Cadets are provided an opportunity to increase their self-confidence, their ability to reason, and their ability to organize and express ideas. Cadets can participate in this annual program at the local level in their squadron and compete at a regional, provincial, and national level. The participating cadets prepare a 5-minute speech from a list of topics approved by the National Effective Speaking Committee and are asked to deliver a 3-minute impromptu speech while at the competition. The winning cadet is awarded a medal, a gift, and a certificate of participation.

The function of public speaking is determined by the speaker's intent when addressing a particular audience. It is possible for the same speaker, with the same intent, to deliver substantially different speeches to two different audiences. The main objective is to evoke a change in the audience, whether in their hearts, minds, or actions.

Although the name suggests otherwise, public speaking is often delivered to a closed, limited audience who share a common outlook. This audience can be composed of fervent supporters of the speaker, antagonistic individuals attending the event unwillingly or out of spite, or strangers with no particular interest in the speaker. However, effective speakers understand that even a small audience is not a homogeneous mass with a single point of view but rather a collection of diverse individuals.^[2]

Broadly speaking, public speaking aims either to reassure an anxious audience or to alert a complacent audience to something important. Once the speaker has determined which of these approaches is required, they will use a combination of storytelling and information delivery to achieve their goals.