The status of speech education in the junior high schools of northern Illinois

Includes bibliographical references.THE PROBLEM This thesis was written in order to determine the condition of affairs of speech education in the junior high schools of northern Illinois. The areas which were studied were: 1. The type, number, and location of instructional units of speech education included in the curricula of the schools. 2. The type, number, and location of co-curricular speech activities available to students. 3. The type and number of teaching positions in speech and the training required for those positions. 4. The student texts and supplementary teaching texts used in speech instruction. METHOD OF PROCEDURE A questionnaire was designed to investigate the four areas of speech education. This was mailed to the principals of the 163 junior high schools in northern Illinois. The total percentage of the response to the questionnaire was 72.4. percent. The replies were analyzed and statistically summarized. From this data, conclusions and recommendations were made. CONCLUSIONS Information gathered in this survey of northern Illinois junior high schools tends to support the following conclusions: 1. Speech education, in varying degrees, is offered in some way by 62.7 percent of the schools. 2. Speech education is offered within the Language Arts curricula in 41.8 percent of the schools. 3. The depth or extensiveness of speech education in the Language Arts curriculum of a school largely depends upon the interest and training of the individual teacher. 4. Speech education in the form of classes of speech is found in 18.3 percent of the schools. 5. Speech education in the form of elective classes in dramatics is found in 14.8 percent of the schools. 6. Units of speech education which most frequently are included in a junior high curriculum are Listening, Preparation of Speeches, Discussion Procedures, Conversation, Pantomime, and Creative Thought. 7. Forty-five percent of the schools have some co-curricular program in speech activities. 8. The most frequently included activities are One-Act Plays, Three-Act Plays, and Assembly Skits. 9. Most co-curricular activities take place within the school. Some schools exchange skits and plays, and some enter speech contests with other schools. 10. Few schools have full-time positions in teaching speech or dramatics courses. Language Arts-Speech is the most typical combination of responsibilities. 11. Host schools required of their full and part-time speech teachers either a major or a minor in speech in addition to the state certification requirements. 12. There is little uniformity of student speech texts in the schools. 13. Because of the variation in the amount and type of speech education in the junior high schools of northern Illinois, it appears that the status of speech education is still in the process of being determined.M.A. (Master of Arts