Problem Solution Speech Topics Ideas

Did you know that well-chosen problem-solution speech topics can increase audience engagement by up to 40%? Selecting the right topic for your problem-solution speech is crucial for capturing your audience’s attention and effectively communicating your message. A well-crafted problem-solution speech not only highlights a pressing issue but also offers actionable solutions, making it a powerful tool for influencing change and inspiring action.

In this article, you will find:

• A Comprehensive List of Topics: A wide range of problem-solution speech topics organized into categories such as health, environment, social issues, technology, and education.
• Tips for Selecting a Topic: Guidelines to help you choose a topic that resonates with your audience, matches your interests, and is relevant to current events.
• Examples and Breakdown: Detailed examples of how to develop a problem-solution speech, including how to identify the problem, propose solutions, and structure your speech for maximum impact.

With these resources, you’ll be well-equipped to choose a compelling topic and deliver an effective problem-solution speech that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

How to Choose a Problem and Make the Essay Interesting

The matter of selecting a problem for discussion and critical analysis directly depends on the type of target audience you will present a paper. For instance, if the audience consists of people belonging to a specific profession or research area, then, before designing a problem-solution speech outline, it would be logical to come up with a topic connected with their area of research or the scope of their interest. There are also cases when the audience selects the topic of presentation or speech for you beforehand. If it is a general audience, then it is prudent to select topics that are controversial, appealing to the general public, or that are rather challenging, such as environmental concerns and threats, ethical dilemmas, financial aspects, crime rates in the community, international problems and challenges, and so on. With these tips in mind, you will definitely provide the best proposal speech ever.

Another method to come up with the right entertainment speech ideas is to ask the event organizer to gather ideas from the audience regarding what topics they would love to hear about and further discuss.

On the whole, whatever method of topic selection you choose, the most important thing is to make sure you have sufficient evidence and clear illustrative examples to reflect on the topic in-depth and provide convincing arguments. In any case, if you are lost among the ideas for the topic discussion, opt for one of your personal experience speech ideas.

Whatever method you use to select your problem topic, ensure that you have clear examples, convincing facts, or credible data that supports your position on the matter.

How to Find Solutions

The solutions and recommendations that you put forward should be practical and resourceful. Besides, it should be clear how exactly they can be applied to the real case you are discussing. As you are contemplating how the solution will be effective, keep in mind that your audience will be involved in their own reflection on the topic as well. So, make sure you are persuasive enough.

How to Provide Proper Support for Your Argument

Supporting examples can be related to your personal experience with the help of which you can make the argument stronger and more convincing. When critically analyzing the topic, make sure you know how much the audience knows about it. If much information is left to be explained, interpreted, and so on, make sure you do it. If there is a need to provide background information to make everything clear, then do it as well.

On the contrary, if the audience comprises experts in the scope of research you have focused on, they will surely expect more originality and novelty from you. Therefore, make sure you provide adequate problem-solving examples for your proposal paper. Generally known standard information won’t be the best option.

If the listeners are complete novices to the topic, then try to introduce them to the topic gradually. When it comes to solutions, make sure they are more related to tried and tested principles and approaches. If you are delivering a speech to an audience that is not well-versed in the topic of your proposal essay, then it is recommended to provide a detailed and clear discussion wherein you provide a solution right after each problem you mention.

Problem-solution articles can also have such a structure where you provide the causes of the issue prior to the discussion of solutions. This strategy comes in handy as concentrating on the underlying cause assists in providing more solid support for the explanations, thus providing more reliability and credibility to the solutions.

Moreover, your personal viewpoint on the central issue should be presented in the process of proposing a solution. This way, your speech will be more convincing in that you will share your experience with the people who listen to you.

Concluding your problem/solution speech, make sure you provide a brief synopsis of the core issues, particularly solutions as your audience should remember them particularly well.

