This study tested the notion that the impact of clarity (i.e., structure) on learning is indirect and occurs, in part, through the reduction of cognitive load and subsequently through students' motivation to process instructional information. Two hundred fifty-two students were randomly assigned to one of two text-based lessons (clear or unclear)…

Shared understanding is often achieved in communication interactions at the point in which the participants come to an agreement upon meaning. Without shared meaning, misunderstandings can lead to a breakdown in communication, and possibly failure on collaborative tasks. The purpose of the present study was to examine how students, preservice, and…

This study examined how, and under what conditions, teacher clarity (i.e., structure/signaling) impacts student learning. One hundred and forty eight students reported their propensity to approach their studies with a mastery orientation and were randomly exposed to a lesson on persuasion that was either signaled or not. After the lesson, students…

Drawing on Lave & Wenger's concept of situated learning and Apple's premise that daily interactions at school construct what is considered legitimate knowledge, this article examines the discourses of teaching and learning circulating among students. Through interviews and open-ended, online surveys, we trace how nine different discourses of…

This study examined two effective teaching behaviors traditionally considered by instructional communication scholars to associate positively with students' academic experiences: instructor clarity and immediacy. Our study situated these teaching behaviors in a conditional process model that integrated two key assumptions about student learning:…

This study examined mobile phone use in the classroom by using an experimental design to study how message content (related or unrelated to class lecture) and message creation (responding to or creating a message) impact student learning. Participants in eight experimental groups and a control group watched a video lecture, took notes, and…

The influence of student attitudes toward learning and grades on their communication with instructors about grades has received limited attention despite its potential implications for learning, performance outcomes, and student-teacher interactions. Participants (N = 194) who discussed a disappointing grade with an instructor completed measures…

This investigation tests Wittrock's generative learning model as an explanation for the positive relationship found between quizzing and student performance in a number of studies. Results support the theory, suggesting that quizzes structured to include multiple levels of Bloom, Engelhart, Furst, Hill and Krathwohl's (1956) taxonomy, and thereby…

Describes how empowerment was conceptualized in a study as a form of motivation which can exist as a state or a trait. States that the long-range goal, for which this research was a first step, is to understand the role of communication in the process of empowerment. Conducts two studies to develop and refine the learner empowerment measure. (PA)

The purpose of this study was to conduct a cross-cultural test of three U.S.-based immediacy--learning models and to compare a proposed integrating model with the existing models in Chinese classrooms. The findings suggested that the affective learning model provided a better fit than the learning model, which had a better fit than the motivation…

Compares children's learning from structurally equivalent television and print versions of two stories. Finds that children invested more mental effort in reading than watching television, but the reverse was found using reaction time as a measure; inferential learning does not go better with print at all times; and television and print are not…

This study hypothesized that teacher nonverbal immediacy and credibility interact to impact student motivation and affective learning. Utilizing an experimental 2 x 2 (immediacy high/low, credibility high/low) factorial design, 586 students were exposed to one of four written scenarios and completed motivation and affective learning scales.…

Indicates that students were favorably impressed with their videodisc learning experience, though the process of reaching consensus seemed to require the re-ordering of individual rankings. Discusses the relationships between design strategy, student interaction in the learning process, and funding educational technology. (JD)

Investigates the effects of immediacy on cognitive learning in an experimental situation which removed the effects of affect from the measurement of cognitive learning. Finds a positive relationship between immediacy and cognitive learning at the short-term recall level. (MM)

Presents a taxonomy that organizes learner activities into the dimensions of mental, social, and physical involvement. Applies the taxonomy or model to speech class activities and reports validity evidence from several research studies. (PD)