First Year Law Students!
As you probably all know, in the coming weeks you will be required to take part in a moot as part of your POPO course. While this seems like a scary thought, I can promise you it is not that bad!
However, there are a number of things you can do to be fully prepared and help with inevitable nerves!
Firstly - RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH!
If you know your topic inside and out, not only will you do better but you will feel more confident. The judges will be asking you questions and therefore it is not enough to learn your speech and submissions. Be aware of any weak parts of your argument which may be questioned. Know what you want to say and be clear about why you made that argument. Also, make sure you research the other teams authorities. You will receive a list of these the day before your moot and you should use this time to become familiar with them and have a think about what they will try to argue. This could mean you tweaking your own argument or coming up with a good rebuttal before you state your own submission.
Also, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!
If you want to sound confident when making your speech is to know your speech! This means practising it. get some friends, flatmates or family and practice your speech on them. Ask them to interject and ask questions (can be any question not necessarily law related e,g. what's your favourite Beyonce Song?), this will get you used to interjections and you will become more confident with stop and starting.
Also look out for any official public speaking practice events and make the effort to go!
Next week the GUU is holding a Public Speaking Training Session on Monday the 13th of February. This is a fantastic relaxed setting to practice your public speaking and pick up some tips that will be useful for your moot!
Check out the event page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/312694775449619/
Also remember when you get your moot problems, the first issue will be research! I will be available every Thursday 2pm - 4pm in IT Room 1 of the Stair Building for you to come and get some hints and tips on how to go about researching moot questions! Alternatively, e-mail me on 0906416b@student.gla.ac.uk if you can't make it to drop ins!
Happy Mooting!
