Goal setting and contract grading are two instructional strategies that can provide individualized instruction within more traditional speech classroom settings. Individualized instruction focuses on the unique characteristics and needs of the learner, acknowledges that all students do not learn in the same way, meets the needs of the gifted student as well as the slow learner, and removes the element of threat that impedes effective communication between teacher and student. Goal setting is a procedure whereby students set learning objectives for themselves, from a single assignment to an entire course. Written in behavioral terms with methods for determining goal achievement indicated, they should be conceivable, believable, achievable, measurable, desirable, and unavoidable. A contract should include four parts: behavioral objectives, media resource alternatives, activity alternatives, and reporting alternatives. Contracts can be developed for students by teachers, jointly with students, and by the students themselves. Each of these three formats can be modified in a variety of ways. Contracts and goal setting can be used in a wide range of speech courses and situations: public speaking, debate or individual events, interpersonal communication, group discussion, and mass media. (The appendix contains sample agreements and evaluative criteria.) (JL)