This is the most important role in Toastmasters. This is when you help the speaker learn what they do well and where they can improve. You will be giving an oral and written evaluation.

This is considered a major role and it will not be given to anyone who has been a member less than 4 weeks.

General Tips on creating an effective evaluation:

• When giving the oral evaluation, package it in a "praise sandwich". Begin with something positive, suggest where they could improve and conclude with another positive statement. Add as many points as you need, but keep within the 2-3 minute time frame.
• Orally highlight the written evaluation. You do not need to comment on everything you wrote in your evaluation.
• Be specific with your evaluations. Here are some examples
• "You are creative."
• "When you showed us the painting you created, it added credibility and impact to the point you were making".
• "You have improved."
• "Your poise and confidence has greatly improved."
• "When you talked about the cars I was confused."
• "I was lost when you began talking about the different cars. It would have been helpful to have a name or a picture of each car"
• In this last example the difference in the feedback is that you have suggested how to improve the organization and content of the speech. This is the goal of the evaluation.
• Avoid evaluating the content of the speech. It does not help the speaker learn how to speak and present better if you only talk about how much you liked the speech and how you felt about it.
• Remember you are speaking only for yourself and your opinion does matter. Don’t be afraid of giving your perspectives, ideas and opinions IF it benefits the speakers learning.

Responsibilities - Prior to the Meeting:

• Contact the speaker you are evaluating and find out what they want you to evaluate beyond what the manual evaluation requires. Ask how many speeches they have given.

Responsibilities - During the Meeting:

• Read the objectives of the speech from the manual.
• Write your impressions, ideas and comments in the manual AFTER the speech is completed. You can miss something if you are writing while the speaker is speaking.
• Prepare and give your oral presentation when re-introduce by the general evaluator.

Responsibilities - After the Meeting:

• Return the manual back to the speaker
• Give them any additional encouragement or explanation

Skills Used:

• Knowledge of good presentation skills
• Opinion
• Feedback
• Encouragement
• Tact – for suggestions on improvement
• Listening
• Visual
• Spontaneity – create a speech on the fly