-face public speaking. Building from Boleslavsky's dialogue relating to acting in the early days of film, particular interest is in viewing the teaching and learning of public speaking in an online asynchronous format less like traditional public speaking and more like contemporary online content creation. Therefore focus turns toward optimizing the opportunities provided by learning and creating in a technology-mediated channel, rather than lamenting the perceived drawbacks of the channel and forcing traditional public speaking approaches into the online space. As differences between online public speaking and traditional face-toface public speaking are discussed as similar to how film acting differs from stage acting, a cinematic acting lens toward online public speaking provides a framework through which instructors and students might begin to see more opportunities for artistic and personal expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]