The Best Problem Solution Speech Topics for College Students

Professors frequently assign problem-solution speech topics for college students either for written assignments or oral presentations. Regardless of the type of speech topics for college that you have been assigned, you need to select a topic that is of particular interest to you and your target audience. Only when you demonstrate originality in the choice of your topic will you stand out as an original speaker/ writer and will thus be more appreciated by your professor and the audience. When you want just to provide an overview of the problem, then you have to search among the list of good informative speech topics for college students. Still, when you need to demonstrate your skills in critical and analytical writing, it is recommended to organize the essay as a persuasive one.

From the persuasive writing prompts enlisted below, try to select the one that you are well versed in and that aroused the greatest deal of interest in you. Only with these two basic criteria kept in mind will you be able to provide a successfully written problem-solution persuasive paper.

A List of Problem Cause Solution Persuasive Speech Topics for College Students

The list of problem-cause solution persuasive speech topics provided below will help you come up with interesting research ideas for your speech. Take a look at the numerous options for social issues and other problems in society to write about.

Environmental Issues

• The restrictions on the exploitation of the Antarctic resources should be maintained and the Antarctic should be viewed as a preserved place merely devoted to science: How can we ensure the Antarctic remains protected for scientific research?
• Recycling should be encouraged worldwide: What initiatives can promote global recycling efforts?
• Oil companies should get disaster control before engaging in offshore drilling: What disaster control measures should be mandatory for oil companies?
• The construction and building of venues before the Olympic Games should be banned by UNESCO as it harms a lot: How can UNESCO prevent the environmental harm caused by constructing Olympic venues?
• How to reduce plastic waste in our communities: What are the most effective strategies for reducing plastic waste locally?
• Promoting sustainable agriculture practices: What practices can farmers adopt to ensure sustainability?
• The impact of deforestation on global climate change: How does deforestation contribute to climate change and how can it be reduced?
• Renewable energy adoption should be accelerated: What policies can speed up the adoption of renewable energy sources?
• Conservation of endangered species: What steps can be taken to protect endangered species?
• Reducing air pollution in urban areas: What measures can cities implement to decrease air pollution?
• Managing water resources effectively: What techniques can ensure sustainable water resource management?
• The role of education in environmental conservation: How can education systems raise awareness about environmental conservation?
• Implementing green building standards: What are green building standards and how can they be implemented effectively?
• The effects of overfishing on marine ecosystems: What policies can prevent overfishing and protect marine ecosystems?
• Reducing the carbon footprint of transportation: What are the most effective ways to lower the carbon footprint of transportation?

Education

• Online learning can be equaled to classroom education in terms of its effectiveness and accessibility: How can online learning be made as effective and accessible as classroom education?
• Dependence on ACT and SAT scores during admissions should be abolished: Why should colleges stop relying on ACT and SAT scores for admissions?
• Student-athletes representing their educational establishment in competitions should be given scholarships to cover at least partial college expenses: How can scholarships support student-athletes in their educational journey?
• All students should be encouraged to enroll in foreign language courses and speaking clubs: What are the benefits of enrolling in foreign language courses and speaking clubs?
• Usage of technological advancement in teaching: How can technological advancements enhance teaching methods?
• The usage of paperback textbooks should be eradicated and changed into e-book usage: What are the advantages of replacing paperback textbooks with e-books?
• College students should be more cautious and prudent when posting controversial or personal information online: Why should college students be careful about their online posts?
• Girls should be prohibited from participating in football and wrestling competitions: Should girls be banned from football and wrestling competitions?
• Networks in educational establishments should have special filters to prevent students from accessing inappropriate material: How can special filters protect students from inappropriate material online?
• The pressing need for school system reform: What changes are necessary for effective school system reform?
• Standardized testing should be reduced: How can reducing standardized testing benefit students’ learning experiences?
• Incorporating mental health education into the curriculum: Why is it important to include mental health education in school curriculums?
• Promoting STEM education for all genders: How can promoting STEM education encourage gender equality in these fields?
• Addressing the digital divide in education: What strategies can bridge the digital divide and ensure equal access to technology for all students?
• Encouraging project-based learning: How does project-based learning improve student engagement and knowledge retention?

