The status of speech instruction--including an assessment of teacher concerns--in the public secondary schools in Hamilton County, Ohio, was determined by this study. Specifically, the purposes were to determine the extent and kinds of speech and drama instruction, to examine facilities and resources, and to determine instructional methods and…

In this inductive study, a body of empathy-related research is reviewed for the purpose of identifying theoretical and pedagogical implications for a college-level, introductory course in speech communication. The results of studies conducted primarily in the fields of psychotherapy and counseling are summarized. Evidence which places empathy at…

This dissertation consists of four studies which identify some areas of difference between viewers who use the film medium in a personally profitable manner and those who use it less well. In Study 1 a theoretical definition of "film analyticity" is developed. An analytical film viewer is defined as an individual who (1) values the film medium for…

This study presents a theory of oral interpretation as a communicative art. Oral interpretation is defined as a process of preparation, performance, and feedback. A descriptive model of feedback as an intrapersonal and then interpersonal communication process is developed. This process is described as containing the three subprocesses of…

A study was conducted of teacher perceptions of classroom student speaking opportunities at Cook Junior High School in Cypress-Fairbanks I.S.D. during the spring of 1995. Fifty-four academic teachers of language arts, reading, math, science, and social studies were given a questionnaire to answer according to their attitudes concerning…

The purpose of this study was to determine if the sex of class members would influence the results of a course in basic oral communication. Subjects were 64 students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In an all-female class, an all-male class, and two coeducational classes, the following variables were investigated: self-concept…

The rapid growth of community colleges in the last decade resulted in large numbers of students enrolled in programs previously unavailable to them in a single comprehensive institution. The purpose of this study was to gather and analyze data to provide information about the speech programs that community colleges created or expanded as a result…

This study was designed to determine the present status of rhetoric and speech communication programs in the 83 predominantly black, 4-year colleges in the United States; to make recommendations toward continued development of these programs with special emphasis on required courses; and to sample the reactions of a panel of 12 Speech…

A sample of 75 teacher education students participating in a speech proficiency test was used to investigate the relationship between speech proficiency and self-concept. The students took the Tennessee Self Concept Scale after being divided into the following three groups: students judged satisfactory on the speech proficiency test, students…

The goal of this investigation was to qualitatively and quantitatively examine the case method as a means of teaching speech communication concepts. Three hypotheses were tested: subjects who read textbook material learn more than those who do not; subjects who read textbook materials and case studies learn more than those who read neither; and…

This study was undertaken to obtain descriptive information on the recent emergence of classroom communication courses for working teachers. Questionnaires were sent to chairmen of graduate education departments, to directors of graduate teacher training, and to directors of graduate continuing education. The survey obtained a 77.66 percent rate…