THE COMMUNICATOR-RECEPTOR-RESPONSE MODEL OF COMMUNICATION IS USED AS A FRAMEWORK TO EXAMINE WORDS AS SYMBOLS THAT MAY BE INTERPRETED DIFFERENTLY BY THE RECEPTOR, BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION MAY INCLUDE FACTORS SUCH AS CHANGE IN WORD USAGE, COMPLEXITY OF INFORMATION TO BE CONVEYED, AND SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES AMONG INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS. METHODS OF OVERCOMING THESE BARRIERS ARE SUGGESTED, ALONG WITH EXERCISES FOR PRACTICE. THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LANGUAGE AND WAYS TO IMPROVE IT ARE CONSIDERED. SINCE A GOOD SPEAKER IS ALSO A GOOD LISTENER, WAYS OF IMPROVING LISTENER RETENTION ARE DISCUSSED, AS ARE DIFFERENT KINDS OF LISTENER DISTRACTIONS. TECHNIQUES FOR AIDING MEMORY AND MEMORY DEVICES ARE ILLUSTRATED. THE PROCESS OF LEARNING IS IMPORTANT TO THE STUDENT OF EFFECTIVE SPEAKING BOTH FOR PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT AND TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO INSTRUCT AN AUDIENCE. LEARNING IS DEFINED, AND FACTORS WHICH MUST BE PRESENT IN EFFECTIVE LEARNING ARE DISCUSSED. SPEECH ORGANIZATION AND TIMING ARE KEYS TO EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION. STEPS TO BETTER PRESENTATION ARE OUTLINED (E.G., ANALYZING THE AUDIENCE FOR WHICH THE SPEECH IS INTENDED) AND WRITTEN EXERCISES ARE PROVIDED. TO SUCCEED AS A SPEAKER, THE STUDENT IS URGED TO PREPARE CAREFULLY AND TO PRACTICE DELIVERING THE TALK. SINCE THE POINT OF PRESENTING A TALK IS TO WIN THE AUDIENCE TO ONE'S VIEWPOINT, THE MECHANICS OF PERSUASION ARE TREATED. UNFORESEEN PROBLEMS CAN DISRUPT A PRESENTATION OR MAKE IT MORE DIFFICULT. SOME COMMON PROBLEMS ARE NOTED AND PREVENTIVE MEASURES ARE OFFERED. FINALLY, A SELF-EVALUATION METHOD IS PROVIDED, INCLUDING AN EVALUATION FORM. RECOMMENDED READINGS ARE LISTED. (MLC)