Education Commons^™

Exploring The Role Of Communication In Relational Outcomes In A High School Setting, Paul S. Butler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An action research study in a high school setting applies the Organization-Public Relationships (O-PR) theoretical frame to a short-term communications initiative designed to elicit measurable engagement in the initiative and increased parent feelings of commitment and trust in their relationship with the school. A survey administered before the initiative yields actionable data on communication needs and preferences, levels of satisfaction, and parent feelings of commitment and trust. Survey data gathered after the communication initiative is used to determine changes in levels of satisfaction, commitment and trust. Among the findings are verified and consistent indications of secondary engagement in the communication …

The Student Veteran Instructional Communication Training (Svic): An Analysis Of Student Veteran Instructional Needs And Corresponding Instructional Behaviors, Trevor Kauer, Marian Houser

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

Student veteran’s (SV) transition into academic life is challenging, and faculty/staff are uniquely positioned to support this change. Research calls for academic faculty/staff training to support SVs’ and aid in their retention and academic success. Framed by Rhetorical and Relational Goal Theory (RRGT; Mottet et al., 2006), qualitative data identified SVs’ instructional communication needs and produced a faculty/staff training program. Twenty-three SVs were interviewed about their instructional communication needs, namely, a need for: Structure, Integration, and Awareness. These needs were translated into instructor communication behaviors, and a SV instructional communication training (SVIC) was created to (a) promote organization, (b) facilitate …

“A Cog In A Wheel That Gets It Done”: A Qualitative Study Of The Experiences Of Faculty Seeking Administrator Support, Lakesha Anderson, Mattea A. Garcia

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

This qualitative study sought to determine the stressors that motivate faculty to seek administrator support and examined faculty experiences of administrator support. Participants were 27 full- and part-time faculty members who completed a seven-item online questionnaire. Findings show that many participants felt unsupported by their administrator while navigating the stressful situations for which they sought help. This lack of support led to negative departmental cultures and faculty feeling insecure, undervalued, and isolated. This study highlights the need for policies and practices designed to build relationships between faculty and administrators. Efforts to improve the faculty-–administrator relationship can lead to increased understanding, …

A Typology Of Perceived Negative Course Evaluations, Heather Carmack, Leah E. Lefebvre

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Instructors and administrators continue to debate the merit and value of using course evaluations to assess instructor effectiveness and course outcomes, especially when students see course evaluations as satisfaction surveys where they can unload negative and/or hurtful comments directed at instructors. Little is known about instructors’ perceptions of negative course evaluations. This study qualitatively examined faculty’s (N = 90) perceptions of negative course evaluation qualitative comments. Using a grounded analyst-constructed typologies approach, three types of negative course evaluation comments were identified: professional, personal, and performance. These types of negative comments call into question the disconnection between what students and instructors …

Instructional Resources To Assess Applied Projects As A Culminating Graduate Communication Student Experience, Michael G. Strawser, Bridget Rubenking, Kelsey Lunsford, Margaret Gravelyn

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

This study reviews the traditional culminating graduate student experiences, theses, and comprehensive exams, as well as a newer, more professionally relevant option, applied research projects. We conceptualize applied projects as student-led, client-connected, hands-on, experiential projects that address a real-world communication problem or topic through the creation of relevant deliverables. We used Glassick et al.’s (1997) scholarship assessed model and the National Communication Association’s communication learning outcomes to determine perceived differences between culminating experiences. Survey results (N = 32) of recent alumni and current master’s level Communication students demonstrate near-equal ratings of applied projects and theses in their ability to both …

Improvising: A Grounded Theory Investigation Of Psychology Students' Level Of Anxiety, Coping, Communicative Skills, Imagination, And Spontaneity, Olga Temezhnikova

The Qualitative Report

The aim of this study was to gain insight into the phenomenon of improvisation, how it is manifested in communication, and to conceptualize the process of improvisation in general. I aimed to construct a model for use in teaching and further analysis of training programs that target and develop improvisation skills in communication. The ability to communicate is part and parcel of psychologists’ work. I develop and supervise interactive classes and training programs to promote improvisation and communication skills, using the grounded theory of improvisation in communication under conditions of high uncertainty. The improvisation sessions were videotaped, transcribed, and analyzed. …

Higher Education Students’ Social Media Literacy In Ethiopia: A Case Of Bahir Dar University., Atinafu Behailu

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This study investigates the status of Bahir Dar University students’ social media literacy and how associated factors affect developing core competencies. A combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods have been employed in the study. Both descriptive and inferential statistics of means core, standard deviation, one sample t-test, independent sample t-test, correlation and multiple regressions were used to analyze data gathered from the quantitative design. Data gathered from FGD were analyzed qualitatively. Accordingly, the students’ overall social media level was found to be low. Female students perform slightly lower than their counterpart male students. Among the five skills of social …

Uncommon And Non-Traditional Urban Relationship Strategies: From Relationship Loss To Relationship Recovery, Lasonya L. Moore

Journal of English Learner Education

With increasing student diversity across our nation, there is a growing need to scale up educational innovations related to building holistic relationships. Many students in K-12 public schools enter educational settings with uncommon and nontraditional ways of building and developing longitudinal relationships that allow students to thrive and not just survive. Specifically, teachers/educators feel ill-equipped and ill-trained to adequately support the increasing number of English learners(ELs) and Exceptional education students (specifically Students of Color (SOC) with emotional and behavioral disorders) identified in inclusive classrooms. Thus, there remains an urgent need to share uncommon and non-traditional strategies to develop and build …

Best Practices For Recruiting Students From The Basic Course, Jordan Atkinson, Nicholas T. Tatum

Basic Communication Course Annual

This essay responds to the Basic Course Forum question about best practices for recruiting to and/or from the basic course.

