Abstract
This article critiques the assumption that undergraduate speech communication curricula must privilege either practical performance skills or conceptual communication theory and proposes an integrated gateway course that fulfills both mandates. Drawing on departmental experience and survey findings from basic course research, the analysis addresses five questions: the role of the required introductory course, appropriate emphasis on skills, implications for academic integrity, links between assessment rigor and grade inflation, and strategies for recruiting motivated majors. The article argues that a balanced skills and theory approach, exemplified by a model comprising sixty percent assessed performance and forty percent tested theory, delivers measurable learning gains, sustains scholarly credibility, mitigates inflationary grading patterns, and meets external stakeholder expectations. Recommendations include collaborative curriculum design with allied disciplines, enrollment controls, and explicit standards that connect communication practice to research grounded principles. Keywords: speech communication, curriculum design, integrated pedagogy, basic course, academic rigor, higher education scholarship advancement.
Recommended Citation
Weaver, Richard L.
(1992)
"A Response: We Can Have Our Cake And Eat It Too,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 80, Article 2.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol80/iss1/2
