(UNIT -4 ) Modern English Language and Usage

Unit-4: Language for specific Speech events                                 

Ø  Drafting an invitation

Ø  Drafting the minutes of a meeting

Ø  Addressing a gathering (welcome address)

Ø  Proposing vote of thanks

                                    Drafting Invitations.

Introduction
Invitations or invites are the sweetest kinds of letters. We write invitations on a number of occasions – formal and informal.

·         In fact informal invitations have no limits.

·         You can invite your friends, relatives, or anyone whom you can address “Hi” and “hello” anyway you like but when it comes to formal invitations, you have to restrict your freedom.

·         You cannot invite your local MP or a film-star, “Hi Bro, there is a party we gonna throw on Monday. Do come to inaugurate the same. See Yaa. Bye! Take care!”

Invitation media

You can write/design/draft an invitation on multiple platforms:

·         Design in a card and enclose in an envelope (mostly formal)

·         Write on plain paper or letter pad and enclose in an envelope (mostly formal)

·         Draft as an email and send directly (mostly formal)

·         Design and hand over in person (both)

CBSE Concern

·         Formal Printed Invitations

·         Formal replies – Accepting and Declining

·         Informal Invitations – Letter format

INFORMAL INVITATIONS

Informal invitations are drafted for the following occasions:

·         On the occasion of a birthday

·         On the occasion of your parents’ wedding anniversary

·         On the occasion of your sister’s engagement/ring ceremony/wedding

·         On the occasion of a party that throw to welcome your old friends home

Format

·         Begin with sender’s address, date, receiver’s address

·         Salutation of your choice

·         Write the content loosely but be precise. Invitation is shorter than a letter.

·         Do not fail to provide specific details of the function, venue, date.

·         Make the invitee feel the warmth of the invitation so use words from the core of heart.

·         You can even draw a route map.

Styling

·         Dear Charley, you will be thrilled to know that Marcy has finally agreed to pursue her further studies in London…

·         Charley, I am most obliged to you throughout my life for my getting selected for the Madagascar team…

·         Dear Diana, it is with welling excitement that I invite you to be part of my sister’s engagement with Spencer…

Example | Informal Invitation

12/C, Palace Road
New York – 11

16 March 2100

Dear Frank,
Emily and I are throwing a party on the occasion our parents’ 39th wedding anniversary that falls on this Saturday, the 25th of this month at our residence. It will be a pleasure if you would join us with family for the celebrations. Hope to see you soon.

Yours sincerely
Peter

Example | Reply to Informal Invitation

33, Park Avenue
New York – 12

17 March 2100

Dear Peter and Emily,
Thank you for the kind invitation to your parents’ wedding anniversary. It is a pleasure to think of them and being able to spend time with them is always memorable. Unfortunately for us, my sons are in India for a month’s visit and we are joining them on the 24th. We regret our inability to decline the invitation. We extend our prayers for Mr. and Mrs. Cooks.

Yours sincerely
Frank

FORMAL INVITATIONS

Formal Invitations

·         Inviting a dignitary to preside over a function

·         Inviting a celebrity to inaugurate your new showroom

Format

·         Formal Invitation are generally sent on occasions such as grand weddings, anniversaries and mass functions involving a big crowd of invitees.

·         Formal Invitations are sent to individuals for a less grand function such as a formal wedding anniversary, formal alumni meeting, etc. In this kind of invitation, we write, “Mr. Arvind Malhotra cordially seeks the pleasure of Mr. and Mrs. Singh, on the auspicious occasion of….”

·         Write as if it is written by a third person. It is not, “I and my wife invite you to our son’s wedding” but, “Mr. and Mrs. Malhotra cordially solicit the presence of Mr. and Mrs….”

·         Do not use I, we, and you and their other forms.

·         Follow the letter format with from address and date but no need to write salutation such as, dear, sir, etc.

·         Begin with the host’s name, such as, “Mr. Peter is glad to invite Mr. Alexander…”

·         For invitations inviting dignitaries as judges or chief guests, it is just a single paragraph.

·         No I, We, You. Only Third Persons

·         Write inside a box.

                                               Next – Sample – Functions

The Principal, staff and students of
Townvale Public Schoolcordially invite your presence on the occasion of the 

Golden Jubilee Celebrations

of the school
on 21st December, 2012, Monday, from 05.00 pm to 09.00 pm at
King’s Stadium, Model Town. 

Mr. Shah Rukh Khanwill be our proud guest of honor for the day.

Kindly be seated before 4.50. This invitation admits only three people.