Confronting Students’ Personal And Interpersonal Communication Anxieties And Needs Through Constitutive, Experiential Communication Pedagogy, Lawrence R. Frey, Emily Loker

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

Today’s college students are experiencing unprecedented high levels of anxiety, resulting in devastating effects. This essay challenges communication educators to respond directly to this significant issue by employing an experiential pedagogy that offers students constitutive opportunities to initiate, experiment with, and receive feedback about new communicative behaviors that will enable them to interact well and achieve positive outcomes in high anxiety-inducing interactions. The essay explicates how that constitutive, experiential pedagogy informs the course “Communication and Human Relations,” enabling students to acquire communication competencies to reduce their anxiety about and to manage effectively their personal and interpersonal communication difficulties.

Pedagogical Tools In Our Briefcases: Teaching The Business And Professional Communication Course, Suzy Prentiss, Justin Walton

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

As a practical and applied course, Business and Professional Communication is an excellent opportunity to blend theory and practice, prepare students with the knowledge and skills they will need in the “real world,” and continually innovate and experiment to meet the ever-changing communication needs of the workplace. Whether filled with students majoring in communication, business or another discipline, as a General Education or sequenced class, the Business and Professional Communication course is a worthwhile and value-added course that is both challenging and rewarding to teach.

Effects Of A Hospital-Wide Physician Communication Skills Training Workshop On Self-Efficacy, Attitudes And Behavior, Minna Saslaw, Dana R. Sirota, Deborah P. Jones, Marcy Rosenbaum, Steven Kaplan

Patient Experience Journal

Hospital systems interested in improving patient experience and physician engagement may look to physician communication skills training (CST) as a means of improving both. This study examines a 7.5-hour, multi-specialty, hospital-wide physician CST workshop in a large academic hospital system and its effects on participants’ self-efficacy, attitudes, and behaviors related to communicating with patients. Data was gathered from October 2014 through June 2016 through a web-based questionnaire sent to participants 6-weeks post-workshop which focused on skills taught in the course, attitudes toward communication training, and provider behaviors when communicating with patients. Along with demographic questions, a ten question retrospective pre-post …

Your Face Betrays You: A Fantasy Theme Analysis Of Lie To Me, Caroline Campbell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research concerning the consequences of edutainment has revealed that television shows have the capability to influence audience members. As the lines between education and entertainment are becoming increasingly blurred, viewers may not be aware of how watching such shows impacts them. Lie to Me is a popular edutainment television series that educates viewers about the power of micro expressions. Ekman has dedicated a large part of his life to the development of research related to micro expressions. The show’s main character, Cal Lightman, portrayed Paul Ekman’s special talents and knowledge through his ability to detect micro expressions. The first three …

Environmental Dynamics: A Compendium Of Rhetorical Application, Annalisa Perez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Technology, albeit exceedingly useful, has exponentially exacerbated the communications dilemma between the technical and the non-technical. Additionally, based on a current new understanding of the term environmental, it can no longer be fully defined by terms such as air, water, waste, or purification. Rather, the meaning of environmental has been globally transformed in several ways. The term environmental is encompassing an expansion of understanding and is further defined with words such as essence, perception, rapport and multi-dimensional spaces. This work, Environmental Dynamics: A Compendium of Rhetorical Application (EDC), provides a framework where communication can be enhanced in areas where communication …

Classroom Projects As Embodied And Embedded Outcomes Assessment, Garnet C. Butchart, Margaret Mullan

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Although educators already recognize the value in engaging student learning through classroom projects and service-learning, assessment of student learning through classroom projects may be accompanied by a shift of attention from mastery of ideas to embodied knowledge. We argue that embodiment is the basic semiotic condition of being human—of being both an expressive and perceptive (communicative) being among others. Linking this philosophy of communication principle to the topic of assessment, the article offers assessment research a focus of attention on learning settings: from embodiment as learning context, to the built environment of classrooms, as well as to group interaction. We …

Examining The Relationship Between Parental Involvement And Mobile Technology Use, Toinette Marie Flowers

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Understanding how mobile devices can enhance parent/teacher communication is important because parents play an important part in their children's learning. Research on parents' use of mobile devices to communicate with their children's teachers is limited. The purpose of this cross-sectional correlational study was to determine the relationships between parents' (a) knowledge of using mobile devices, (b) general use of mobile devices, (c) purpose for using mobile devices, (d) perceived ease of using mobile devices, (e) perceived usefulness of mobile devices, (f) attitude toward using mobile devices, and (g) use of mobile devices to communicate with teachers. The study was informed …

