Open PRAIRIE: Open Public Research Access Institutional Repository and Information Exchange
Abstract
Instruction in parliamentary procedure has long been a part of the curriculum in many schools of this country. Generally, this instruction has been associated with departments of speech; consequently, speech teachers have researched for methods of evaluating the effectiveness and the extensiveness of training that students receive in parliamentary procedure. Since parliamentary procedure is the operating code of most deliberative assemblies, the South Dakota State Legislature was chosen as a logical place to measure the practical application of techniques learned in parliamentary procedure courses. Because the effectiveness of a legislator may be somewhat dependent on how well he can employ parliamentary skills, an attempt was made to determine to what extent or how effectively South Dakota’s legislators feel they are prepared in the various aspects of parliamentary procedure. The problem was sub-divided into the following questions: A. In terms of their own judgement, how competent are the legislators in the various areas of parliamentary procedure? 1. Formal procedure? a. Phrasing main motions? b. Using subsidiary motions? c. Using incidental motions? d. Using privileged motions? 2. Committee procedure? 3. Areas other than those covered in 1 and 2 above? B. How does the number of terms of office correlate with the legislature’s estimate of his proficiency in parliamentary procedure? C. How much formal instruction have the legislators had in parliamentary procedure