Meeting Roles
Toastmaster of the Day
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Overview:
The Toastmaster of the Day acts as the host and director of the Toastmasters meeting. After being introduced by the President, the Toastmaster of the Day formally opens the main segment of the meeting. Their primary duty is to introduce the various participants of the day’s programme, including the speakers. They guide the flow of the meeting, from the prepared speeches through to the evaluation segment, and are responsible for ensuring a smooth transition between different sections. The role concludes when they return control of the meeting to the President.
Responsibilities:
The responsibilities of the Toastmaster of the Day are divided into tasks to be completed before, during, and after the main speaking portion of the meeting.
Before the Meeting:
- Contact Speakers: You must contact all speakers to confirm their participation and obtain the titles of their speeches.
- Assign Roles: Ensure all meeting roles are assigned to members and that they are aware of their specific duties.
At the Meeting (Before Speeches):
- Brief Role Players: You need to confirm that the Timer, Grammarian, Vote Counter, and Ah-Counter all understand their respective duties.
- Liaise with General Evaluator: Check that the General Evaluator has assigned individual evaluators and has a list of all assigned meeting participants.
- Collect Speaker Information: Acquire a “Speaker Introduction Form” from every prepared speaker to facilitate a proper introduction.
When Introduced by the President:
- Acknowledge and Recognise: Acknowledge the President’s introduction and address the audience.
- Introduce Key Roles: Introduce the Timer, Grammarian, Vote Counter, and Ah-Counter to the audience.
- Introduce Speakers: Ensure all prepared speakers are introduced properly before their speeches.
After the Speeches:
- Call for Reports: You will call upon the Timer for their report on speech times. Following the evaluation section, you will also introduce the Ah-Counter and the Grammarian to deliver their respective reports.
- Manage Voting: Instruct for the ballots to be passed to the Vote Counter. Later, you will call on the Vote Counter to present the results for awards such as top speaker or most improved speaker, if applicable to your club.
- Introduce the General Evaluator: You must introduce the General Evaluator to lead the evaluation portion of the meeting.
- Return Control: At the conclusion of your duties, you must formally return control of the meeting and the gavel to the President.
General Evaluator
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Overview:
The General Evaluator’s purpose is to evaluate everything that occurs during the Toastmasters meeting
Responsibilities:
The General Evaluator has a broad range of responsibilities, which involve evaluating all aspects of the meeting from start to finish.
Before the Meeting:
- Check if the room and equipment were set up on time.
- Observe whether guests were welcomed upon their arrival.
- Ensure guests were informed about Toastmasters and the format of the meeting.
Meeting Opening:
- Evaluate if the presiding officer was prepared and organised.
- Note whether the meeting started on time.
- Check if everyone was properly introduced.
- Confirm that the Toastmaster was properly introduced.
Toastmaster Evaluation:
- Verify if the Toastmaster filled all roles before the meeting began.
- Note if the Toastmaster introduced and explained the theme of the meeting.
- Confirm if the Toastmaster properly introduced the General Evaluator and the Topicsmaster.
Evaluation Session Management:
- Properly introduce the Grammarian , Timer , and Ah-Counter.
- Assess if the Grammarian was prepared, introduced their role within the allotted time, and properly introduced the Word of the Day.
- Evaluate if the Word of the Day was challenging, appropriate, and suited the meeting’s theme.
- Check if the Timer was prepared and introduced their role within the specified time.
- Ensure the Ah-Counter was prepared and explained their role within the allocated time.
- Deliver the General Evaluator’s own report.
Topicsmaster Evaluation:
- Check if the purpose and timing of Table Topics were clearly explained.
- Evaluate if the chosen topic was appropriate and aligned with the meeting theme.
- Observe whether the Topicsmaster prioritised calling on people without a meeting role first.
- Note if guests were invited to participate in Table Topics.
- Assess if the Topicsmaster managed time effectively to keep the meeting on schedule.
- Confirm that control was properly returned to the Toastmaster.
TopicsMaster
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Overview:
The Topicsmaster is responsible for facilitating the Table Topics session of the meeting
Responsibilities:
- Facilitate Table Topics: The core responsibility is to lead the Table Topics session.
