ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

R 16

PRODUCED BY
FACULTY OF ENGLISH
DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE & HUMANITIES
KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES
VINJANAMPADU, GUNTUR – 522 017

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 0 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

INTERVIEW
Interview is a selection technique that enables an interviewer to view the totality of an
applicant and to appraise him and his behaviour. It consists of face-to-face interaction between
the interviewer and the applicant OR interviewee. However in some kind of interview like
telephonic interview, face-to-face interaction does not take place but this type of interview is not
conducted in the case of freshers. Organizations use interview as a selection technique to solicit
accurate information and relevant details about an applicant which might not be available
otherwise.

From the organizations’ point of view, interview serves the following purposes:
 An interview is the only method of direct contact between the candidate and the
employer in which the employer can see a candidate in action – how he looks, his
manners, wearing, appearance, pattern of interaction, etc.
 The employer can solicit many of the information about a candidate which might not be
available otherwise like his approach towards his work, level of aspiration, future plans,
etc.
 An organization may use interview as a tool for giving information about itself, its
policies, nature of work to be performed by the candidate, and other relevant information
in which a candidate may be interested.
 In those organizations where job salary and monetary benefits are not fixed in advance
but are linked to a candidate’s skills, known as skill-based pay, salary and other
monetary benefits can be negotiated between the employer and the candidate.

Thus, in the total selection process, interview is the most important element. This is the
reason why most of the organizations rely on this method for selecting the suitable candidates
for employment. The following three steps are the procedure of an interview.

BEFORE INTERVIEW
First of all, prepare your mind in advance that you are going to have an interview next
morning. Relax yourself and do not get nervous, tense or tired at any cost. Before going for an
interview, pre-planned few things:
 Learn about the company, organization or educational institution and do some research
in advance.
 Simply to develop good answers and to prove yourself unique.
 You can gather information about organizational structure; type of their clients/ students;
departments and its branches; past and present achievements etc. Simply search yellow
pages or ask your friend or family member/relative who are familiar about organization
or you can collect information through newspapers and websites.

ON THE DAY OF INTERVIEW

Take a bath. Do not apply heavy makeup. Always carry a purse or a small handy
briefcase with you. Do carry your portfolio file. Dress effectively. Do not eat anything
containing garlic or onion in your breakfast. Arrive 15 minutes earlier to show that you’re
prompt and seriousness.

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 1 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

DURING INTERVIEW: Start it off winner. Offer your hand and give a firm shake, else
greet them with your pleasant smile. Take a permission to sit on a chair. Show a positive
confident attitude and introduce yourself. Don’t get tense. Be comfortable and face the
interviewer effectively. Listen to their questions effectively and answer it genuinely. Answer
every question with confidence. Have a proper eye contact towards your interviewer.
Remember that the interviewer might be more than one, so keep your eye contact with every
individual interviewer to make them feel unique. Whatever you want to answer, speak clearly
with a normal tempo voice. Do not shout. Show your confidence level at every moment of an
interview. Show your certifications or achievements only when they ask you to show. Always
sit straight. It might help them to analyze your personality and your traits. Use the medium of
answer, in which you feel comfortable. Remember to use good grammar and strong vocabulary
with neutral accent. Always clarify your answer. Do not say Yes or No. Never complains about
your past organization or employees. While giving effective answers do not argue and always
give respect to your interviewer. Always keep neutral thinking and try to mould your answer
according to your interviewer personality. Do not eat chewing gum, while answering questions.
If they give you a chance to ask any query or question, only ask relevant question.

AFTER INTERVIEW With a pleasing smile, say thanks and ask about the next step in
the process. Follow up. Call them if you do not get a call within a given time frame and don't
forget to write a thank you letter to an organization for taking out their precious time for your
interview.

Few reasons for not getting a job.

1. Might be you lack oral communication skills or writing skills.
2. Your inappropriate attitude could also let you down in your interview.
3. Lack of knowledge about the working world.
4. Lack of confidence.
5. Lack of experience.
6. Lack of motivation.

INTERVIEWS TYPES
There are several types of interviews which can be used by employing organizations. Given
below the list of such types:
1. Face-to-face interview and telephone interview.
2. Preliminary interview and in-depth interview.
3. Sequential interview and panel interview.
4. Directive interview and non-directive interview.
5. Stress interview and non-stress interview.

