In this article it is argued that the development of young people's skills in using spoken language should be given more time and attention in the school curriculum. The author discusses the importance of the effective use of spoken language in educational and work settings, considers what research has told us about the factors that make group…

Discusses the importance of teaching effective speaking, listening, and interpersonal skills. (JOW)

Argues that a speech communication course should be a required course because speaking and listening are important basic skills which require refinement during a student's college/university years under the guidance of communication professionals. Advises departments to consider the resources (people and material) necessary to develop and…

Argues that literacy needs to include speaking and listening skills. Outlines the Washington State Core Competency Project that identified three levels--communication codes, oral message evaluation, and basic speech--and developed ways to teach these competencies to adult learners. (SK)

Discusses four major problems in defining speaking and listening as basic skills: lack of systematic attention to social communication, the need to identify salient social contexts for literate communication behavior, the need to explicate behaviors one must exhibit to be considered literate, and the difficulty in assessing functional…

Communication strategies are defined and a brief inventory of strategies for learning and oral interaction in a foreign language instruction setting is provided. Learning strategies are viewed as methods for exploiting available information to increase the efficiency of second language learning. The integration of learning strategies into the…

Few studies have approached the subject of lying from a rhetorical perspective. Even philosophical studies have concentrated more on truth than on deceit. A central concern of a definition of lying is to recognize that lies must be examined both from the speaker's position and from the perceptions of the listener. Such an examination can be done…

Encourages use of filmstrip stories as a teaching aid in the English as a second language classroom. Filmstrips require little teacher preparation, and they generate new ideas and activities for use in the classroom. In addition, filmstrips can be used at any ability level, drawing on the students' abilities to respond on a wide range of levels of…

In teaching introductory English as a second language to nonliterate adult refugees, the focus should initially be on oral skills. The literature on characteristics of recent Southeast Asian refugees and suggested curriculum strategies is reviewed in order to determine the appropriate curriculum and methods for this group. A curriculum for…

Aware of the societal problems stemming from a lack of communication skills, the American public is pressing for instruction in speaking and listening in the schools. This response is reflected in the speaking and listening competency recommendations in many national reform reports. Such reports include "A Nation at Risk" by the National…

Noting that while high school students have received instruction in reading and writing, few have received any instruction in speaking and listening skills, this document advocates a greater recognition of the need for a more realistic balance of instruction in the four communication areas than has traditionally been the case. Sections of the…

Decries the lifeless and mechanical language used in the national syllabus for oral communication instruction, arguing that it contradicts the interaction it seeks to describe, and that efforts to assess interpersonal communication are equally inappropriate. (HTH)

Discusses effective oral communication as a prime requisite for business management success. Both speaking and listening skills are needed to encourage intercommunication, invite feedback, respond to other opinions, and solicit participation to contribute to the manager's decisions for organizational action. (MF)

A college faculty member points out that allowing students to write and perform their own foreign language plays improves listening, speaking, and writing skills and exposes the students to new idiomatic expressions and conversational patterns used in contextually relevant and culturally specific situations. (Author/CB)

Skills integration generally refers to linking two or more of the traditional four skills of language learning: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. This article describes two kinds of skills integration--traditional and "real life"--and presents arguments for skills integration. Sample exercises are included. (12 references) (LB)