A detailed rout map is overleaf.

RSVP
Charles Frost Asst. Principal 077-22-13-5654

                                          Next – Sample – Wedding Invitation

Mrs. and Mr. Jain
cordially solicit your benign presence

on the auspicious occasion of the marriage of their son

ROHIT JAIN
with
SUJATHA JAIN(D/o Mrs. and Mr. Lala Jain)

on the 23rd of April, 2012, Monday, evening at
Rajouri Park Hotel, Rajouri Garden, Delhi.

— PROGRAM —

Baraat : 8 30
Grand Dinner : 11:30

RSVP 011-223344
Best Compliments from Raghav, Raju and friends

Best Complements from
Mahesh, Peter and Pinku

                                       Next – Sample – Inviting dignitaries

Question

Your school, Lord Buddha School, Gaya, is celebrating its 300th Anniversary in the month of December. The program is expected to last a week. To this, invite Mr. A. K. Antony, Honorable Prime Minister to precede over the occasion of the closing day programs. You are Ms. Sukanya, Principal.

Answer 

Lord Buddha School
Gaya – 112233

12 March 2017

Principal of Lord Buddha School, Gaya, cordially invites Mr. A. K. Antony, Honorable Prime Minister, to the closing day celebrations of the school’s 300th Anniversary in the month of December, preferably in the second half of the month. The entire school hopes that the honorable Prime Minister would definitely keep a part of his very precious time for this noble cause and appreciate an early reply from his office.

Most sincerely
Shankar Dev Rana

Next – Sample – Reply – Accepting

Prime Minister’s Office
New Delhi – 110011

16 March 2017

Mr. A K Antony feels privileged to be invited to inaugurate the closing day celebrations of the 300th Anniversary of Lord Buddha School, Gaya. With cheers for the programs, he accepts the invitation and confirms his availability from 2 pm to 5 pm, Saturday, 12 March.

Sincerely
Ms. Urmila Devi (Private Secretary)

Next – Sample – Reply – Declining

Prime Minister’s Office
New Delhi – 110011

16 March 2017

Mr. A K Antony, the honorable Prime Minister feels privileged to be invited to inaugurate the closing day celebrations of the 300th Anniversary of Lord Buddha School, Gaya. He would have been equally glad to accept the invitation but he deeply regrets his unavailability due to a foreign program in the same month. However, he wishes all success for the program.

Sincerely
Ms. Urmila Devi (Private Secretary)

Drafting the Minutes of meetings

Lots of organisations, groups, and businesses have meetings where a record needs to be kept of the proceedings and decisions made. Somebody in each case needs to write the minutes of meetings.

·         an informal meeting of hobby club members

·         the annual general meeting of a charity

·         a formal meeting of school governors

·         director’s meetings of small or large companies

The written records of these events are called the ‘minutes of meetings’.

The purpose of taking minutes of the meeting is more or less the same in each case – to keep an accurate record of events for future possible reference.

·         when it took place,

·         who was in attendance

·         who was absent

·         what was discussed

·         what decisions were made

The minutes of meetings are a record of discussions and decisions, and over time they might form an important historical record (in the case of a government’s war cabinet for instance).

There might also be a legal requirement for sets of minutes to be produced in an organisation – as in the case of a bank or a limited company.

          Details

The amount of detail recorded will depend upon the type of meeting and maybe its historical culture. Some organisations like to have a record that captures the spirit of the discussions that took place; others put their emphasis on the decisions that are made.

One thing is certain: the person taking the minutes is not expected to give a dramatic or poetic description of what takes place. The minutes of a meeting are a summary, recording its most important features.

You can get an idea of the culture and style of the group by looking at the minutes of previous meetings. These will give you a guide to the amount of detail normally required and the way in which decisions are recorded.

Different types of meetings record these details in various styles. A group of parents running a children’s football team does not require the same degree of formality as a managing board of company directors. Roughly speaking, there are three types of minute taking

Informal

This might be no more than a bulleted list of points, a table with boxes to record deadlines, or a checklist of topics.

Minimalist

These will give a brief information on time-date-place, who was present, and details of decisions or resolutions passed. These can often be compressed onto a single side of A4 paper.

Detailed

A document of several pages, with headings and sub-headings, and maybe numbered points. These might provide a record of the discussion in summarized form, along with named individuals given specific responsibilities, plus any deadlines for action.

The Role of a Minutes Secretary

The minutes of a meeting are normally taken by the secretary, whilst the chair conducts the meeting.

