Speech recognition was measured in four listeners with normal hearing and in eight listeners with sensorineural hearing loss under conditions that simulated hearing aid processing in a low-pass and speech-shaped background noise. Results showed an improvement in speech recognition with low-frequency gain reduction in the low-pass noise. (Author/CR)

Six core profiles were identified on four fluid reasoning to comprehension knowledge constructs previously found to be both theoretically and empirically linked to children's reading acquisition: auditory processing, crystallized ability, processing speed, and short-term memory. Cluster analysis was used to develop this taxonomy and the…

Questions asked by elementary students in response to narrative texts were coded by university and elementary teachers. The coding schedule was consistently applied. The community of inquiry approach helped develop students' critical analysis skills. Careful selection of texts was recommended for successful use of the approach. (Contains 23…

Notes that in rehearsals and performances, a jumble of silences are encountered. Discusses silence in the following situations: as frustration; as imposition; as invisibility; as power; as pleasure; as safety; as humility; as necessity; and as potential. Contends that when dramaturgs enter into conversation and break silence, they must carefully…

Investigates the interaction between lexical knowledge and listening comprehension in a second language. Examines how 59 Japanese university students of low-intermediate to advanced English ability were tested using first-language recall protocols as comprehension measures. Concludes that efficient listening strategies may make comprehending…

Notes that listening research has focused on methods borrowed from psychology and the study of communication. Describes a broader approach to the study of listening that encompasses quantitative and qualitative methodology and explores the larger field of human experience. Describes structures of consciousness that present expansive ways to…

The commentary to EC 232 373 and EC 232 374 discusses whether stuttering is really what the listener perceives, the stutterer senses, or the dictionary states. It concludes that stuttering can probably be defined in appropriate contexts as any or all of these three things. (JDD)

Reexamines the five criteria for selecting instructional resources: content validity, transfer potential, amount of reinforcement, quality of directions and instructional language, and adaptability and flexibility. Reviews "Listening: The Basic Connection," a listening program for third through eighth grade. (MG)

If administrators personalize attacks, defend themselves, or argue with detractors, anger will escalate and the situation will degenerate further. This article explains why people attack and advises how to respond by using reflective listening, inviting criticism, focusing on the problem itself, exploring suggested solutions as legitimate options,…

Examines the lack of good listening skills among children today, and discusses the advantages of book/audio cassette packages (read-alongs) for developing listening and reading skills. (MES)

The study with 10 agrammatic aphasic (Broca) adults examined their difficulties using determiners in sentence comprehension. Results included the findings that printed rather than spoken presentation yielded significant improvement for the proper noun/common noun distinction, and that performance was poorer for the mass noun/count noun…

Discusses the characteristics of audio books as a prototype of electronic books. Topics include vocal interpretation; the demands that audio books place on listeners; the advantages of listening over reading; and a vision of the electronic book of the future. (KRN)

Examines the role of vocal cues in children's cognitive representations of texts. Finds that, in general, vocal cues influenced the speed and likelihood of constructing inferences but that cues failed to enhance memory for explicit text concepts. Discusses developing a model specifying the relationship between vocal cues and text understanding.…

A 2-microphone dereverberation technique was evaluated by obtaining speech recognition measures and preference judgments from 10 normal-hearing adults and 7 older adult hearing-impaired listeners. Both groups had higher scores at the shorter reverberation time than at the longer reverberation time. Hearing-impaired subjects performed significantly…

Rate-controlled recorded text can be used not only to facilitate listening comprehension through reducing speech rate, but it can also help language learners become accustomed to increasingly rapid deliveries. First- and second-language research on temporal variables relevant to facilitating listening comprehension is described, and practical…