To explore the quality of the basic course in speech communication it is useful to examine the role of graduate teaching assistants (GTA) and undergraduate teaching assistants (UTA). The first goal was to search the literature for information concerning the use (or lack thereof) of GTAs and UTAs and to explore the potential benefits and drawbacks…

Intended to assist debaters and coaches who will be debating the 1983-84 national high school debate topic, this booklet combines discussion of general debate theory, and information specific to the topic: "What changes are most needed in the procedures used in the United States justice system?" The eight chapters of the booklet contain…

A study tested a delivery skills method of instruction for reducing public speaking anxiety. Subjects were 59 male and 71 female undergraduates (ranging in age from 17-49) enrolled in a basic public speaking course at a midwestern university during the 1986-87 academic year. The Personal Report of Public Speaking Apprehension (PRPSA) which…

Intended for a largely European audience, this paper offers an overview of current definitions and goals of instructional communication and communication education teaching and research in the United States. The first major section of the paper looks at recent advances in instructional communication studies, concentrating on field research,…

The keeping of journals by students in the basic speech course is the focus of this paper, which is divided into three parts. Part 1 examines the benefits of journal use to students and teachers and points out that three types of learning can thus be encouraged: the development of thinking skills, personal growth, and content learning. It also…

Competency-based education can be a viable tool for demonstrating accountability in speech communication instruction. The objectives of speech communication instruction tend to be based more upon the content than upon the everyday communication needs of the students. Rather than continue the approach of basing instruction on assumptions of what…

A survey was conducted to update previous rankings of speech communication doctoral programs. Subjects were a random selection of every sixth name on the Speech Communication Association (SCA) membership list, and members of the SCA who have been the first authors of journal articles in the SCA journals in the past 10 years. In addition to…

This part of a series of reports on forensic programs in this issue gives data about how forensics is thought of by the speech communication profession. (CH)

A state-by-state breakdown. (CH)

Suggests using dyadic and/or triadic activities in the classroom to exemplify speech theories and propositions. Exercises, discussion formats and evaluation criteria are provided. (MH)

Intended for use by instructors of upper division speech courses, this paper describes a questioning and answering technique for teaching argumentation. The first section of the paper discusses the concept of argumentative exchange, which is defined as an episode between two or more individuals wherein one or more feel that differences of belief…

Teaching a unit on effective briefing techniques early in a basic speech class can develop in the student a sense of time consciousness, verbal conciseness, objectivity, appreciation for documentation, and logical organization. Briefing in this sense is a type of informative speech in which selected and compressed information is presented to one's…

In the face of declining college enrollment and increased budget cuts, the speech communication department at the University of Nebraska devised a successful strategy to preserve and promote itself within the university. Outside authorities were selected for a department review committee. At the graduate level, the areas of concentration were…

This self-instructional book is designed for students interested in learning to speak present-day standard Albanian. It is intended to be used in conjunction with a teacher or with tape recordings that can serve as a model for oral/aural exercises. The 30 units provide material for about 180 hours of study. Each unit consists of five parts: (1)…

This paper examines the validity of aspects of Chomsky and Halle's analysis of English phonology, specifically regarding rules for vowel alternation in base and derived forms. The paper describes an aural and an orthographic experiment eliciting the production of novel forms from a base form. Results showed no vowel alternation in 90 percent of…