Blackwell Reference Online

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Teacher communication concern (hereafter abbreviated TCC) is a concept and research line that developed from attempts to describe specific behaviors of teachers that could influence student learning. Initially conceived as three factors of worry or anxiety about self (confidence and competence as teacher), task (mastering the specific skills), and impact (affecting learning), it is an area that is part of the general category of instructional communication (→  Communication Education, Goals of ), which is the interaction of teacher and student talk in classrooms (→  Classroom Student–Teacher Interaction ). For more than 50 years, from the 1950s on, researchers have been studying variables such as patterns of verbal and nonverbal interaction, teacher communication moves and student communication responses, asking and answering questions, giving directions and information, accepting and rejecting student behavior, positive and negative reinforcement, and so on. How teachers used communication in their various roles was a major focus of study (e.g., lecturing, leading discussions, giving feedback, tutoring, disciplining, etc.) (→  Pedagogy, Communication in ). In short, the questions of interest related to the process of communication in classrooms as conducive or not to student learning. Even though student learning was the goal, the students were not the focus of study except in ... log in or subscribe to read full text