APPREHENSIVE WORLD by

The goal of the instructor in a communication skills course is to improve the student's ability to communicate. The public speaking course at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is important to the Communication Department and to the university--every college except Fine Arts and Letters and Science requires a passing grade in this course for admission. The most beneficial outcome for the student occurs when the instructor finds a method of reducing the anxiety so that instruction, application, and practice is conducted in an atmosphere and with an attitude of confidence. However, when explicit efforts are undertaken to reduce anxiety felt about communication events, they may produce a variety of outcomes. The field has techniques with proven effectiveness at lowering levels of anxiety that need to be used, and at the same time the implications of such changes need to be examined. The key to ethical instruction is to find some basis for action that promotes healthy communication and protects both faculty and students. (Author/NKA) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document