The Undergraduate Teaching Assistant: Scholarship In The Classroom, Sarah M. Flinko, Ronald C. Arnett

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

This essay casts the role of the Undergraduate Teaching Assistant (UTA) within a Kantanian sense of imagination—the not yet pushes off of the actual and the tangible (Kant, 1781/1963). The UTA accesses a temporal glimpse into a professional scholar/teacher vocation through experience in a lived context that unites teaching and scholarship. The role of the UTA offers what Martin Buber (1965/1988) called “imagining the real” (p. 60), a moment of creative ingenuity that begins with the doing of concrete tasks within the profession.

Chairs Mentoring Faculty Colleagues, Jeff Kerssen-Griep

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Many academics struggle to manage the changes that come with suddenly being responsible for chairing a group of peers. As in skilled classroom instruction, leading an academic unit invokes specific structural, strategic, tactical, and interpersonal abilities. New chairs often quickly have to add ways of thinking and acting that are beyond the precise expertise that got them to that point in the first place. With our focus on understanding process, communication scholars may be better equipped than some others to understand this role shift’s dynamics, but often we struggle as mightily as our chemist or engineering or nursing peers to …

Rethinking The Classroom: One Department’S Attempt To Connect Student Learning And National Events, John A. Mcarthur

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Communication programs have a rich anecdotal history of connecting student learning to real-world experience. Yet, the same programs, including ours, often privilege classroom-based instruction and instructor-led experiential learning over other types of experiences. When community organizers announced a national mega-event for our city, faculty in our communication department knew that we wanted to use it as a learning experience. We brainstormed ideas, most of which were classroom- and semester-based concepts typical of traditional topics courses. But, one of our faculty members suggested that we think outside of the concept of classroom. What resulted was a unique experience unlike any we …

Assessing The Presence And Use Of Nonverbal Communication In Primary Reading Instruction, Amelia C. Ferrell

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This research examined the presence and types of nonverbal communication presented in primary reading instruction. Primary instructors were surveyed about their use and types of nonverbal communication employed during reading instruction. Nonverbal communication variables studied were determined from relevant literature regarding nonverbal immediacy, primary education, and reading instruction. Findings revealed that almost all nonverbal communication variables studied were employed frequently and most respondents had no prior training. Findings suggest how future studies can better evaluate the role of nonverbal communication in reading instruction and provide education for primary teachers in hopes of improving literacy education.

Supplementing A Librarian's Information Literacy Toolkit With Textbooks: A Scan Of Basic Communication Course Texts, Melissa Kozel-Gain, Rick A. Stoddart

Rick A Stoddart

This inquiry subjectively examines selected basic communication textbooks for information literacy concepts from the communication discipline point of view. Librarians can build on these concepts in library skills instruction sessions for first-year communication students. This analysis reveals that communication textbook authors are addressing information literacy concepts and standards with content, exercises, examples, and, most importantly, context; and the authors are often utilizing their own discipline-specific terminology to do so. Because finding, using, and evaluating information is a cornerstone of communication education and because the most successful information literacy efforts result from learning its tenets in a variety of contexts, librarians …

Competing Perspectives: Communicating The Value Of School Librarians And Ict Skills To School Principals/Administrators, Rick A. Stoddart

Rick A Stoddart

This paper will examine how LIS schools prepare pre-service librarians to communicate with school principal/administrators the importance and implementation of Information & Communication-Technology (ICT) standards. A recent state-wide study has shown that many school principals/ administrators derive their understanding as to the role of school libraries/ librarians from three main sources: personal experience (84.7%), on-the-job experience (81.3%), and informal communication with school librarians (80.7%).1 Obviously, school librarian interaction with principals/administrators has large impact on an administrator’s viewpoint on school libraries’/librarians’ educational efficacy. Unfortunately, those principals/administrators who relied on on-the-job experience as a knowledge base tended to assess their school or …

History Of Communication And Its Application In Multicultaral,Multilingual Social System In India Across Ages, Ratnesh Dwivedi Mr

Ratnesh Dwivedi

The history of communication dates back to the earliest signs of cavemen.Communication can range from very subtle processes of exchange, to full conversations and mass communication. Human communication was revolutionized with speech perhaps 200,000 years ago, Symbols were developed about 30,000 years ago and writing about 7,000. On a much shorter scale, there have been major developments in the field of telecommunication in the past few centuries.

The Role Of Foreign Languages In Educating Lawyers For Transnational Challenges, Vivian Grosswald Curran

Articles

In a world in which every other country seems intent on teaching English to their youth, and in which the United States educational system does not place a high priority on teaching foreign languages, the American law student, dean and professor may doubt if foreign language knowledge is anything more than marginally helpful to law graduates. Similarly, educators at the primary school level may not be likely to assess foreign language education as warranting a greater allocation of scarce public resources.

The usefulness of foreign languages to the United States lawyer gradually has been gaining increased recognition in the profession, …