In this study, I gave a group of six to eight very young Chinese Singaporean children (between 2 and 4 years of age) three identical digital video cameras, plus tripods, and tracked their development in moviemaking over a 2-year period. The children were allowed to explore the cameras freely, though the investigators offered advice and support as…

This article presents an interview with Jacqueline Wilson, a popular British author of children's books. Wilson has published 86 books for children and young adults with more than 20 million copies sold in the U.K. alone. Wilson's fans--mostly seven- to 14-year-old girls--love her gripping plots about dysfunctional families, homelessness, and…

In this study, Turkish EFL students' conceptualization of an effective English language teacher is studied. A survey formerly developed by Yu-Hsin (1999) was adapted and administered to 100 foreign language learners studying at two state universities' English language preparatory schools. Also, participants' written responses were collected to…

This descriptive study examined children's drawings and related language episodes to differentiate drawings exhibiting play from those exhibiting exploratory behavior. Drawings categorized as play were further analyzed to identify constructive and imaginary play. The play theory used as the basis of the study proposes that exploration and…

This collection of 11 papers contains three types of papers: (1) 1991 Speech Communication Association Basic Course Committee award winning papers; (2) articles on the basic communication course; and (3) the public speaking basic course. The papers are: "Academic Success in the Basic Course: The Influence of Apprehension and…

A study examined the effectiveness of humor on reducing students' stress and tensions as well as the fostering of a positive environment, thus enhancing learning. A survey assessing classroom teachers' use of humor consisting of 10 items was administered to a sample population of 65 high school sophomores. Results were analyzed in terms of number…

Student handouts which are written "tongue-in-cheek" tell the student to do exactly the opposite of what should be done to improve study skills. Reasons given for using a paradoxical teaching approach are to create an element of surprise, to increase attention, to encourage identification with what is being taught, to increase awareness…

The 47 references, dating mostly from 1976 to 1990, in this annotated bibliography provide information about the effect of humor in written and spoken messages and its role in interpersonal relationships, especially within the context of small groups and organizational environments. The materials in the bibliography are cited according to academic…

Mark Twain was a strong proponent of the superiority of the spoken word. Realizing the importance of conversational style, Twain derived from and acted in accordance with the principles of communication effectiveness which subsequently formed theoretical bases for communication instruction by such scholars as James Winans and Charles Woolbert. An…

The mythical community of Lake Wobegon, created by Garrison Keillor and presented each week through the public radio show "A Prairie Home Companion," is the place to which everyone wants to return. A town devoid of newfangled technology, where life goes on pretty much as it always has, Lake Wobegon offers respite to listeners who daily…

A study explored sex differences among tellers of sexually oriented jokes. One hundred forty-seven undergraduate students wrote and told sexually oriented jokes to same, opposite, and mixed sex audiences. These jokes were analyzed to determine whether they were biased against men or women, in favor of men or women, biased against both sexes, or…

Based on the idea that laughter and humor are basic components of a healthy childhood, this practicum paper emphasizes the concern that preschool programs have become too academic and are creating stress for children. Similarly, adults in preschool settings, pressured by parents and public school academic expectations, have become too serious in…

The 11 papers in this collection focus on research in instructional television, the theme of a conference attended by media producers, researchers, and policy makers from Australia, Britain, Canada, France, West Germany, the Netherlands, South Africa, and the United States. The opening paper by Deane Hutton discusses two parallel but contrasting…

The connections among language learning, language education, and children's wordplay are explored in this book. Each chapter examines some aspect of the interrelations between wordplay activities and the goals of language education. The book is divided into three sections, with the first section exploring wordplay and language learning in the…

Five one-hour broadcasts of KPIX Eyewitness News (San Francisco) were analyzed to provide examples of a signification process and to understand both how humorous instances arise in the newscast and their likely meaning for the viewer. One general finding was that the amount of humor or attempted humor is quite small. Banter between anchorpersons,…