Social Issues

• The problem of spying and media leaks in international and domestic communications: How can governments prevent spying and media leaks in communication networks?
• How to ensure local food movement support? Will it have a positive impact on the local entrepreneurship?: What strategies can promote local food movements and support local businesses?
• Media marketed for youths and teens convey immoral and unethical ideas: How can we regulate media content to protect youths and teens from immoral and unethical ideas?
• Tax incentives should be introduced for adopting children internationally: How can tax incentives encourage more families to adopt children internationally?
• Foreign help to dictatorships should be eradicated by the government: What measures can governments take to stop foreign aid to dictatorships?
• In-vitro fertilization should be prohibited: Should in-vitro fertilization be banned, and what are the arguments for and against it?
• The issue of minors getting tattoos should be more controlled by legal institutions: minors should either be accompanied by their guardians or be given written consent from them: How can legal institutions better regulate minors getting tattoos?
• Surveillance cameras should record all trials in court: What are the benefits and drawbacks of recording all trials in court with surveillance cameras?
• Beauty contests in schools and colleges should be banned: Should beauty contests in educational institutions be banned, and why?
• Students should not be harshly encouraged or pushed to participate in sports competitions: How can schools encourage sports participation without putting undue pressure on students?
• The federal government should adopt a law that standardizes trunk release systems in new transport: Why is it important to standardize trunk release systems in new vehicles?
• Race, ethnicity, and gender equality should be supported in politics: What steps can be taken to ensure equality in politics for all races, ethnicities, and genders?
• Mobile phone usage, texting, and Internet use in the classroom prevent students from being involved in the studying process and lower their attention span: How can schools manage mobile phone and internet use to improve student attention spans?
• The acute immigration problem will hardly ever be solved by constructing the border fence: Why is constructing a border fence not a viable solution to immigration problems?
• The contemporary taxation system does not fairly treat lower-income and middle-income population groups: How can the taxation system be reformed to treat lower-income and middle-income groups more fairly?
• Media advertisements targeted at children population should be banned by the government: Should media advertisements aimed at children be banned, and what would be the impact?
• Feminists’ standpoint devalues family and motherhood: How does the feminist perspective impact views on family and motherhood?
• The problem of identity theft is extremely aggravated and the community should pay attention to it: What steps can communities take to address the growing problem of identity theft?
• Social networks do not interfere with school education: How can social networks be used positively in the educational environment?
• Advertisements engaging children should be restricted at the government level: Why should advertisements targeting children be restricted by the government?
• Fast food restaurants should initiate the campaign of publicly displaying calories next to each meal: How can displaying calorie information at fast food restaurants help combat obesity?
• The government should release churches from tax incentives: Should churches be exempt from tax incentives, and what are the implications?
• Patients suffering from chronic mental diseases should be preserved in “halfway houses” instead of mental hospitals: How can halfway houses provide better care for patients with chronic mental diseases?
• The government should not allow the allocation of billboards on interstate highways: What are the environmental and safety reasons for banning billboards on interstate highways?
• Marriage should not be allowed before school graduation: Why should marriage be prohibited before completing school?
• Educated people should work as tutors of literacy on a voluntary basis in third-world countries: How can volunteer literacy tutoring by educated individuals benefit third-world countries?
• People molesting children should be restricted from the right to adopt: Why should individuals with a history of molestation be banned from adopting children?
• Psychologists and psychiatrists should witness and testify in the court of law representing the non-guilty-by-reason-of-insanity: What role should mental health professionals play in court cases involving insanity pleas?
• Security should be increased in motels and hotels as a means to guarantee security for all its residents regardless of their income: How can enhanced security measures in motels and hotels protect all residents?
• The National Health Insurance Program is supposed to provide basic health care for all US citizens independent of their income: How can the National Health Insurance Program ensure basic healthcare for all citizens regardless of income?

