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This dissertation examines the relational implications of the presence of mobile technology within the basic communication course. To guide the research and interpret the results Mottet, Frymier, and Beebe’s (2006) rhetorical and relational goals theory is utilized. To investigate this phenomenon a survey design was employed, and participants were asked to respond to open-ended, closed-ended, and descriptive questions. Results of this study shed light upon how and when university students use technology, as well as the positive and detrimental results such usage has upon the development and quality of their relationships in the classroom, both with instructors and other students. Results from this dissertation revealed that students are frequent and heavy users of mobile technology (particularly “social” applications), but generally do not feel as if they are dependent upon their devices. In open-ended responses, students described ways in which mobile technology facilitated out of class relationships with peers and instructors, but hindered the development of relationship with peers in the classroom; these descriptions aligned with the fact that students who exhibited or experienced phubbing (snubbing someone with one’s phone) described less classroom connectedness than their peers. While differing perceptions of classroom connectedness among students were correlated with differing experiences of phubbing, perceptions of rapport with instructors did not differ significantly among participants. Further, students who were more relationally oriented experienced higher perceptions of classroom connectedness than their more rhetorically oriented counterparts. Finally, students in this study generally prioritized rhetorical instructor attributes over relational ones. These results are further explored in the discussion portion of this dissertation.

This study examines levels of politeness in real time instructor responses to classroom incivility behaviors. Student participants were randomly assigned to view a video of an instructor responding to either passive or active student incivility behaviors in various ways. The responses were based on politeness theory conceptualizations of avoidance, mid-level politeness, or bald on record responses. A 2 (i.e., passive, active student incivility) x 3 (i.e., avoidance, mid-level, or bald on record instructor response) experimental design formed six conditions. High quality video simulations of a classroom environment, portraying one of the six conditions, were created to specifically address these dimensions. Participants took a web based survey and evaluated the instructor with respect to effectiveness, credibility, and impact on student motivation. Results demonstrate students had most positive responses to bald on record instructor responses to active student incivility. When responding to passive student incivility, a less harsh response (i.e., avoidance, mid-level), while not significantly different from a bald on record response, indicate better outcomes. Therefore, in accordance with politeness theory, instructors should consider the level of imposition created by uncivil student behavior when calibrating responses, as student perceptions can be greatly affected. Theoretical and practical considerations as well as avenues for future research are presented.

The study examined Accounting teachers’ pedagogical communicative practices and the academic achievement Accounting students, focusing on the extent of its occurrence. Teachers’ pedagogical communicative practices are the language behaviours and discourse strategies employed by teachers in their instructional delivery. The study employed an embedded concurrent mixed methods design. A questionnaire, Accounting achievement test for students, interview and observation guides were used to collect data from 481 respondents (made up of two heads of schools, 54 teachers, and 425 students) selected from 34 senior high schools in the Ahafo, Bono and Bono East Regions of Ghana. The quantitative data were analysed into descriptive and inferential statistics by using the SPSS software while the qualitative data were analysed thematically in accordance with the research questions. The findings from the study revealed that the Accounting teachers use appropriate pedagogical communicative practices (which include speaking loudly and boldly enough and making close eye contacts with students during class contributions) to help students to assimilate concepts better in Accounting, and to promote a stimulating learning environment. The study also revealed that teachers considered their students’ maturity level, needs, motivation and readiness to learn in deciding which methodology to use for a lesson. The study further revealed that there is no significant influence of pedagogical communicative practices on student academic achievement. Pedagogical communicative practices need to form part of the training of teachers for the senior high schools in order to prepare the teachers adequately for their assignments. Finally, the conceptual framework proposed is characterised by a synthesis of pedagogy and instructional communication, and the influence that such a combination has on the academic achievement of Senior High School Accounting students. To date, there is paucity of information in the extant literature regarding this practice in Africa, specifically, Ghana and hence the need for the current research to fill the gap. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Phil. (Curriculum and Instructional Studies)

Adjusting one’s communication is a fundamental requirement for human interaction (Gasiorek, 2016a). Individuals adapt communication behavior according to the circumstances surrounding the situation, resulting in different patterns and forms of speech relative to spouses, family members, coworkers, or friends. Yet, researchers in instructional communication have not yet substantially applied adjustment as a theoretical lens for understanding instructor-student classroom interactions (Gasiorek & Giles, 2012; Soliz & Giles, 2014; Soliz & Bergquist, 2016). Apart from overlooking this useful theoretical approach, instructional communication scholarship can also be improved by accounting for 1) shifting group identities in higher education that change how instructors and students communicate, 2) incomplete conceptualizations of student perceptions in existing research, and 3) a consistent lack of concern for the hierarchical structure of educational data. This dissertation seeks to resolve these limitations through an application of one of the most prominent theories of adjustment: communication accommodation theory (CAT; Giles, 1973; Giles, Willemyns, Gallois, & Anderson, 2007a). The research specifically extends the CAT framework to an instructional setting by investigating how student perceptions of instructor nonaccommodation across several modes of communication (i.e., nonverbal, linguistic/verbal, content, support) influence information processing ability, relationships with instructors, and beliefs about instructors. Data were collected from 573 undergraduate students across 38 sections of a basic communication course (BCC). Students completed an online questionnaire assessing perceptions of the appropriateness of their instructor’s behavior (i.e., nonaccommodation), extraneous load, communication satisfaction, instructor-student rapport, instructor credibility, and instructor communication competence. The results first forward a nuanced measure for assessing nonaccommodation in a manner consistent with the theoretical propositions of CAT. Second, a series of analyses using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM; Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002) showed significant associations between perceptions of nonaccommodation across modes and students’ reported classroom outcomes. Interestingly, several of the individual, direct relationships disappeared when multiple modes of nonaccommodation were considered simultaneously, introducing the possibility that individuals may prioritize the appropriateness of certain behaviors within context. The data hierarchy (i.e., students enrolled in course sections) did exert some influence on the relationships between variables, yet the majority of variance accounted for across models occurred at the student level. Implications of the results related to both theory and practice within the basic communication course are presented in the discussion.