CRI Dictation & Practice Material Development 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In the context of court reporting dictation materials, what does 'syllabic intensity' measure?
- The average number of syllables per word in a passage (Correct answer)
- The speed at which a dictator reads the material aloud
- The ratio of steno strokes to finished English words
- The phonetic difficulty of individual letter combinations
Correct answer: The average number of syllables per word in a passage
Syllabic intensity is calculated as the average number of syllables per word, and higher syllabic intensity makes a passage proportionally harder to write at a given WPM.
Question 2: Which type of dictation material is most appropriate for students practicing at the 180 WPM level?
- Children's literary passages with simple sentence structure
- General-interest news articles at a moderate vocabulary level
- Legal Q&A testimony with objections and colloquy (Correct answer)
- Highly specialized medical dictation with Latin terminology
Correct answer: Legal Q&A testimony with objections and colloquy
Students at 180 WPM are approaching professional certification speeds and need legal Q&A material that mirrors the content they will encounter as working court reporters.
Question 3: How should a court reporting instructor vary dictation material types to maximize student skill development?
- Repeat the same passage until the student achieves perfect accuracy
- Rotate between literary, jury charge, and Q&A material throughout training (Correct answer)
- Focus exclusively on one dictation style each semester
- Use only materials published in approved court reporting textbooks
Correct answer: Rotate between literary, jury charge, and Q&A material throughout training
Rotating among literary, jury charge, and Q&A formats exposes students to the full range of material they will encounter in professional practice, building versatility.
Question 4: What is the purpose of 'cold dictation' in court reporting training?
- Dictation performed without any microphone or amplification equipment
- Dictation of material the student has never seen or practiced before (Correct answer)
- Slow warm-up dictation at the start of each class session
- Pre-recorded dictation rather than material read live by the instructor
Correct answer: Dictation of material the student has never seen or practiced before
Cold dictation uses unfamiliar passages to simulate real-world conditions where a reporter cannot prepare in advance, developing adaptability and true speed under pressure.
Question 5: When instructors create their own dictation materials, which copyright principle must they observe?
- All published works can be used freely for educational purposes under any circumstance
- Instructors must obtain permission or create original content to avoid copyright infringement (Correct answer)
- Public court transcripts are always freely available and may be reproduced without restriction
- Dictation materials used in classroom settings are exempt from all copyright protection
Correct answer: Instructors must obtain permission or create original content to avoid copyright infringement
Educational use does not automatically grant unlimited rights to reproduce copyrighted text; instructors must either create original passages or secure proper permissions.
Question 6: Which NCRA certification test requires candidates to write a 5-minute dictation at a designated speed with 95% accuracy?
- The Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) skills component (Correct answer)
- The CRI written knowledge examination
- The Notary Public certification process
- The Certified CART Provider (CCP) written test
Correct answer: The Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) skills component
The RPR skills test consists of three 5-minute dictation portions — literary, jury charge, and Q&A — each requiring 95% accuracy, and court reporting instructors must prepare students for this format.
Question 7: What is the recommended minimum frequency of dictation practice sessions per week for a student to progress effectively in court reporting training?
- One session per week
- Two sessions per week
- Three to five sessions per week (Correct answer)
- Brief sessions of no more than ten minutes daily
Correct answer: Three to five sessions per week
Research and professional consensus recommend three to five practice sessions per week to build the muscle memory and speed necessary for consistent skill gains.
CRI Dictation & Practice Material Development 2
In the context of court reporting dictation materials, what does 'syllabic intensity' measure?