Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons^™

The Communication Center At U.S. Colleges And Universities: A Descriptive Overview, Luke Lefebvre, Leah Lefebvre

Basic Communication Course Annual

Communication centers were originally designed to augment the basic communication course and assist students in the development of their oral communication skills. According to the National Association of Communication Centers (2012), there are currently over 70 communication centers in the United States. This study offers a descriptive investigation of communication centers at colleges and universities from communication center directors. Our purpose is to provide data about the nature and state of centers so that it may inform others about how to develop, maintain, and compare centers’ trends and tendencies. This investigation discusses the following communication center information: (a) institutional context, …

Preparing To Learn: Structuring The Basic Course To Increase Student Preparation And Learning, Melissa A. Broeckelman-Post, Melissa F. Tindage, Jewlz M. Shaffer, Chantel Solomon, Sarah J. Black, Mylen F. Yamamoto

Basic Communication Course Annual

This manuscript investigates whether frequent quizzing might facilitate greater preparation and learning in the Basic Course and tests variations of frequent quizzing through a series of three separate studies in order to identify best practices for using such quizzes. The first study showed that students who were given frequent quizzes performed better on the final exam than students who were given a midterm. The second study showed that frequent online quizzes can be just as effective as frequent in-class quizzes. In the final study, students were given skeletal notes to fill out as they prepared for class, and the results …

Communication Apprehension In Hybrid And Public Speaking Basic Communication Course Textbooks, Emily A. Paskewitz

Basic Communication Course Annual

For students enrolled in the basic communication course, their primary source for information about communication apprehension comes from the course textbook. Previous researchers have content analyzed textbooks for their coverage of communication apprehension in public speaking textbooks, but none have compared hybrid textbooks and public speaking textbooks. Twenty basic communication course textbooks, ten hybrid and ten public speaking, were analyzed for how they address communication apprehension. Results were consistent with previous research regarding communication apprehension in public speaking textbooks, noting few changes over the past 30 years. Implications for the basic communication course, along with suggestions for future research regarding …

Author Biographies

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Index Of Titles And Authors, Volumes 1-25

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Submission Guidelines

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Back Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Basic Communication Course Annual Vol. 26

Basic Communication Course Annual

Full issue (276 pages, 9.7 MB)

The Risks And Rewards Of Serving As A Department Chair, Jon A. Hess

Communication Faculty Publications

Serving as chair is a significant point in the career of any faculty member who inhabits the office. It is a position with high highs and low lows, significant stressors and some perks, the chance to have a positive impact on a program, and the near certainty that at some point you will generate disagreement with almost everyone in the department. The department chair is a boundary position between the university administration and the faculty; a chair inhabits both worlds, but resides fully in neither. Chairs are charged with numerous responsibilities and often lack full authority needed to accomplish their …

The Speaker's Primer, Joesph M. Valenzano Iii, Stephen W. Braden, Melissa A. Broeckelman-Post

Communication Faculty Publications

This book addresses the nuts and bolts of crafting and delivering different types of presentations, but unlike other public speaking handbooks, it builds on those principles and offers guidance on speaking in particular professional arenas. Throughout the book, the authors provide sidebars about the importance and application of public speaking principles specific to business, healthcare, education, politics, and the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

— Description from publisher's website

Front Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Title Page

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Editorial Board

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Editor's Page, Stephen K. Hunt, Joseph P. Mazer

Basic Communication Course Annual

Over the past 20 years, the basic communication course has become a staple of many of general education programs. The ability to communicate effectively is viewed as a prerequisite to interpersonal relationships, success in the workplace, and meaningful participation as a citizen in our democracy.

The role of the basic communication course in general education affords the discipline with substantial political capital on many campuses—administrators often look to the basic course as an ideal location for launching new initiatives and capturing important data regarding student learning outcomes. To the extent that basic course directors are able to deliver those initiatives …

Contents And Abstracts

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Directing The Winds Of Change: The Basic Course And General Education, Joseph M. Valenzano Iii

Basic Communication Course Annual

Communication departments remain heavily reliant on the inclusion of an introductory communication course in their institution’s general education program. For this reason it is essential for Basic Course Directors (BCDs) to educate themselves on general education. In doing so they will find a new iteration of change to general education where the required course and distribution model are disappearing in favor of an interdisciplinary outcomes-driven approach. Such a shift can have dramatic repercussions on the basic course and communication programs if the course is not further connected with other areas of general education. In this essay, I argue for Basic …

Embracing And Rejecting Student Agency: Documenting Critical Reflection Practices In The Basic Communication Course Classroom, Blair C. Thompson, Renee Robinson

Basic Communication Course Annual

This interpretive study explored classroom power through the implementation of critical reflection exercises aimed at promoting student agency and learning in the basic course classroom. Data included over 400 critical reflection responses from 81 undergraduate students from four different basic course sections.

Three emergent patterns revealed students’ positive re-action to the critical reflection process, how students both embrace and reject power in the classroom, and connections between the critical reflection process and student learning. The findings offer teachers support for implementing critical reflection practices in the communication classroom.