Politics and Law

• The FBI should keep the self-proclaimed militia under scrutiny: How can the FBI effectively monitor and manage the activities of self-proclaimed militias?
• Weapons should not be sold internationally across the countries: What regulations can prevent the international sale of weapons and reduce global conflicts?
• The role of the United Nations internationally: How can the United Nations be more effective in its role to maintain international peace and security?
• Campaign finance reform: How can campaign finance laws be reformed to reduce corruption in politics?
• Election security: What measures can ensure the security and integrity of elections?
• Judicial independence: How can the independence of the judiciary be protected from political influence?
• Police reform: What reforms are needed to address police misconduct and improve community relations?
• Immigration policy: What are effective and humane immigration policies that countries can adopt?
• Freedom of speech vs. hate speech: How can laws balance the protection of free speech while preventing hate speech?
• Privacy rights: What laws are needed to protect individuals’ privacy in the digital age?
• Prison reform: What reforms can improve the prison system and reduce recidivism?

Health and Wellness

• The role of art and music therapy in patients’ rehabilitation: How can art and music therapy be integrated into rehabilitation programs to benefit patients?
• Mental health awareness: How can mental health awareness campaigns reduce stigma and promote well-being?
• Obesity prevention: What strategies can effectively prevent obesity and promote healthy lifestyles?
• Access to healthcare: How can access to healthcare be improved for underserved populations?
• Preventing substance abuse: What programs can prevent substance abuse and support recovery?
• Vaccination campaigns: How can vaccination campaigns be more effective in achieving high coverage rates?
• Chronic disease management: What are effective approaches to managing chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension?
• Nutrition education: How can nutrition education programs improve dietary habits and overall health?
• Fitness and physical activity: What initiatives can promote physical activity and improve public health?

Evidently, the argument topics list entails current issues that are taking place in the contemporary world. To submit a successful paper, make sure to conduct in-depth research on your selected topic and create an impressive paper that will last in memory for a long.

Problem Solution Speech on the Topic of Policy Advocacy

The question of policy persuasive speech topics remains extremely acute for students because frequently they do not know where to start after they have read numerous essay samples. Particularly, students may be confused about the way of organizing information for a speech. To ease the task of writing a properly structured speech paper, check out the following recommended way of paper organization for a policy advocacy speech.

I. Introduction

Attention-grabber: you might provide some controversial fact, relate to personal experience, provide shocking/ impressive statistics, use a rhetorical question or a dramatic quote, etc. (all these devices are used for capturing attention from the target audience);

Relation to the audience: Pinpoint to how the issue under discussion relates to the target audience. Do it either implicitly or explicitly, but regardless of the option you choose, make sure the listeners understand their relation to the topic. If you have chosen to focus on a problem seriously affecting people, express your point of view on how exactly the problem influences the audience.

Credibility of the problem: Emphasize the problem’s significance and why it is worth others’ attention. Provide one or more reasons to make the audience understand why you have decided to speak on this subject area.

Preview: Provide a brief synopsis (overview) of the paper. You need to provide sufficient background information on the topic, especially if the audience is not well-versed in it. For example, you might briefly describe the problem in a few words and then switch over to focusing on the possible solutions.

II. Body: The Problem Identification and Solution Proposal

Identify the problem: Develop a paragraph where you provide an overview of the central problem. Appeal to ratio and emotion, as it is preferable to engage the reader both on an intellectual and emotional level. There are two recommended ways of problem identification and development – qualitative and quantitative.

According to the qualitative approach, you have to present argumentation for the claims that answer the following questions:

• What makes me indifferent about the problem? Or why should I actually care?
• How am I affected by the problem?
• How serious is the issue under discussion?

To help readers understand the problem in depth, make sure to provide examples from your personal experience or provide real-life examples related to other people. This data will not make the statistics too narrow but will add more appealing details to demonstrate how serious the issue is.

According to the quantitative approach, the arguments and support you provide should be related to such questions:

• How large is the problem?
• How much is it widespread and what is the problem scope?

When a writer investigates the scope of the problem, the larger it is – the less detailed evidence is required.

Focus on the causes: The causes of the problem should be closely examined: provide ample evidence, examples, and recent study results. Keep in mind that not every topic requires developing the problem’s causes. Still, if you think that the causes you provide will make the audience more susceptible to trusting your viewpoint. Such an approach is used when there exist multiple opinions on causes.