Explain the Session: When introduced, the Topicsmaster must explain that the purpose of the session is to practise impromptu speaking.
Set the Rules: You need to inform participants that you will introduce a topic and they will have two minutes to speak on it.
Prepare Topics: You are required to prepare topics for the speakers, which can be aligned with the meeting’s theme.
Call on Speakers: You will call on various members and guests to speak.
- Keep a Log: You must maintain a log of who spoke and on which topic.
Grammarian
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Overview:
As the Grammarian, your primary responsibility is to monitor language usage during the meeting
Responsibilities:
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During the Meeting:
- Monitor Language: Pay close attention to all speakers and listen carefully to their language usage.
- Note Improper Language: Keep a log of any improper grammatical uses and provide suggestions for improvement.
- Note Outstanding Language: Take note of any outstanding words, quotes, sayings, or thoughts you hear.
- Introduce the Word of the Day: It is your duty to introduce the Word of the Day, provide its definition, and use it in an example sentence. You should also display the word visually at the front of the room.
- Encourage Word Usage: Encourage every speaker to use the Word of the Day.
Reporting:
- Track Word of the Day Usage: Keep a log of all individuals who use the Word of the Day.
- Deliver the Grammarian’s Report: When called upon, you must deliver a report that covers your observations on language usage and a separate report on the usage of the Word of the Day.
Ahh Counter
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Overview:
The purpose of the Ah-Counter is to observe and take note of words and sounds that are used as a “crutch” or “pause filler” by anyone who speaks during the meeting. At the end of the meeting, the Ah-Counter provides a report on the number of times each speaker used these filler expressions.
Responsibilities:
- Explain the Role: When introduced, the Ah-Counter must state the purpose of the role to the audience.
- Listen for Filler Words: During the meeting, you must listen for overused words, including “and,” “well,” “but,” “so,” and “you know”.
- Listen for Filler Sounds: You are also responsible for listening for filler sounds such as “ah,” “um,” and “er”.
- Note Repetitions: The role requires you to note when a speaker repeats a word or phrase, for example, “I, I” or “This means, this means”.
- Log Observations: You must use a log to mark down the specific filler words and sounds used by each speaker. The log includes columns for “Ah,” “Um,” “Er,” “Well,” “So,” “Like,” “But,” “Repeats,” and “Other”.
- Report Findings: At the end of the meeting, you will be called upon to report the number of times each speaker used these various expressions, referencing your log.
Timekeeper
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Overview:
As the Timer, your primary function is to time several key segments of the meeting, including the Table Topics® speakers, formal speeches, and the evaluations. It is your duty to alert each speaker about the time they have remaining by using a signalling system of green, yellow, and red cards. You are also responsible for keeping a log of the times for each participant and reporting on these when called upon.
Responsibilities:
Explaining the Role & Timing Rules:
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- When introduced, you must explain your duties, which include timing Table Topics®, formal speeches, and evaluations.
- You must explain the signalling system using green, yellow, and red cards.
- Table Topics®: Explain that speakers should speak for no more than 2 minutes.
- Green card at 1 minute.
- Yellow card at 1 minute and 30 seconds.
- Red card at 2 minutes.
- Formal Speeches: Explain that speakers must adhere to their specific speech times.
- Ice Breaker (4-6 minutes): Green at 4, Yellow at 5, Red at 6 minutes.
- Most other speeches (5-7 minutes): Green at 5, Yellow at 6, Red at 7 minutes.
- Evaluations: Explain that individual evaluations should be between 2 and 3 minutes.
- Green card at 2 minutes.
- Yellow card at 2 minutes and 30 seconds.
- Red card at 3 minutes.
Record Keeping:
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- Timer Log: You are required to maintain a Timer Log.
- Record Times: For each speaker in the Table Topics®, Prepared Speeches, and Evaluations sections, you must record their name and the time they took.
- Note Compliance: You must also note whether each speaker was within their allotted time (Y/N). For prepared speeches, the log requires you to record the specific time requirement for that speech.
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