Guest Speaker Assignment

SPORTS MEDICINE

ON-GOING GUEST SPEAKER ASSIGNMENT: REFLECTIVE THANK YOU LETTER

It is a special treat to have a professional take time out of their busy day to come speak to us. We must show them the utmost respect while they are visiting, and active listening is the best way to demonstrate that respect. Each speaker will talk about a different topic, providing you a wonderful opportunity to learn about careers in the health and medical fields. Your responsibility while they speak is to take notes on the interesting things they have to say. Focus on the following or other relevant points as they speak.

1. What education did they have to get for their career? 2. Do they get paid more if they have more education? 3. Do they have to keep taking classes to keep their license or certificate? 4. What do they do at work? 5. What is their schedule like? Weekends, holidays, late nights, long hours, on-call… 6. Do they work independently or in collaboration with others? 7. Are they around sick people? 8. Do they see gross stuff? 9. Can they get a job easily or is the field very competitive? 10.Can they work in other states or countries? 11.Do they travel with their job? Could they travel professionally if they wanted to? 12.Can they be their own boss? How do they get to that point? 13.Is their career rewarding? Emotionally, financially, otherwise? 14.Is this a career you may be interested in pursuing? Why or why not?

Grading criteria:

1. Proper format:

 Spelling 5 points use spell check but also review your letter for errors as spell check is not always reliable

 Grammar 5 points words such as there/their/they’re, are/our, here/hear, two/to/too are often misused. Please triple check that you are using the correct form of the word

 Punctuation 5 points if in doubt, look it up or ask your English teacher  3 paragraph minimum (5 sentences minimum per paragraph)

o introductory paragraph 10 points o body 20 points o conclusion 10 points

o Incorporate at least 5 key points from the questions above into the body of your paper (4 points each)

2. Professionalism 15 points

 Typed  Clean, easy to read, neat; no wrinkles, stains, tears in paper  Addressed to the guest speaker by name– write down their name so you can start the letter with “Dear Mr. / Mrs. / Dr.______”  Proper closing; sincerely, regards, thanks again

Your reflection paper is worth 70 points. It is due THE DAY after the guest lecture.

But what if I am absent on the day of the guest speaker…

If you miss the presentation you are required to find out from a friend or from me the topic of the presentation and then research information about that topic online. You will follow a similar format but do not have to write in letter format – essay format is fine. You are still required to write 3 full paragraphs and type the finished product. Please follow the requirements above for writing criteria and point values.

Your paper is due the day following your return to class. For example:

Tuesday – absent from class, miss guest speaker Wednesday – return to class and find out topic Thursday – paper is due