The gift of speech or skill in relation to conditions? is a qualitative interview survey of ten students’, in the upper secondary school, experiences of oral presentation in the classroom. The purpose of the study is to research how rhetorical previous knowledge, verbal interaction in the classroom and speech anxiety and speech tendency affect the experience of oral presentation. 

     The result shows that rhetorical previous knowledge has a positive affect on how oral presentation is experienced. Larger previous knowledge generates a more positive experience of oral presentation. The results also show that many of the students have a theoretical knowledge about outline, introduction and conclusion but lack the ability to practically use their theoretical knowledge in their oral presentations. The results also show that many students are experiencing a shortage of rhetorical education. 

     In the classroom culture signified by verbal interaction and dialogue, the students are more encouraged to perform an oral presentation, than in the classroom culture signified by one way communication. The results also show that response often is given orally by the teacher and less often in writing. Response from other classmates is unusual.

     Students’ speech anxiety and speech tendency affect how most students are experiencing discomfort in some way or another in relation to oral presentation. The background to this discomfort are most commonly related to the performance in front of classmates, the self-image or self-esteem but also being assessed by classmates or the teacher. Two other variables were found in the survey, that of the desire of knowing the audience or not and that of the size of the audience.

     Oral presentation is important to master both in school but also in real life. The common strategy for development of verbal interaction seems to lay in the actual performance only. Students are not handed other occasions to practice. At the same time students are graded on their performances without having any previous knowledge. Awareness about oral cultures in the classrooms and about the background of students speech anxiety are important for their development of verbal interaction in any form, and it is also important to vary the size of the group and the kind of audiences.