Put forward the solution: When investigating the possible solution(s), make sure to organize the information in the following way:

• Provide a plan: First and foremost, pinpoint the exact change in policy, law, or campaign you are suggesting. Briefly describe the step (the introduction of the new law, implementation of the new program, short synopsis of the program, etc.). The main aim at this point is to make the audience understand the kind of change you are suggesting.
• Provide supporting argumentation and evidence for the suggested solutions: You should clearly pinpoint how the solution will eliminate the ongoing risks or threats caused by the pending problem. Make sure that you link supporting evidence to the plan.

Provide credible expert evidence that clearly highlights the ways the solution would reduce the burning issue: When citing outside sources and specific examples/ materials researched by scholars, make sure you tell the audience about the credentials of the researchers. Your target audience should be sure that the information you rely on can be trusted and that is it believable overall. If you provide information that even you don’t know by whom it was put forward, then your paper will have no expert value.

Results of the study: If the research included some experimental study that aimed at supporting your solution, make sure you discuss the results and interpret them properly. Provide a brief synopsis of how many people took part in the experiment/ interview/ sociological study and what the results indicate.

Empirical evidence and pilot studies: With the help of such supporting evidence, you will emphasize that the problem has solutions related to real-life events and experiences. You might also pinpoint how small changes in the localities might affect the problem in a large-scale area. Such supporting evidence is really beneficial as it indicates that the effects happened in real surroundings with real people rather than in a laboratory environment.

Personal or peer testimony: It is not recommended to use this evidence as a priority as it is rather weak on its own. Still, if you add this evidence together with the other aforementioned types, it can significantly add up to the paper’s credibility.

Address general disadvantages: When coming up with a policy change, keep in mind that it can solve the existing problem as well as create a new one. Therefore, it is advisable to outline the potential disadvantages of the problem after you have discussed its benefits and positive effects. To make your position strong, make sure to refute the counter-arguments because when you just ignore the negative aspects, the audience will not accept or perceive your solution.

III. Conclusion

Provide a short review of the persisting problem and suggested ways out. Make sure you provide a call for action at the end of the conclusive paragraph, where you provide encouraging information that will make the audience remember your paper.

• Review of the problem and solution
• Closing thought to encourage the audience to remember the speech.

Problem Solution Topics for Your Perfect Speech

The problem solution speech topics that you will find below will help you choose, identify, and organize the way of presenting your essay. As you select the topic, you will research it properly in order to persuade the audience that a particular problem exists and that it is possible to come up with solutions to it. Moreover, you will learn how to convince the audience and make them accept your viewpoint and maybe even change their previously existing biases regarding the issue. Before you start the topic selection process, make sure you are well aware of the core elements that are necessary in such a type of writing. Check them out:

• Indicate the problem and mention specifically what factors make it an actual problem. Provide sufficient background information, pinpoint to the problem’s significance, and let the audience understand the scope of the problem and its overall effect. Make sure you appeal to reasoning and emotion: let the audience understand the needs so that it is convinced by the information you provide.
• Advocate for a solution and provide a detailed plan on how it can be applied in practice.
• Visualize the practical aspect of your solution. Demonstrate how the solutions will come in handy in improving the situation. Emphasize on their practical aspect and general effectiveness. Pay attention to a brief discussion of alternatives with which you do not agree. State how they are impractical and problematic. To put it briefly, you need to highlight the counterarguments and refute them.
• Call to action. Convince the audience to accept your position on the change implementation of the proposed policy or campaign. Or provide an implicit call to action, wherein you make a hint on the policy change.

How to Choose a Proper Problem Solution Speech Topic

If you have been invited to deliver a speech to the public, first of all, find out who your target audience comprises in terms of professional and personal interests. Despite the solid experience you might have about the research area, the audience may not find interest in your topic if it is not adjacent to their scope of interest. Therefore, be cautious when coming up with the topic of your speech or presentation. If the type of your speech has to be structured in the form of a problem-solution paper, then make sure to identify the burning issue, investigate questions and opinions concerning it, and also identify the controversy behind the issue.