It is the role of the chair to set the agenda, introduce items, and decide who speaks to the issues.

In a very big organisation the secretary might delegate the actual recording of events to an assistant or clerk.

It’s important that the minutes secretary follows the progress of the meeting carefully, recording major items of debate and decisions that are taken. The published agenda is a useful template by which to take notes during the meeting. This keeps the order of topics and the structure of the meeting intact.

For this reason the secretary and the chair need to work closely in collaboration with each other.

If a decision taken by the meeting is not clear, the secretary should ask the chair to clarify matters – which often helps other people as well.

Some types of meeting even require a record of who spoke to the issues on the agenda, and what points of argument they made. In such cases, a summary rather than a verbatim record is appropriate.

Writing the minutes of meetings

It is most likely that to make rough notes during the meeting, then convert these to finished report of the meeting after it has finished.

Remember that summarizing the content is the most important issues, so it is necessary to use a number of skills at the same time

·         good listening skills

·         the ability to summarize

·         good note-taking skills

At the meeting

·         listen attentively, jotting down key words

·         use the agenda document as a template

·         leave enough space between items for your jottings

·         summarize what’s said, using a system of shorthand

·         ask for clarification if necessary

Notes on the Agenda

1. The name of the meeting or group

This can be very important in some cases – particularly if the minutes of the meeting will be circulated widely outside the group itself, or even to the public.

2. Those in attendance

The meeting might be composed of delegates or representatives from a variety of organisations. It’s the secretary’s job to note both their names and the organisations they represent.

List the names in alphabetical order. This avoids any suggestion of priority or importance.

3. Minutes of the last meeting

It is usual for these to be looked at briefly, with a view to making sure that everybody agrees they are a correct record.

It might be necessary to note the outcomes of any decisions taken on which action has been taken

Larger or on-going issues very often appear on the agenda of the current meeting, and discussion of them can be deferred until these items are considered.

4. Agenda item One

You should keep the notes for each agenda item separate and quite distinct from each other on the page.

Leave plenty of space between the notes.

Template for Meeting Minutes

1.Name of Organisation or group

2. Name of Meeting – it might be a regular meeting or one with a specific purpose

3. Date of Meeting

4. Names of those attending – plus their positions or the organisations they represent

5. Apologies for absence – those giving their apologies for non-attendance

6. Agenda item One – This is usually the minutes of the last meeting

7. Agenda item Two

8. Agenda item Three … and so on …

12. Date of the next meeting

13. Any other business

The papers for a meeting might normally include the following documents (depending on the formality of the meeting or group):

·         An agenda for the forthcoming meeting

·         The minutes of the last meeting

·         Attachments, reports, or letters

Committee members are given these papers in advance, and they are supposed to have read them all before they arrive at the meeting. That’s the theory – but the reality is often different.

People often start reading through these documents at the meeting itself, and asking questions about them – which is one of the many reasons that meetings take longer than they should. It is the job of the chair to impose discipline over such issues.

Writing up the minutes of meetings

You will be creating the minutes from your notes taken during the meeting. Here is one overwhelmingly useful tip on this part of the task: The sooner after the meeting you do it, the easier it will be.

That’s because your rough notes will make more sense, and you are not relying on your medium or long term memory to recapture any names or details of the discussion.

The structure of the minutes will mirror the meeting agenda

Use the past tense (“Mr Parkinson outlined the plan”) and avoid use of the passive voice (“The plan was outlined by Mr Parkinson”)

Some organizations and groups like to draw attention to the decisions and outcomes by concluding the report of each agenda item with an action point. Here’s an example:

There was a discussion of the proposed alternative route and the impact it would have on local residents and businesses. It was unanimously decided that a formal challenge should be registered at the earliest possible date.

ACTION POINT: The treasurer Mrs Jones will seek volunteers to form a transport sub-committee, and Mr Davis as chair will contact the four local councillors and invite them to address the next meeting.

Sample minutes of Meetings 

Westleigh Maintenance Company Ltd

Annual General Meeting

Monday 19 July 2010

Present

Julie Culshaw, Mary Greenhalgh, Vera Sisson, Ingrid Kempster, Edward Kempster, Irene Rodger, Colin Rodger, Gerry Clarke, Edith Pickles, Pat Powell, Heather Pollitt, Roy Johnson.

Apologies

Manoj Hira, Reg Marsden, Lavinia Marsden, John Sillar

1. Minutes of the last AGM held on 22 July 2009 were accepted.

2. The accounts for the year ended 31 March 2010 were accepted.

Although these showed an overall loss, this was due to late maintenance payments, and these had since been paid.

