During a Toastmasters meeting the time keeper is the person who is watching the clock. A big part of the way Toastmasters meetings are structured are to ensure that it runs according to a time schedule. Each person on stage have only a set amount of time to deliver their message and get off the stage. This is what the timekeeper does.
As time keeper, you get a stopwatch, a set of traffic lights (green, amber, red bulbs) and a piece of paper. On the agenda each speaker is allowed a set period. For the impromptu table topics session it is 1 to 2 minutes. The prepared speeches differ from assignment to assignment, but are generally 5 to 7 minutes. And for evaluations it is 2 to 3 minutes.
You can see in the video below that at the start of the meeting there's an explanation of the Toastmaster timer role. It is to enable effective time management during the meeting. In your meetings you may need to mention the time allowance for the different types of speeches. The lady in the video also shows how the lights will work.
So when a speaker goes up and starts to speak, you start the stopwatch and when they are done, you stop it. Note the speaker and time on the piece of paper (minutes and seconds). When each session is done, you'll be asked to report, so simply state the name of each speaker and how long they spoke for.
The lights are used to notify the speakers of their time allowance while they are speaking. It is a signal light and stays on until the next light comes on (or the speaker is finished speaking).
The green light is used to say 'well done, you've reached the first milestone'. For table topics, this goes on at 1 minute. For the prepared speeches at 5 minutes (or the first speech timing marker). And evaluations at 2 minutes.
The amber says 'You're good on time, but might want to start finishing off.' Table topics at 1:30. Prepared speeches: 6 minutes (or second timing marker). And evaluations: 2:30.
And the red light says 'Finish off' (not 'Full Stop'). Table topics at 2 minutes. Prepared speeches at 7 minutes (or upper limit time marker). And evaluations at 3 minutes.
During normal club meetings it is not that critical for speeches to fall within the time allotted. It is useful to know though and it helps keep the meeting as a whole on time. During speaking contests the timing is applied more strictly and if you go over or under the allotted time (by a margin of 30 seconds or more), you'll be disqualified.
The Toastmasters time keeper role is one that ensures the whole meeting runs on-time and that no speaker takes more time than allowed. As such it is essential for effective meetings and a good time keeper will ensure that (and might not even be noticed by anyone besides the speakers).