When thinking of which topic might be interested in writing about, ask yourself the following questions:

• What would you like to talk about (here choose more than one option).
• How do you think – will your potential audience like the topic of your choice? Explain your viewpoint.
• How long do you plan to talk? Is your chosen topic sufficient for this type of presentation?
• What are your personal opinions and biases regarding the problem?
• Which topic are you most interested in? Which topic would be easy to talk about?
• After you have explored the professional realms of your listeners, think of the most topical problems pertaining to the topic.
• Think of whether you can provide personal experience examples or share your personal goals.

List of Speech Topics for Problem-Solution Presentation

Business area: work surroundings; career goals; bankruptcy; corporate ethics; abuse in marketing.

Teaching and education: peer pressure at school; cheating during exams; online learning versus classroom learning; education at home; sex education at school; internship opportunities.

Environmental aspects: climate change; global warming; alternative sources of energy; depletion of natural resources.

Nourishment and health: food labeling; diets and how to maintain healthy eating; problems of mentally ill people; health care in third-world countries; being vegetarian.

Politics and global issues: spying; international threats; problems with overpopulation.

Legislation and issues in the court of law: punishment for child molesters; drunk driving; frequency of juvenile aggression and delinquency; immigration and fence borders; tax incentives on church property.

Social problems: dealing with the homeless; sexual abuse; domestic violence; the effect of divorce on families; peer pressure; bullying; self-esteem; wage levels; teen drinking; gambling; discrimination on racial, ethnic, and gender backgrounds.

So far, you have a brief list of possible problem-solving essay topics. You may choose some of them for discussion or maybe they will inspire you to choose some other topic to reflect on. To properly develop the topics, make sure to examine them more closely and find some adjacent areas to them. Also thoroughly examine the dimensions of each topic investigation.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What aspects of the problem have already been researched? Why have some been omitted?
• How could one describe the existing obstacles to solving the problem?
• How long does the problem persist?
• What are the costs needed for problem-solving?
• Will the problem aggravate if no measures are taken?
• Should the problem be immediately addressed?
• Has your target audience in particular been affected by your selected problem? In what way?
• What supporting evidence could you provide to emphasize the importance of the problem?
• What argumentation can you provide to demonstrate that your solutions are right and worth attention?
• What facts/ figures/ supporting evidence could help the target audience understand the issue more comprehensively?

Working on the Solution

• Write down all potential and alternative solutions. Keep in mind various aspects, merits, and features that could convince the audience to accept your standpoint. Investigate figures and facts; provide illustrations and real-life examples as support for your solutions. Do it consistently, step-by-step for each of the proposed solutions.
• Choose the most important and effective solution to the existing problem.
  Pinpoint to how your solution plan can be applied in practice. Refer to outside sources; cite credible sources; consult sources written by experts in their field of study.
• Devise a step-by-step implementation plan for each of the suggested solutions. Recommend specific procedures.
  Investigate the cost, effect, and necessary actions.
• Call to action; time and place.
• Other required constituents for the implementation of the plan.

If your listeners comprise people from different educational backgrounds or various professional spheres, then the decisive factor for choosing the topic should lie in choosing the topic that is most topical for the majority. Another option is to come up with a topic that presumably meets the needs of the bulk of the audience. If all of your listeners are well aware of the problem, then pay more attention to the fact of how much the topic is workable and reasonable. If you want to provide counter-arguments for the change policy campaign, then focus on the probable limitations and drawbacks of the policy.

How to Provide an Outline for a Problem Solution Speech

Below you will find the most appropriate methods for developing problem-solution topics:

• Problem Solution Method

This strategy is advisable if you have chosen a contemporary social problem and have to convince the audience that your solution is the best one among those that have been previously provided. As such, provide a proper introduction where you entail sufficient background information in order to pinpoint the problem’s significance. Afterward, list the most appropriate situations and conditions that might serve as supporting evidence for justifying your position. Present a clearly defined plan for solving the problem.

• Problem Cause Solution Method

This strategy is the most appropriate for solution topics. Here you need to single out the problem and investigate its causes. Further, you have to provide a critical analysis of the causes and put forward adequate solutions.

• Problem Cause-Effect Method

This strategy comes in handy when outlining the aftermath of your problem-cause topic.

• Comparative Advantage Method

You need to compare and contrast the identified solutions to the problem outlined.