Self-Evaluation in Speaking and Listening

Abstract

H OW can youngsters become more involved in the learning process? The traditional approach in which the teaching role rather than the learning process has been stressed is undergoing reexamination. When a youngster, for instance, hears a speaker, reads a book, writes a report, teachers can encourage the student to evaluate for himself by having him develop criteria so that he is in a better position to make judgments about the speaker, the book, or the report. For too long teachers have served as the primary evaluators, and the learner has become a spectator in a vital area of instruction. One critical area for improvement in self-evaluation is in the speaking and listening strands of the language arts. A youngster may spend thousands of hours watching television or listening to the radio. In the process he often becomes a passive listener. He may hear a variety of speakers or commentators, ranging from William Buckley, Jr., Spiro Agnew, James Baldwin, to David Brinkley, or see numerous programs, and instead of thinking about what he is hearing or seeing, the youngster indiscriminately accepts or rejects upon inadequate bases. Frequently the speakers themselves resort to propaganda tactics which stimulate the listener to unwarranted opinions or actions. At the same time, the student's own speaking becomes a sloppy and indecisive means of communication, which can be meliorated.