Through a review of literature, this paper focuses on the development of a framework for the teaching of functional communication skills in grades six through nine. Following the introduction, the first section examines the context, purpose, and ability dimensions of oral communication as well as a model that combines all of these elements. The second section recounts the issues surrounding the definition of communication competence, while the third section addresses the issues of assessment of competence, including domain of competencies, measurement strategies, minority test bias, and criteria for instrument construction. The fourth section surveys the program goals and objectives of a variety of oral communication experts. In the hope of providing information useful for developing a curriculum that reflects the state of the art in oral communication, the fifth section outlines general instructional approaches to oral communication and presents specific methods and activities that can be used in oral communication instruction. Descriptions and examples of activities for functional communication, nonverbal communication, values clarification, referential communication games, and activities for assessment are all provided. The paper concludes that models for teaching oral communication should be process oriented. (JL)