This experimental study investigates differences between a game approach and a programmed learning approach in teaching three listening comprehension skills (negation, exclusion, joint denial) to a total of 13 4- or 5-year-old Head Start children. It was hypothesized that (1) manipulation and novelty of reward would influence children to choose an…

The purpose of this project was to explore and more carefully design studies of adjective-related structures and processes as they emerge during development in children between the ages of 4 to 8, since the salient characteristics in speech at this age tend to compare and contrast objects encountered in their environments. A group of 40 black and…

The purpose of this study was to examine the use of auditory memory tests to predict reading achievement of elementary pupils. Auditory memory was defined as the ability of an individual to reproduce digits, letters, sounds, words, or serial commands, immediately and correctly, in sequential order, after having heard them only once. One hundred…

Published and unpublished studies of factors related to reading comprehension in business communication are briefly summarized. Factors considered include organization of copy, format and appearance, graphics, distractions, reading time, listening versus reading, reader attributes, and readability. (AA)

In order to establish whether voice pitch and evaluative meaning play any significant role in affecting message learning (as demonstrated by listeners' recall) at the morphemic level of communication, 48 freshman students in a basic speech program participated in this study. Through individual headsets, students listened to tapes containing an…

Reports on experience with aural comprehension exercises in beginning English. Some children's stories, well known in England, were presented to the students, using three different approaches. At the end of the article, two of the stories are presented. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

An experiment is reported which shows that with identical preceding context, the same initial phoneme targets contained in high transitional probability words were responded to significantly faster than those in low transitional probability words. The result argues for the importance of transitional probability as an independent variable in…

Describes research that tested the validity of a set of guidelines for a program for the systematic development of listening comprehension skills. (DD)

Seventeen consonants of Italian (including a syllable with no consonants) were scaled in relative sameness-difference in sound. The procedure was cross checked against one of identifying aural syllables. The outcome was in keeping with Scripture's observation that errors in speech perception tend to reflect confusions of similar sounding…

Ways of improving the present procedure for administering this test were determined in an experiment in which this procedure was compared with three others. (KM)

A review of research on the three types of auditory disorders, concentrating on inefficient learning which results from problems in auditory processing. (DD)

To develop listening skills for all types of music, teachers may want to try some of these imaginative teaching techniques. Describes some unconventional ear-training exercises, vocal exercises to encourage students to "paint with their voices", and "rebound" exercises to explore spontaneous relationships between sound and movement. (Editor/RK)

The BBC's French educational programs are valuable for classroom use. Use of worksheets with essay questions, filling in blanks in a passage, and writing equivalents of phrases can test pupils' comprehension. Tape copying is discussed, and a sample worksheet appended. (CHK)

Approximately 120 children were divided by sex and randomly assigned to one of four groups which varied from one another only in size. Group size was found to affect significantly the children's performance, with one to one instruction resulting in the greatest gains. (Author)

Examined the ability of audiovisual aids to facilitate second language acquisition. One group of Spanish students was taught with substantially more audiovisual aids than the control group. The audio-visual aids group performed significantly better on listening comprehension tests. No differences were found in use of structure. (Author/DJD)