3. Appointment of accountants

The finance director suggested that we remain with our current accountants, and this was accepted.

4. Appointment of directors.

The current directors were all standing for re-election. There were no nominations for new directors. The current directors were re-elected.

5. Appointment of company secretary

Julie Culshaw moved a vote of thanks and appreciation to the secretary and other directors in recognition of the amount of work they undertook on behalf of the Company.

Heather Pollitt was elected as secretary.

6. Increase in service charge

Because of the lack of any surplus to pay for improvements and maintenance, the directors recently looked into the possibility of arranging a bank overdraft. This was not pursued because of the cost and the excessive bureaucracy attached. The possibility of extraordinary payments was also discussed and rejected in favour of an increase in the service charge.

The meeting finally agreed that the directors should prepare a financial projection for the next one to two years, based on an increase in the annual service charge to somewhere between £1100 and £1200.

Any Other Business

7. Managing agents

The directors recently decided to end the relationship with the Guthrie Partnership as managing agents, because it was felt that the directors themselves were able to act more efficiently on behalf of Westleigh and its interests.

However, the advisory services of Alec Guthrie himself would be retained as and when required for legal purposes.

8. Maintenance

Directors had spoken to Dave Roberts, who agreed to act as a point of contact for local maintenance services. It was stressed that this did not represent an agreement to cover the costs of any works commissioned: these could only be met following agreement of the directors.

Gerry Clarke reminded the meeting that in cases where leaks from one apartment were affecting another, the costs of any repairs and redecoration were the responsibility of the owner causing the leaks.

9. Gardening

There was general dissatisfaction with the services provided by the current gardeners. A quotation from another local gardening service had been obtained, and it was agreed to change to this alternative service for a trial period once sufficient funds were available – probably towards the end of September.

10. Purchase of freehold

The purchase of the freehold was now complete, and Westleigh owners were in a position to either cease or continue making ground rent payments. Pat Powell suggested that the current payment should be included in the annual service charge, payable by one direct debit. This suggestion was accepted.

11. External re-decoration

The replacement of the finials, cleaning of driveways, and repainting of fascia boards was almost complete. A vote of thanks was extended to Edith Pickles for allowing the use of her garage for storage during these works.

The meeting concluded at 20.15

The Welcome Speech

The Welcome Speech is must in a formal meeting. It is normally the president who delivers the welcome speech or the welcome address as it is formally known. 

To be effective, to fulfil its purpose, the speech must meet expected, as well as specific, requirements dictated by the occasion. 

The essential elements to cover in the opening remarks are:

§  to specifically acknowledge and welcome any important guests

§  to generally welcome all the guests, stating the name of the event and host and thank them for coming

§  to give a brief introduction of the host

§  to give a brief introduction of the occasion

§  to introduce the next speaker if appropriate

§  to conclude having made everybody feel at ease, eagerly anticipating what is to come

Some guidelines :

1. Salutation : This is the first formal speech in a meeting. It is the duty of the speechmaker to start building a bridge between the audience and the people on the dais (Incidentally, the stage is called Dais pronounced dayis and not dayas) and so, his salutation will include the names and designations of all the people on the dais. 

2. General Welcome : It is my pleasant duty to welcome you all to this meeting. 

3. History : A few words about the past events those which happened before the event that is happening. 

4. Purpose of the meeting : In the formal set up, the purpose of the meeting should be explained to the audience so that they will start expecting something out of the meeting. 

5. Individual Welcome : All the people on the dais who are not members of your organisation need to be individually welcomed. The order is first, the most important person for that meeting, generally the chief guest. Followed by the guest of honour, if any. Do not begin the individual welcome by saying, "when we went to meet Mr our chief guest…" 

This is irrelevant. Similarly phrases like "Who readily accepted our invitation" "Who has come here in spite of his busy schedule" These are clichés and spoil the impact of your speech. 

Sample Welcome Speech:

Good evening; Professor and Mrs. Smith, Chairman of the Board of Governors, Board Members, Honored Guest and Advocate Green from the Education Council.

May I take this opportunity to welcome you all, and to extend a further word of welcome to everyone here this evening.

The Opening Day of our new college is certainly a moment that we should all savor and enjoy. If you take a quick look around you, I'm sure you will all agree that our college has come a long way in the last few months.

It all started as a dream. [Insert name of company] envisioned the dream of establishing a world class educational institution; a college that would mold and guide future generations of enlightened minds.

