Two trends indicate the importance of competent communication skills in teacher preparation. The first is the professional commitment of the Speech Communication Association (SCA) to speech communication education. At various conferences, the SCA has made recommendations for speech communication training for teachers at all levels and for research identifying the speech competencies needed by all teachers. The second trend is the indrease in the number of instructional communication courses offered to prospective teachers. One survey reported that 27% of accredited teacher education institutions offered a basic speech communication course specifically for teacher trainees, with 19 of those 122 schools requiring preservice teachers to complete such a course. Unfortunately, there is no evidence that improved teacher communication skills and competencies result in more effective teaching. Efforts to substantiate this claim through research are hampered by the lack of a common referent for the term "instructional communication." One way to define instructional communication would be to specify the course content. Current courses in instructional communication are usually comprised of instruction in 11 skills and seven areas of knowledge, including listening or reacting to students, using a wide range of methods for expressing approval or disapproval, and understanding socioeconomic, cultural, and sexual variables affecting classroom communication. (HTH)