ENG101: Purposive Communication Module 1 PDF
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Jeric Z. Romero
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This document introduces the concept of communication, its significance, and models. It also covers principles of ethical communication.
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ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos...
ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos MODULE 1 NATURE, MODELS OF COMMUNICATION, AND COMMUNICATION ETHICS Brief Introduction or Description This module intends to introduce the concept of communication, its significance, and models. Further, this covers principles of ethical communication necessary for multicultural contexts. Learning Outcomes: By the end of the module, you should be able to: 1. Describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-verbal communication in various and multicultural contexts. 2. Apply communication ethics in communicative situations Pre-Activity - Before Reading Questions 1. Generally speaking, how does communication work? 2. What are the elements of communication? 3. Why is it important to be ethical in communicating today? 4. Is honesty still a virtue valued today? Why or why not? Lesson 1 Link for Lecture Video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g6J22vD5hL4880_YI-7gDrLKFs_a7pWb/view?usp=drive_link Introduction "The art of communication is the language of leadership." (James Humes) It is a mistake to believe that communication is a simple process. Although people communicate with one another every day, the real question is whether the ideas one has expressed are truly understood by another. Communication breakdowns happen in every part of the globe and these have led to a plethora of problems. Effective communication can breach peace, spark revolutions, and affect change in government However, to communicate properly, one cannot simply strive to express oneself and leave understanding to fate; one must also learn how to organize one's thoughts, control one's emotions, use one's words to articulate concepts and arguments, and express oneself in the best way possible. The art of one's communication reflects the art of one's thinking. According to James Berlin (1982), one of the major proponents of The New Rhetoric, "In teaching writing, we are not simply offering training in a useful technical skill that is meant as a simple complement to the more important studies of other areas. We are teaching a way of experiencing the world, a way of ordering and making sense of it" (776). This is also true when it comes to all the language skills essential in communication, whether this is in writing, reading, listening, or speaking. They are tools that help us analyze, critique, and negotiate with the world. To construct ideas and bring people to believe in one's vision, it is important to be able to communicate in an effective, articulate manner. On a personal level, honing one's communication skills can also bring about success to one's personal and professional life. To lead nations or corporations, communication skills are essential. To work smoothly as a team, communication is indispensable. And to create a vision that people will believe in, one needs to learn how to communicate purposefully in today's society. Page 1 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos Communication Models In this lesson, you will be exposed to the different ways of looking at communication. It should give the students a good understanding of why communication should be studied at the tertiary level, and the potential of such a course in helping them transform themselves and their society. It includes communication models that students can use in the future and may explain why communication tasks in the past have either failed or succeeded. It is a good introduction to the different processes, principles, and dimensions of communication that students should be aware of, when they start communicating in the academe and the professional world. One way of thinking about communication processes is by looking at the different communication models available. According to Denis Mcquail and Sven Windahl (2013), in their book Communication Models for the Study of Mass Communications, "a model seeks to show the main elements of any structure or process and the relationship between these elements... it helps in explaining by providing in a simplified way information which would otherwise be complicated or ambiguous." (2) Professor Ramona S. Flores (2016), in her book Oral Communication in Context, discusses four models of communication in the chapter, "Explaining the Nature of Communication." She discusses the different communication models as follows (Aristotle, Shannon-Weaver, Schramm, and White, 2016). ARISTOTLE’S MODEL OF COMMUNICATION The earliest model comes from Aristotle at around 5 B.C. In this model, Aristotle explains that speakers should adjust their messages according to their audience and the occasion to achieve a particular effect. Let us apply this to a modern example. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, then US President Franklin Roosevelt delivered a stirring speech to declare war on Japan on December 8 (National Geographic, 2017). The speaker, in this case, was US President Franklin Roosevelt and his speech was crafted especially for the occasion, filled with strong words that were crisp and straight to the point. The occasion was the US President's response to the attack on Pearl Harbor; the main audience was the US Congress; and the effect was to persuade members of Congress to declare war on Japan, which they did, with only one dissenting vote. These components of speaker, speech, occasion, audience, and effect should be considered when communicating one's message. Page 2 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos SHANNON-WEAVER'S MODEL OF COMMUNICATION The Shannon-Weaver model was created by Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver (Flores, 2016). According to the website Communication Theory.Org, in 1948, Shannon and Weaver wrote an article in the Bell System Technological Journal entitled "A Mathematical Theory of Communication." According to Flores (2016), this is also often called the "Telephone Model," since it was developed because of the technology of the telephone and the experience of "noise" coming from the switchboard'. The sender would be the person giving the message, while the encoder would be the transmitter which converts the message into signals. Let us use the modern example of the mobile phone. With our modern example, the encoder would be the cellphone, and the sender, of course, would be the person calling. The decoder, on the other hand, would be the reception place of the signal which converts signals into message, which is why in modern parlance, when there is "no signal," there is difficulty in decoding the message. The receiver would be the destination of the message by sender which would be the person who is being called-and when there are problems, or "noise," that interferes with the message, then the receiver would give feedback, which is usually phrased as "choppy” when the message cannot be heard because of the signal. The messages are transferred through the use of a channel; in the case of the telephone, the channel would be the cables, while in the case of the cellphone, the channel would be radio frequencies (Communication Theory.Org). This model can also be used in other situations and can tell us how the message may sometimes get lost because of the noise, which can be physical or psychological, and how feedback is an essential component of communication to ensure that the message is successfully received. On the other hand, when it comes to Schramm's model of communication, there are two primary models involved. The first one is built on the theories of Osgood, which is why this is also known as the Osgood-Schramm model. OSGOOD-SCHRAMM MODEL OF COMMUNICATION Page 3 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos In this model, pay attention to the role of the interpreter. Encoding and decoding are not automatic processes both go through the filter of the interpreter. Therefore, the message may succeed or fail, based on the interpreter's appreciation of the message. There are times when the sender and receiver may apply different meanings to the same message, and this is termed "semantic noise" (Communicative Theories.Org). His second model, on the other hand, builds this theory about the interpreter into the different fields of experience of the sender and the receiver. For the message to reach the receiver, there must be a common field of experience between the sender and the receiver. Although the receiver might not fully appreciate all the nuances of the message as there are parts of the sender's experience that the receiver has no knowledge of, the receiver may still understand the core meaning of the message. According to Sneha Mishra (2017), this field of experience may constitute "culture, social background, beliefs, experiences, values, and rules." WHITE'S STAGES OF ORAL COMMUNICATION The last model is Eugene White's Stages of Oral Communication. According to White, it is possible to begin at any of the stages outlined in his model. People are under the mistaken impression that when we communicate, we usually start with thinking, but that is not necessarily the case. Since it is a circular model, it means that oral communication is a continuous process with no real beginning or end. The most important contribution from Eugene White's model is the concept of feedback, which can only be processed by the speaker if he or she has been monitoring the audience or the listener. Hence, the speaker must also pay attention to the listener's verbal and non-verbal cues (Flores, 2016). Conclusion In conclusion, communication is not a simple process that starts with the speaker and ends with the listener-there are many factors that should be considered. When it comes to the message, how the message is organized and what field of experience it comes from should be taken into consideration. When it comes to the sender, the best communication is the one that involves Page 4 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos feedback. Furthermore, there are several kinds of "noise" that may severely affect the reception of the message and thus should be considered and avoided. Cultural differences, technology, and interpretation need to be considered as well. To be god communicators, one needs to pay attention to how people are responding to the message, and adjust accordingly, rather than preoccupied with simply expressing oneself. COMMUNICATION ETHICS It is important to understand that whatever we communicate should be guided by certain ethical principles. The US National Communication Association (NCA, 1999) discusses this in their Credo for Ethical Communication, stating that, "Ethical communication is fundamental to responsible thinking, decision-making, and