We would like to extend our gratitude and thanks to all the role players that have made it possible for the dream to become a reality. Tonight marks this occasion - the Opening and Commencement Ceremony of our college.

You are all most welcome to stay here this evening. I hope you enjoy the rest of the evening's program and thank you for sharing this special event with us.

Proposing Vote of Thanks

Thanking is a great tradition of any function that is organized in any from or even any social gathering. It is to give a proper end to the celebration, were the dignitaries are thanked for their presence to the function.

There are two major ideas for the proposer. The first is to refer to the central message of the speech topics of the lectures or presentations given by the previous public speakers.  And emphasize only positive statements, ideas and thoughts of the keynote speakers.

To write a good vote of thanks, one must think about the type of event where the thanks will be presented, making sure to express gratitude to the stakeholders, be creative and not take too much time. A vote of thanks should have brevity because it is typically given at the end of an event, so it is important to not make it too long or drawn out.

It is very important to be aware of the audience that the vote of thanks will address. For example, the speaker should be aware of the age of the audience that he or she is addressing. Religious views, political leanings and other characteristics should be taken into account as well.

A vote of thanks speech should coincide with the event or ceremony underway, and should express gratitude to all involved. It is also crucial the vote of thanks be short, as it is usually the last item on the agenda, but nonetheless creative. The vote of thanks speech should also demonstrate awareness of the audience, their culture and expectations.

Always request a list of all the individuals who contributed to the meeting's success. This list should be used to thank all involved. Even small displays of gratitude are welcome, such as thanking someone for providing juice at the event.

A vote of thanks should be eloquent but should not use very long or technical words. A speech that is difficult to understand will simply alienate the audience and take away the importance of the speech's message. A thesaurus can come in handy for finding the right words that will avoid this problem.

Speeches are more interesting when they include anecdotes, quotes, poems and other interesting references. These speeches can also have more color added to them by making the "thank you" parts creative and endearing, and as is the case with many kinds of speeches, humor can be very useful.

A quote, poem or scripture usually adds flair to the speech, and shows the audience that the speaker took time to prepare. Writers should try to add as many elements of creativity as possible through the use of interesting and unique observations. A joke made in good taste may also be appropriate

A vote of thanks is often tough to do well because the proposer  are generally:

a. following an established ‘headline’ speakter for the event who has been hired to wow the crowd

b. the last piece on the event agenda – the audience are itching to get away

c. the last thing that the audience will remember from the event – it’s your job to make a good final impression!

So, for your delight, here’s my tried and trusted template for giving an engaging, concise and relevant vote of thanks.

Intro – introduce yourself to the audience.

Thanks for attending – thank the audience for coming along (they love being mentioned first!)

Emotion / joke – make a humorous comment on the day or give a positive personal opinion about the event. This helps to build rapport quickly.

Specific thanks – thank the speaker, highlighting three points from their speech that you felt were the most enjoyable and relevant. Explain why you felt they were so good.

Wish safe journey – wish the audience a safe journey home (they love being mentioned again!)

Soundbite / action – finish with a final point that is memorable and relevant – something that the audience will remember.

 Here’s a short (humorous and fictional!) vote of thanks written using this very template:

[INTRO] Good evening ladies and gentlemen, my name is Rich Watts and it is my job this evening to give the vote of thanks.

[THANKS] I’d like to start by thanking you all for attending and supporting the wonderful cause that is this fundraiser for the Monkey Tears charity.

[EMOTION / HUMOUR] The highlight for me has been Mrs Jones’ cake stall and if you haven’t already, I’d urge you to try the blueberry muffins before you leave, but not the chocolate ones, because I’m hoping to take as many as possible home with me tonight!

[ SPECIFIC THANKS] I’m sure you will all join me in thanking once again our speaker tonight, Mr David Ferneybottom.

APPLAUSE.

David, I particularly enjoyed your speech. I couldn’t agree more with your points about how we should all adopt a monkey next year to help develop economic prosperity. Such a scheme truly is required if we are to get out of this recession.

I delighted in hearing about your experiences of monkeys from your school days, and it reminded me vividly of my own wonderful days of education and those long, hot summer holidays.

Finally, I’m still laughing at your joke about the banana and the monkey. I think we all are, and I shall be sharing it with my wife when I return home tonight.

[WISH SAFE JOURNEY] All that remains now is for me to wish you all a safe journey home.

[SOUNDBITE/ACTION] And as My Ferneybottom has taught us – never mess with a monkey with a banana in its hand!