Comment by snapetom
8 hours ago
The best class I ever took in any school setting was Public Speaking in my first year, first semester in college just to "get it out of the way."
The teacher started off with "you're all going to look like idiots and embarrass yourselves, and you'll have to get over it. Best you do it here now rather than in front of coworkers in a few years. She gave us skills and techniques that I still rely on today, and most importantly, the opportunity to practice.
I was a introverted going in to college, and that class didn't turn my into an extroverted social butterfly in 4 months. However, I have never been paralyzed with fear when required to talk in front of a crowd, and that has been invaluable in my career.
I had an English teacher in high school where everyone had to alternately do a 5-10 minute talk on a topic of their chosing at the beginning of class. They were rarely much good but it was a good exercise.