To change the way classroom discipline and student discipline are examined, a two-study investigation, rather than focusing on student noncompliance and other types of student misbehaviors, examined teachers themselves as potential sources of instructional and/or motivational problems in the college classroom. The first study was designed to…

This portrait of a high school literature classroom is one of a series of several such portraits which depict diverse classroom settings of high school literature, and which result from the second year of a teacher-research project in the greater Albany, New York area. This article portrays teacher Mr. McCabe and his eighth grade class in their…

There are compelling reasons to use talk in the writing classroom to improve both expressive and expository writing. First, speaking is natural, and students come to the writing classroom linguistically well-developed and confident. Second, talking encourages exploration of words by slowing down the thought process without completely stopping it.…

The home's supportive setting, which has the potential to encourage children to share their thoughts and feelings through spoken language, is the basis of the home's strength as a communicative context. Teachers can help extend this sharing of meaning by creating classroom environments in which written language experiences and microcomputer-based…

The lack of authentic, real-world interaction practice in the English as a second language (ESL) classroom is described and discussed, and the ways in which dialogue journals answer this classroom need are detailed. A dialogue journal is an interactive, self-generated, cumulative and functional writing and reading exchange between teacher and…

To help students develop needed skills in listening, teachers need to (1) encourage improved listening through interesting learning activities, (2) involve students in presenting ideas as well as listening to content, (3) vary kinds of learning experiences, (4) provide direct training in listening skills, (5) recognize differences in students'…

An investigation was made to determine whether teacher expectations influence the way teachers interact with students and, if they do, to assess what effects teacher behavior might have. Also addressed was the question of whether teachers treat males and females differently in ways that may discourage females in math. All teacher/student…

Prepared as part of a series applying recent research in oral and written communication instruction to classroom practice, this booklet examines the language interaction that takes place between student and teacher and between student and student whenever a geniune dialogue about an important event or problem occurs. The first section of the…

Articles on teaching effectiveness for foreign teaching assistants (TAs) are presented. Topics include: adapting to the U.S. academic environment, understanding the role of the TA and gaining confidence, anticipating undergraduates' expectations, improving communication skills, and teaching laboratory classes and recitation classes. Titles and…

This ERIC Digest delineates problems posed by the increasing number of language-minority children in schools and offers suggestions for teaching children from different cultures. It is maintained that a group's language reflects its culture, and the uses to which that language is put are culturally determined. When children and adults do not share…

This paper reviews ways in which teachers inadvertently reinforce negative behavior of elementary school students through negative verbal or nonverbal communication. Discussion first points out differences between nonverbal and verbal communication, and then focuses on consequences of negative communication for children. Special attention is given…

The central question addressed by this book is, "How can middle and secondary school teachers overcome seemingly impossible circumstances in the classroom and elicit students' attention, effort, and cooperation?" The first five chapters focus on teachers' responsibility for student's classroom behavior, and ways for teachers to manage…

This paper advocates oral communication as one of the most effective methods of improving classroom instruction in all subjects. It focuses on the teaching of mathematics and science, where the grasping of concepts is essential to student learning. The paper provides a rationale for oral communication across the curriculum. Further, the paper…

This study determined if the relationship between teacher communication style and teacher effectiveness differed for traditional undergraduate students and non-traditional adult learners. Subjects, 192 traditional undergraduate students and 167 non-traditional adult learners, provided teacher communication style and teacher effectiveness ratings…

This exploratory study describes a sample of teacher-pupil interactions in a high school containing a large number of at-risk students. The study was also initiated to contrast a group of mentor teachers with nonmentor teachers in terms of teacher-pupil rapport. Mentors were chosen from a pool of volunteers by the school principal and a committee.…