BELIEFS ABOUT LISTENING IN STUDENTS WITH LEARNING-DISABILITIES - IS THE SPEAKER ALWAYS RIGHT

A neglected first step in planning language/literacy intervention for students with language/learning disabilities is the assessment of thei r metapragmatic beliefs about the role of the listener in communicativ e interactions. Research on children's beliefs about listening and the listener's role in repairing communicative breakdowns is reviewed. In general, students with learning disabilities in the listening role se em to overrely on the Gricean Cooperative Principle that ''the speaker is informative, sincere, relevant, and clear.'' Implications are fram ed in ways of using children's literature to enable students to reflec t on the interactive roles of speaker and listener, using stories with a theme of ''resolving communication breakdowns.''