Two types of interview in each category are mutually exclusive, for example, interview
may be either face-to face interaction between an interviewer and an applicant or through
telephone. Out of the various types of interview, a combination of face-to-face-panel-in depth-
non directive interview is more common. However, you can do better in an interview when you
are ready to face interview of any type. After all, situations come in the life of everyone which
is not similar to each other, and the successful person is one who has prepared himself to face

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 2 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

any kind of situation. An interview is like any of these situations.

Face to Face interview and Telephone Interview

Interview may be either on face-to-face interaction basis or telephonic interaction basis
between an interviewer and a candidate. Face to face interviews are the most common with
most of the employing orgs. In this type of interview, both the interviewer and the candidate
interact face-to-face.

Therefore, body language, as a means of interaction, becomes important and the

interviewer can judge the candidate in totality, particularly his dress style, facial expression and
movement of different parts of body, manners, etc. face-to-face interview can be used for any
type of interviewing – preliminary interview or in depth interview, directive interview or non
directive interview, and stress interview or non stress interview.

In telephone interview, the interviewer and the candidate interact among themselves
through telephonic conversation. In this type of interview, body language does not play any role
and the entire interaction is based on spoken words. Telephone interview may be either of
preliminary nature just to weed out the candidates who are prima facie not suitable for further
selection process, or it maybe of in-depth nature to probe the candidate fully. Normally,
telephone interview is used for selecting experienced candidates rather fresher. Sometimes,
telephone interview is used to solicit further information about the candidate which might have
been missed during face-to-face interview.

Preliminary Interview and In-Depth Interview

Preliminary interviews, also known as screening interview, is used to weed out those
candidates who do not meet the minimum criteria laid down by the employing organizations or
if the number of candidates is quite large enough and the time at the disposal of interviewers is
short to adopt in-depth interview and using preliminary interview questions for all the
candidates to weed out the candidates falling below the cut-off point.

Sequential Interview and Panel Interview

In sequential interview, also known as one-to-one interview, there are different
interviewers but each interviewer interviews every candidate separately on one-to-one basis.
Generally, each interviewer probes a specific quality or specific set of qualities. For example,
one interviewer may be assigned the task of probing technical qualities of the candidate, another
motivational qualities, next interpersonal qualities, and so on. In this type of interview, a
candidate feels lesser pressure on him in discussing about his qualities more fruitfully.
Sometimes, it also happens in this type of interview that the same question is asked to the
candidate for cross checking to ascertain whether the candidate holds a particular viewpoint
firmly or not.

Directive Interview and Non Directive Interview

In directive interview, also known as patterned interview, questions are framed in
advance of the commencement of the interview. The interviewers are expected to ask the
questions from these patterned questions. This aims at comparing various candidates by putting

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 3 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

the similar type of questions to each candidate. The basic assumption behind directive
interviews is that if similar type of questions is asked to every candidate, its result is much more
fair to make comparison among the candidates than by putting different set of questions to each
candidate. This is done to bring uniformity in the evaluation process of different panels.

In non directive interview, there are no pre-determined questions or even pattern of

interview process. Questions emerge out of the interaction between the interviewer and the
candidate. This type of interview becomes more like an informal talk. Even the candidate is
allowed to ask questions about the various aspects of the organization concerned. Since the
candidate feels more at ease, he can give full information about himself more elaborately which
helps the interviewer to evaluate a candidate in a more comprehensive way. Generally, for
selecting candidates for comparatively higher positions, non-directive interview is followed.
However, many organizations follow this type of interview to select fresher too.

Stress and No Stress Interview

In stress interview, stressful situation is created by the interviewers deliberately to
appraise the candidates whether they can perform well under such a situation. In order to create
stressful situation during the interview process, the interviewers adopt one or more of the
following methods:

1. Keeping a candidate to wait for longer time than anticipated to begin interview process.
2. Calling him in the interview room but not advising him to sit down on the seat meant for him.
3. Long silence even after the entry of the candidate in the interview room.
4. Asking another question before the candidate completes the answer of the previous question.

