To bring educational research into focus with tested classroom practice, this booklet provides an introduction to small group discussion. The theory and research section discusses the importance of small group discussion, characteristics of small group discussions, group attraction based on Maslow's hierarchy of basic human needs, group decision…

Divided into two sections, this report describes research on the range and degree of assessment of students' communication skills in colleges and universities and includes the following findings: (1) of the 384 respondents from college speech communication departments, 45 reported using large-scale, uniform testing of students; (2) these…

The modified American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages Educational Testing Service (ACTFL/ETS) oral proficiency scale was developed in response to a request from the New Brunswick (Canada) Department of Education for assistance in comparing the results of its French immersion and core programs. Because the existing ACTFL/ETS academic…

One of three manuals developed to supplement the English Language Arts Syllabus K-12 for the State of New York, this draft manual discusses listening and speaking in the English language arts curriculum K-12. Designed to help teachers plan day-to-day instruction, the manual explains the rationale for listening and speaking instruction, defines…

The Total Communication Checklist and Assessment screening tool for multihandicapped students is presented to assist the language examiner to select areas requiring more precise testing. The checklist, which contains 196 rating entries, consists of the following four sections: (1) readiness for symbolic communication, (2) preference for speech,…

Delineating the content that must be covered in the secondary schools of the State of Idaho, this guide presents a course of study to be taught in grades 9-12 for graduation credit. Although educators sometimes use the terms interchangeably, the course of study in the guide is not an instructional or curriculum guide--it prescribes what is to be…

The Department of Foreign Languages at Tarrant County (Texas) Junior College (TCJC) places primary instructional emphasis in elementary and intermediate language courses on the development of students' oral communication competence. Noting the differences in the oral proficiency of TCJC students and that of area high school graduates seeking…

Since 1985, Tarrant County Junior College, Northeast Campus, in Hurst, Texas has offered workshops and classes for secondary school teachers of foreign languages. The series of 10 16-hour workshops held during summer 1987 were intended primarily as in-service training for secondary school foreign language teachers and secondarily as a retraining…

This language arts unit of study for high ability learners in grades 5-6 highlights persuasion in oral and written form, focusing especially on oral communication. Emphasis is placed on providing evidence for opinions. Students must cite passages from literature to defend their points of view in discussion as well as in written arguments.…

This curriculum framework provides a model for developing appropriate and meaningful language arts curricula for high ability learners in kindergarten through grade 8. It is intended as a guide to making decisions about traditional curricular emphases within the language arts areas of reading, writing, speaking, and listening, as well as…