RESEARCH Selecting a Measure of Oral Communication as a Predictor of Teaching Performance

Effective communication skills are imperative given the interac-tive nature of teaching. In this study two measures of preservice teacher communication ability were tested to determine their predictive validity with respect to instructional performance. Both instruments used, the Communication Competency As-sessment Instrument and The Snyder Speech Scale, appear to be excellent measures for predicting the clarity with which pros-pective teachers will be able to present concepts and ideas to students. Recommendations are offered for relating teacher per-formance to teaching effectiveness and for improving preservice teachers ’ speech competencies. he interactive nature of instruction makes effective N oral communication essential to effective teaching. Indeed, communication is most frequently found onlists of teacher competencies. Smith (1980) identifies communicating as one of the six competencies essential for al