Non stress interview is conducted in congenial environment. In this environment, there

is ample understanding between the interviewers and the candidate. An attempt is made by the
interviewers to encourage the candidate to speak leisurely so that he can provide maximum
information about his various qualities and drawbacks.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 4 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

E-MAIL WRITING

Electronic Mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages between people

using electronic devices. Email first entered limited use in the 1960s and by the mid-1970s had
taken the form now recognized as email. Email operates across computer networks, which today
is primarily the Internet. Some early email systems required the author and the recipient to be
both online at the same time, in common with instant messaging. Today's email systems are
based on a store-and-forward model. Email servers accept, forward, deliver, and store messages.
Neither the users nor their computers are required to be online simultaneously; they need to
connect only briefly, typically to a mail server or a webmail interface, for as long as it takes to
send or receive messages.

Formatting Email
1. Use a professional email address. Ideally, your email address should be a variation of your
real name, not a username or nickname. Use periods, hyphens, or underscores to secure an e-
mail address that's just your name, without extra numbers or letters.

2. Stick to a professional font. Most email services now allow you the option to write using a
variety of fonts and text styles. For a formal email, however, keep things conservative, with
fonts like Times New Roman and Arial. Avoid decorative fonts like Comic Sans or Old English.
In addition:

 Write your email in a legible font size, such as 12 point type.

 Avoid special styles like italics, highlighting, or multicolored fonts unless they are
warranted by the content and purpose of the email.
 Do not use all caps. These make it seem like you are shouting at the recipient.

3. Use a short and accurate subject line. Use keywords in the subject line that suggest exactly
what you are writing about, in just a few words. This helps make sure that readers don’t
overlook your email because the subject line is missing, is too vague, or suggests the email is
unimportant.

 “Schedule, Guest List, Lunch Requests, and Meeting Overview.

Writing Message

1. Use a proper salutation. Always open a formal email with a salutation. Addressing the
recipient by name (if known) is preferred. Include the person's title (Mr., Mrs., Ms., Dr., etc.)
with their last name, followed by a comma or a colon. You can precede the salutation with
"Dear..." if you like.

 If you don't know the name of the person you're writing to, use a salutation like “Dear
Sir/Madam,” “Dear Sir or Madam,” or “To whom it may concern.”
 Do not use “Hello,” “Hey,” “Hi,” or other informal salutations.

2. Introduce yourself in the first paragraph (if necessary). If you are writing to someone you
don't have an existing relationship with, such as a new customer, hiring manager, or government
official, tell them who you are and why you are writing. Do this in the first sentence or two of

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 5 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

your email.

 For example, when writing to a potential employer, you might say: "My name is Earl
Rivers. I'm contacting you to apply for the administrative assistant position listed on
CareerXYZ.com."

3. Prioritize the most important information. Once you’ve introduced yourself and the
general reason you’re writing, you can follow up with the body of your email. Put the most
important content near the top. This respects your recipient’s time, and makes the purpose of
your email clear.

4. Get to the point. For a formal email, it’s ok to be direct, as long as you are polite. Beating
around the bush will only lose your reader and make it harder to figure out what you want or
need from them.

5. Keep it brief. There’s no set length for how long an email should be. However, it’s a good
idea to keep an email to about one (laptop or desktop size) screen length.

 If your email is relatively lengthy, break it up into short paragraphs. Insert a line break
between each paragraph instead of indenting.

6. Use formal language. Since formal emails are written for professional contexts, you’ll want
to give a good impression. Use complete sentences and polite phrasing. Avoid things like:

 Slang
 Unnecessary contractions
 Emoticons
 Jokes

7. Use a proper form of closing. As with salutations, there are a variety of closings that are
acceptable in formal emails. Make sure to follow up with your full name and job title or other
signature (if you have one). Examples of potential closings include:[8]

 "Yours sincerely,"
 "Yours cordially,"
 "Respectfully,"
 "Best,"
 “Your student,”

Preparing to Send

1. Include any necessary attachments. If you need to include any attachments, make sure to
mention them in the body of the email to let the recipient know that they are included. Be
courteous by trying to keep the number of attachments and their file size down, and by using
common or widely compatible file types.

 For example, include a note like “I am attaching a copy of my resume and portfolio, in
PDF format.”

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 6 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

2. Proofread your message for content, spelling, and grammar. Don’t just rely on your email
service’s spelling or grammar checker. Reading your email aloud or asking someone to
proofread it is a great way to catch any typos, mistakes, or unclear phrases.

