The study described in this volume investigated the talk of thirteen-year-old boys and girls, recorded while they were working in small groups on tasks set by their teachers. Specifically, research focused on the interplay between cognitive and communicative functions of speech in contexts planned for learning. "The Children and Their Talk"…

The usefulness of equity theory for understanding the social/motivational dynamics of the classroom was studied. Attention was directed to how faculty (and students) calculate equity and what the consequences may be. A first set of questionnaires was completed by 238 graduate students and 41 faculty members in 56 classes at a large southern state…

This study addresses the question: Is the verbal interaction between teachers and students reciprocal? Teachers' and students' verbal behaviors were investigated using the verbal behavior classification system (CVC) in 72 seventh through ninth grade classrooms. The CVC system consists of a matrix of process and substance dimensions. Categories in…

Three discrete but related studies contribute to the larger research question of how adult educators can help community problem-solving group members gain new skills and compentencies as they work together on community problems. The first study addresses defining individual growth in the context of rural community problem-solving groups and…

In contrast to a teacher-dominated literature classroom where authority rests with the one who has the power to grade, a classroom dedicated to cultivating the creative process breaks down the traditional hierarchies (such as theory and practice, text and reader, and organization and improvisation) and concentrates on the needs of the individual…

Participatory decision-making strategies have been suggested as effective in groups with the task of solving unstructured problems or creating innovations. Concerned about evaluating children's affective growth in open classrooms, eight educators in a large metropolitan area agreed to meet regularly after school hours to develop an instrument to…

Describing an innovative classroom technique, which seeks to place students in small interactive groups rather than in large groups around a teacher, this study provides guidelines for making cooperation and mutual trust a valuable and necessary by-product of education. The technique prescribes that each child be given a part of a topic to study,…

Students in a small group discussion class offered as part of a speech communication curriculum found that testing their knowledge of the theory of the course in small groups was a positive learning experience. Each self-selected test group was made up of three students and was formed at least two class periods prior to the exam. Time was given in…

A study analyzed and compared four selected models in the cyclical tradition of group development as a basis for identifying possible issues and implications for future theory building. The theorists whose models were examined were Leland Bradford, Jack Gibb, William Schutz, and Theodore Mills. Both historical and conceptual perspectives of the…

The evolution of collective bargaining in higher education and factors that lead academic bargaining from destructive conflict to cooperation are examined. Academic bargaining is viewed as a form of shared authority, but one with unusual institutional and organizational problems that may lead toward destructive, rather than constructive conflict.…

To be successful, inservice programs need to utilize cooperative learning activities and create collaborative support groups to assist implementation efforts after the inservice program has ended. Placing teachers in small, cooperative groups to discuss the material being presented in the inservice program provide the structure and mechanisms for…

The articles in this report describe efforts at using varieties of process consultation to stimulate renewal in urban schools. Process consultation is a strategy for improving the group and intergroup procedures used by school personnel to reach their educational objectives and to solve their own problems. Emphasis is on the ways teachers,…

This guide, the second of four, is intended for persons involved in planning new schools or new programs; that is, comprehensive change projects, especially those that have a new, innovative thrust and where past practice cannot be easily relied on. The guide examines means by which to clarify goals and methods of designing social systems before…

One of 52 theoretical papers on school crime and its relation to poverty, this chapter discusses the results of three studies made of subjects in a residential vocational training center for youth. The first study correlated demographic, medical history, and behavioral variables to center adjustment. The second study examined possible…

Human relations problem situations for Army senior non-commissioned officers (NCOs) were identified and analyzed using group problem solving methods. Then, using an analysis summary prepared for each case study problem situation as the basis, candidate performance exercises were developed. (These exercises specify terminal performance objectives…