Static And Dynamic Interplay Among Communication Apprehension, Communicative Self-Efficacy, And Willingness To Communicate In The Communication Course, Georgeta M. Hodis, Flaviu A. Hodis

Basic Communication Course Annual

This research offers an in-depth analysis of both static (cross-sectional) and dynamic (longitudinal) relations among communication apprehension, communicative self-efficacy, and willingness to communicate pertaining to the public speaking context. Using longitudinal data from undergraduate students enrolled in a semester-long basic communication course (BCC) focusing on public speaking, the study sheds light on the complex patterns of interrelationships among the three constructs and on the differences arising when regarding them from a static versus dynamic standpoint. The research reveals important findings that have salient implications for instruction in the BCC and are informative for theory-development and general pedagogical practice in the …

Assessment Of E-Textbook Usage In A Large Public Speaking Program, Marlina M. Davidson, Karen Kangas Dwyer

Basic Communication Course Annual

This study examined student usage of an e-textbook in a large multi-section basic pubic speaking course that fulfills the oral communication general education requirement at a large state university in the Midwest. The results collected from students surveys (n=598) indicated that they are not yet using e-textbooks across other university classes, they prefer printed textbooks to e-textbooks, they perceive advantages of e-textbooks to be cost, weight, ability to quickly find topics and conveniences, while they perceive advantages of printed textbooks to be the ability to highlight and take notes, ease of reading, and keeping the printed text-book for future reference. …

Assessing Student Public Speaking Competence In The Hybrid Basic Communication Course, Kristen Leblanc Farris, Marian L. Houser, Crystal D. Wotipka

Basic Communication Course Annual

Public speaking remains one of the most sought-after skill sets by employers. However, a method to accurately assess these public speaking skills has long been debated by educators and scholars alike (Morreale, Hugenberg, & Worley, 2006). This study sought to ex-amine the assessment tools used to demonstrate student learning of public speaking skills in the hybrid orientation of the basic communication course. Statistical analyses were conducted to determine the validity of two assessment instruments (Informative Presentation Assessment Form and Persuasive Presentation Assessment Form) measuring student public speaking competency. Results established concurrent validity of the two assessment instruments used to measure …

A New Hybrid: Students’ Extensions Of Integrated Communication Content, Amy L. Housley Gaffney, Brandi N. Frisby

Basic Communication Course Annual

Using Bandura’s (1977) self-efficacy theory, this study examined student perceptions of changes in efficacy and affect toward a variety of communication skills (e.g., interpersonal, writing, visual, public speaking, group collaboration) over a sequence of two hybrid basic course classes. As part of a larger assessment initiative, both quantitative and qualitative data from the first course (n = 793) and the second course (n = 273) were analyzed. Students reported greater affect and efficacy during the second course when compared to the first course. Specifically, students reported six affective changes including expanded knowledge, enhanced collaborative skills, increased openness and acceptance, heightened …

Facing With Non-Nativeness While Teaching: Enacting Voices Of International Teaching Assistants Of Basic Communication Courses, Arata Miyazaki, Kaori Yamada

Basic Communication Course Annual

This paper presents our voices as international teaching assistants (ITAs) of public speaking courses at American universities and discusses how non-native English speaker identity, or non-nativeness is displayed, developed, and negotiated through our inter-actions with both native and other non-native speakers. Regarding our companionship as ITAs of public speaking as a subject of study, we engage in narrative co-construction about our survival in graduate programs. We argue that non-nativeness is not monolithic but is more relational and multilayered than it tends to be assumed. Obtaining a teaching position was an epiphany for our relationship, changing the perceptions about and attitude …

Effect Of Goal-Setting And Self-Generated Feedback On Student Speechmaking, Luke Lefebvre

Basic Communication Course Annual

This investigation examined how goal setting strategies and self-generated feedback from video affects student grade improvement on subsequent speaking occasions. Students (n =140) across ten course sections were conveniently assigned to experimental conditions manipulating video use and goal setting strategies. Significant and meaningful main effects of anticipatory goal setting combined with self-generated feedback from video were obtained when compared to unstructured video replay, only goal setting, and self-reactive goal setting with self-generated feedback from video. Implications for these findings are examined along with the potential of video as an instructional technological tool for student learning in the introductory course.

Author Biographies

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Index Of Titles And Authors, Volumes 1-24

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Submission Guidelines

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Back Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Basic Communication Course Annual Vol. 25

Basic Communication Course Annual

Full issue (377 pages, 14.2 MB)

Speech Center Support Services, The Basic Course, And Oral Communication Assessment, Karen Kangas Dwyer, Marlina M. Davidson

Basic Communication Course Annual

This study examines the role a speech center plays in supporting university-wide oral communication assessment. Specifically, this study queries student usage of speech center support services and perceived changes in public speaking anxiety, public speaking confidence, and public speaking skills. The findings indicate that students who report more visits to the speech center also perceive that using the speech center helped reduce their speech anxiety and increase their confidence in public speaking. In addition, those who report it “helpful” to self-evaluate recordings of their in-class speeches also report a greater reduction in speech anxiety, a greater increase in confidence, and …

Front Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.