ABSTRACT
Teacher communication is sometimes referred to as the interface between knowing and teaching. Two major instructional goals include the acquisition of knowledge and the ability to transfer the knowledge learned in one context to new situations. The behavior 5 of teachers can result in positive classroom outcomes because teachers can serve as catalysts who motivate students to achieve the cognitive and self-esteem goals associated with an academic environment (Brophy, 1979). Two factors influence a teacher’s ability to af-10 fect the self-concepts of students: (a) credibility and (b) self-esteem. Teacher credibility is formed in “the minds of students,” and teacher self-esteem is personal and internal (Bassett & Smythe, 1979, p. 179). The credibility construct, when applied to teachers, has 15 been defined by McCroskey, Holdridge, and Toomb (1974) as consisting of five dimensions: character, sociability, composure, extroversion, and competence.