the development of relationships and communities within and across contexts, cultures, channels, and media. Moreover, ethical communication enhances human worth and dignity by fostering truthfulness, fairness, responsibility, personal integrity, and respect for self and others. We believe that unethical communication threatens the quality of all communication and consequently the well-being of individuals and the society in which we live. In their Credo, there are four ethical principles of communication that are especially relevant for students today. Firstly, they "advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason as essential to the integrity of communication" (NCA, 1999]. Nowadays, social media and speeches in public have been so filled with black propaganda and whitewashing that there is a call to reiterate the need for truth and honesty. It is important to be accurate when we communicate and to have facts and figures to prove our assertions. It is important to be reasonable, rather than to be too emotional or threatening when we communicate. Secondly, the NCA also endorses "freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent to achieve the informed and responsible decision-making fundamental to a civil society" (NCA, 1999). In certain political climates, people may feel threatened to the point that they no longer feel that it is safe to express what they feel or think. This is not a good environment to live in. We fully agree with the NCA that to have a vibrant democracy, we must be able to hear different perspectives and have a high tolerance for views that are different from ours. It is important to foster an environment where people feel safe enough to express what they think and feel, and for these expressions to be met with reasonable dialogue and debate, rather than outright censure or violence. Thirdly, the NCA (1999) states that they "condemn communication that degrades individuals and humanity through distortion, intimidation, coercion, and violence, and through the expression of intolerance and hatred" (1999). This condemnation is important because it safeguards society from racism, sexism, and violence against oppressed peoples. History has shown us that a tolerance for hate speech, as well as speeches that incite violence and the act of killing, have often instituted such violence in society, whether this is in the context of slavery, colonialism, or misogyny. Lastly, the NCA (1999) states that communicators should "accept responsibility for the short- and long-term consequences of our own communication and expect the same of others." All too often, there have been people who do not feel accountable for their actions. Therefore, if one risks to communicate maliciously, spread false news, or incite hatred or violence, he or she should be ready to face the consequences of such actions. States are beginning to realize this, especially in the porous medium of social media. Every time we communicate, we should consider the consequences of our actions. If people were more responsible in their use of communication, there would be less conflict in this world. Even though the four principles above are short and concise, they are important because they help us discern the difference between ethical and unethical communicators. Page 5 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos Key Principles of Ethical Communication Understanding the importance of communication can bring you great benefits in terms of your personal, academic, professional, and civic life. Increasing your knowledge about communication can result in satisfying your needs. You can learn communication. Rules and norms can influence the way you communicate. Because communication has ethical implications, it is imperative to adhere to the standards of ethical communication. Principles that Guide Understanding of Communication 1. Communication is transactional; it consists of interrelated components that influence one another, thus communication becomes a dynamic process. 2. Communication has content and relational dimensions. The content dimension involves the ideas being openly talked about, while the relational dimension expresses your behavior towards the other person. 3. Communication can be intentional or unintentional because all words and actions have meanings and communicative use. 4. Communication is irreversible; to “unreceive” a message is unlikely, as words and actions, once said or done, cannot be unsaid or undone. 5. Communication is unrepeatable because the same words and actions have different meanings when used or expressed at different times and on diverse occasions. Ethical Communication Etymologically, the word ethics comes from the Greek term ethos which can pertain to customs and habits. As a branch of knowledge, ethics deals with a structure of moral principles. Ethics guides an individual's behavior - his words and actions - and the way he or she communicates with others. Ethics is defined as a code of moral standards of conduct for what is "good" and "right" as opposed to what is "bad" and "wrong". It deals with values with human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions and to the goodness and badness of the motives and ends of such actions. Communication is ethical when it is utilized to enhance the way people interact with one another to improve society's moral life. On the other hand, communication is unethical when it is used to damage human relations or encourage societal decadence. Some common examples of unethical communication are inappropriate jokes, coercive, threatening and intimidating statements, misleading words, lying, meddling with something overhead telephone tapping, betraying or backstabbing somebody, and spreading fake news. Communication ethics varies by culture and context and involves the negotiation of and reflection on our actions regarding what think is right and wrong or good and bad Ethical Standards of Communication 1. Truthfulness and honesty mean refraining from lying, cheating, stealing and deception 2. Integrity means maintaining a consistency of belief and action. 