3. Make sure that the email does not contain any sensitive information. Always keep in
mind that email is not a secure communication system. Remember that email servers can be
hacked, or that your recipient might intentionally or unintentionally share information that you
didn’t want divulged.

 Avoid including things like passwords, account numbers, and confidential information
in an email.

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 7 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS
Definition

An idiom (also called idiomatic expression) is an expression, word, or phrase that has a
figurative meaning conventionally understood by native speakers. This meaning is different
from the literal meaning of the idiom's individual elements. In other words, idioms don't mean
exactly what the words say. They have, however, hidden meaning.

Idiom: a manner of speaking that is natural to native speakers of a language

Every language has its own collection of wise sayings. They offer advice about how to
live and also transfer some underlying ideas, principles and values of a given culture / society.
These sayings are called "idioms" - or proverbs if they are longer. These combinations of words
have (rarely complete sentences) a "figurative meaning" meaning, they basically work with
"pictures".

This List of commonly used idioms and sayings (in everyday conversational English),
can help to speak English by learning English idiomatic expressions. This is a list, which
contains exactly 66 of the most commonly used idioms and their meaning.

Idioms:
 A hot potato
Speak of an issue (mostly current) which many people are talking about and which is
usually disputed
 A penny for your thoughts
A way of asking what someone is thinking
 Actions speak louder than words
People's intentions can be judged better by what they do than what they say.
 Add insult to injury
To further a loss with mockery or indignity; to worsen an unfavorable situation.
 At the drop of a hat
Meaning: without any hesitation; instantly.
 Back to the drawing board
When an attempt fails and it's time to start all over.
 Ball is in your court
It is up to you to make the next decision or step
 Barking up the wrong tree
Looking in the wrong place. Accusing the wrong person
 Be glad to see the back of
Be happy when a person leaves.
 Beat around the bush
Avoiding the main topic. Not speaking directly about the issue.
 Best of both worlds
Meaning: All the advantages.
 Best thing since sliced bread

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 8 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

A good invention or innovation. A good idea or plan.

 Bite off more than you can chew
To take on a task that is way to big.
 Blessing in disguise
Something good that isn't recognized at first.
 Burn the midnight oil
To work late into the night, alluding to the time before electric lighting.
 Can't judge a book by its cover
Cannot judge something primarily on appearance.
 Caught between two stools
When someone finds it difficult to choose between two alternatives.
 Costs an arm and a leg
This idiom is used when something is very expensive.
 Cross that bridge when you come to it
Deal with a problem if and when it becomes necessary, not before.
 Cry over spilt milk
When you complain about a loss from the past.
 Curiosity killed the cat
Being Inquisitive can lead you into an unpleasant situation.
 Cut corners
When something is done badly to save money.
 Cut the mustard [possibly derived from "cut the muster"
To succeed; to come up to expectations; adequate enough to compete or participate
 Devil's Advocate
To present a counter argument
 Don't count your chickens before the eggs have hatched
This idiom is used to express "Don't make plans for something that might not happen".
 Don't give up the day job
You are not very good at something. You could definitely not do it professionally.
 Don't put all your eggs in one basket
Do not put all your resources in one possibility.
 Drastic times call for drastic measures
When you are extremely desperate you need to take drastic actions.
 Elvis has left the building
The show has come to an end. It's all over.
 Every cloud has a silver lining
Be optimistic, even difficult times will lead to better days.
 Far cry from
Very different from.
 Feel a bit under the weather
Meaning: Feeling slightly ill.
 Give the benefit of the doubt
Believe someone's statement, without proof.
 Hear it on the grapevine

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 9 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

This idiom means 'to hear rumors' about something or someone.