3. Fairness means achieving the right balance of interest without regard to one's own feelings and without showing favor to any side in a conflict. 4. Respect means showing regard or consideration for others and their ideas, even if we don't agree with them. 5. Responsibility means being accountable for one's actions and what one says. Page 6 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos Principles of Ethical Communication According to Ruth Mayhew (2018), ethical communication has several guiding elements. 1. Fact-based messages should be communicated with honesty and accuracy. Ethics in communication is shown by observing freedom of expression, accepting differences in opinion and tolerating dissimilarities in beliefs and behaviors. Ethical communication should be direct and honest. It should maintain tactfulness and discourage unpleasant remarks or confrontational behavior. 2. Resources and facts from which the message is generated should be accessible. For example, if you are providing information about academic standing of students, you are ought to give your audience the written output, performance output and major examination results. 3. Message should be made accessible. If you are conveying information to a diverse audience, make certain that you give consideration to their communication preferences. They may have different languages and listening styles, thus there is a need to deliver your message in view of these differences. This way, your content reaches your whole audience. 4. Basic human needs should be given careful consideration. Communication is a basic human need and should be used to satisfy other human needs. Ethical communication gives premium to the need of people to connect with one another with high regard despite cultural diversity. Activity - After Reading Questions/Discussion Questions 1. Can you give historical examples that show how intolerance of dissent has been a problem for certain sectors of society? 2. Can you give historical examples that show why hate speech is a problem? 3. When you think of politicians today, would you say that they have been communicating in an ethical manner? 4. Who comes to mind on the subject of violating the ethics of communication? 5. Why do people communicate in an unethical manner? What consequences can you think of because of this? Learning Tasks: 1. Objective quiz 2. Skit presentation a. Work in groups with four to five (4-5) members. b. Choose a specific communication model among the models discussed. c. Think of two situations that will illustrate the success and failure of your chosen model. Further, you have to integrate the principles of ethical communication discussed. Introduce the model briefly. d. The skit presentation including the introduction of the model must be within 5-7 minutes only. e. Your output will be graded according to the institutional rubrics provided. Page 7 of 8 ENG101: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education Prepared by: Jeric Z. Romero | Angela Khaye Llanares | Hazel Barcelos Rubrics for Skit Presentation Standard Meets Approaching Does Not Meet Meets Acceptable INDICATORS Standard of Standard of Acceptable Score Standard Excellence Excellence Standard CRITERIA 10 8 6 4 Accuracy and Point-of-view, Point-of-view, Point-of-view, Point-of-view, believability of arguments, arguments, arguments, arguments, role solutions solutions solutions proposed solutions proposed proposed were proposed were were often realistic were rarely realistic always realistic usually realistic and in character and in character and in and in character consistently character Clarity of Speech is always Speech is usually Speech is often Speech rarely clear Speech clear and easy to clear and easy to clear and easy to and easy to understand understand understand understand Expression and Always expresses Often expresses Usually expresses Rarely expresses body language emotion through emotion through emotion through emotion through voice, facial voice, facial voice, facial voice, facial expression, and expression, and expression, and expression, and gestures gestures gestures gestures Knowledge Cannot explain Can clearly Can clearly explain Cannot explain any gained any ways in which explain several few ways in which ways in which his or his or her ways in which his his or her character her character “saw” character “saw” or her character “saw” things things differently things differently “saw” things differently than than other than other differently than other characters characters characters and other characters can explain why TOTAL SCORE Reflection Discussion of reflection from the activity will be done in class/synchronous session. References: Uychoco M. and Santos M. (2018). Communication for society: Purposive communication. Manila: Rex Bookstore Caudilla, J.P. & Cansancio, J. (2019). Purposive communication. Books Atbp. Publishing Corp. Mandaluyong City Page 8 of 8