 Hit the nail on the head
Do or say something exactly right
 Hit the sack / sheets / hay
To go to bed.
 In the heat of the moment
Overwhelmed by what is happening in the moment.
 It takes two to tango
Actions or communications need more than one person
 Jump on the bandwagon
Join a popular trend or activity.
 Keep something at bay
Keep something away.
 Kill two birds with one stone
This idiom means, to accomplish two different things at the same time.
 Last straw
The final problem in a series of problems.
 Let sleeping dogs lie
Meaning - do not disturb a situation as it is - since it would result in trouble or
complications.
 Let the cat out of the bag
To share information that was previously concealed
 Make a long story short
Come to the point - leave out details
 Method to my madness
An assertion that, despite one's approach seeming random, there actually is structure to
it.
 Miss the boat
This idiom is used to say that someone missed his or her chance

Common Errors in English

Ref: https://www.englishpractice.com/topics/grammar
What is an error in English?
The concept of language errors is a fuzzy one. I’ll leave to linguists the technical
definitions. Here we’re concerned only with deviations from the standard use of English as
judged by sophisticated users such as professional writers, editors, teachers, and literate
executives and personnel officers. The aim of this site is to help you avoid low grades, lost
employment opportunities, lost business, and titters of amusement at the way you write or
speak.

 “Everybody are happy.”

Words like everybody, somebody, anybody, nobody are actually singular, not plural. Even
though “everybody” refers to a lot of people, it takes the singular verb – so the correct sentence
is “Everybody is happy.”

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 10 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

 “I’ll explain you the problem.”

In this sentence, there are two objects – the direct object (the problem) and the indirect object
(you). After explain, we need to use to before the indirect object – the person to whom we are
doing the explaining. Also, it’s more common to put the direct object first, so the correct
sentence is “I’ll explain the problem to you.”

 “I have the possibility to study in Canada next year.”

With “have,” we use opportunity, not possibility – so the correct sentence is “I have the
opportunity to study in Canada next year.” The word possibility is more used with “There
is…,” for example, “There’s a possibility I may study in Canada next year.”

 “I think she doesn’t like tomatoes.”

Although there’s no specific grammar rule here, it’s more common to say “I don’t think she
likes tomatoes.”

 “If I will see John later, I’ll give him the message.”
Although both events are technically in the future, this sentence should be in the first
conditional form – “If I see John later, I’ll give him the message.”

 “Do you want that I make breakfast?”

“That” is not normally used after “want.” The correct sentence is: “Do you want me to make
breakfast?”

 “I’m thinking to buy a new car.”

“To + infinitive” is not used after “think,” so the correct sentence would be: “I’m thinking of
buying a new car” or “I’m thinking about buying a new car.”
 “They enjoyed the baseball game despite of the rain.”
“Despite” and “in spite of” mean the same thing, and many English learners confuse them. After
“despite,” we never use “of.” The correct sentence would be “They enjoyed the baseball game
despite the rain” or “They enjoyed the baseball game in spite of the rain.”

 “My ten-years-old daughter loves to dance.”

When an age comes after “is,” then you say “years old”: “My daughter is ten years old.” But
when an age comes before the person (or object) as an adjective, then you say year, not years –
“My ten-year-old daughter loves to dance.”

 “Our house is near to the beach.”

“Near” and “close to” mean the same thing, but “to” is never used after “near.” The correct
sentence is “Our house is near the beach” or “Our house is close to the beach.”

 “I like very much soccer.”

We don’t normally put “very much” between a verb (like) and its object (soccer). The correct
sentence would be, “I like soccer very much.” However, in spoken English, it would probably
be more common to say “I like soccer a lot” or “I really like soccer.”

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 11 -

 ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS LAB MANUAL

 “Gary gave to Joan the keys.”

Like “explain” in the example above, “give” has two objects – the indirect object (Joan) and the
direct object (the keys). We can say this sentence two ways: “Gary gave Joan the
keys” or “Gary gave the keys to Joan.”

 “She asked me where do I work.”

This is one of the most difficult parts of English – reported speech. In reported questions, we do
not use the auxiliary verb do/does/did – so the correct sentence is, “She asked me where I
work.”

 “They left without say goodbye.”

When you use a verb after conjunctions and prepositions like after, before, since, when, while,
without, instead of, and in spite of, it is generally in the -ing form. So the correct sentence
is “They left without saying goodbye.”

 “I need to finish this project until Friday.”

Use until to talk about a situation that will continue up to a certain moment, for example: “I’m
staying in the city until June.” Use by to talk about a single action or event that will happen
before a future moment. By is often used with deadlines, so the correct sentence is, “I need to
finish this project by Friday.”

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

KKR & KSR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCES, GUNTUR Page - 12 -