Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
New Christian Academy
Government Recognition E-060
S-2006 S-021 S-2012NATI
Admin. Bldg. Tibag, Tarlac City

SHS ORAL COMMUNICATION MODULE

Lesson : Strategies to Overcome Communication Barriers

In this module, you will be able to:

• Use various strategies in order to avoid communication breakdown.

(EN11/12OC-Ia-6)

Specifically, you are expected to:

 identify the barriers of communication;

 identify the different strategies to effective communication;

 explain the reasons behind communication breakdown;

 apply various strategies to solve a communication breakdown; and,

 value the importance of effective communication in relation to real life

experiences.

This module is self-instructional. You can read, analyze concepts and ideas

presented and reflect on them. The activities will help you assess your progress as

you go through in this module.

Now, let us begin this journey.

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 What I Know

Good day! I know that you are excited for today’s new lesson. To start the ball

rolling, let us have first our pre-assessment test to assess your prior knowledge about

the barriers to communication and the effective strategies to address the

communication breakdown. Read the instruction carefully before answering the

following questions.

Direction: Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write the letter on the space

provided before the number.

1. What does it mean by turn-taking?

a. knowing when to end the conversation

b. knowing when to continue the conversation

c. knowing when to start and finish a turn in a conversation

d. knowing when to shift into another topic in the conversation

2. Which is an example of active listening?

a. yawning in front of the speaker

b. showing interest in the message

c. sleeping in the middle of discussion

d. staring at the students who pass by at the corridor

3. Which is NOT a characteristic of a good speaker?

a. Speaks clearly.

b. Learns to “read’ the listener.”

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 c. Focuses on the conversation.

d. Holds onto the mike or to the podium for support while delivering

a speech.

4. Which is mainly a communication barrier on the receiver's end?

a. emotions

b. appearance

c. use of space

d. poor listening skills

5. What involves effective listening?

a. hearing the message

b. hearing and interpreting the message

c. interpreting the message and focusing on body language

d. hearing and interpreting the message and focusing on body language

6. In which of the following lies the success of any communication situation?

a. sender

b. method

c. purpose

d. message

7. What is the primary purpose of communication?

a. to sell your products

b. to use for business purposes

c. to send messages to the receivers

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 d. to make the message understandable to others.

8. Which of the following is NOT an effective communication strategy of

understanding?

a. Allows the person to share their ideas.

b. Allows the person to share their feelings.

c. Allows disruption during the conversation.

d. Share your life experiences to create a good relationship.

9. Similar words can mean different things to people from different cultures,

even when they talk the "same" language. What type of barrier is this?

a. gender

b. cultural

c. language

d. emotional

10. Which of these must be avoided for effective communication?

a. listening

b. ambiguity

c. politeness

d. sharing of activity

11. How do you effectively address physical barriers?

a. Use a speaker to make your voice audible to the receiver.

b. Avoid communicating with other people most of the time.

c. Appropriate channel can be used to overcome the physical barriers.

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 d. Always observe non-verbal cues instead of verbal to avoid

environmental barriers.

12. Why interpersonal communication may sometimes fail?

a. The receiver fails to give clear feedback to the speaker.

b. The receiver is not ready to interpret the message being sent by the

speaker.

c. The message (what is said) may not be received exactly the way the

sender intended.

d. The speaker focuses only on verbal communication rather than non-

verbal in communicating with the receiver.

For item numbers 13 -14, what barrier is portrayed in these situations?

13. When we see and believe at a given moment, it is influenced by our

psychological frames of references - our beliefs, values, knowledge,

experiences, and goals.

a. cultural

b. emotional

c. perceptual

d. spatial order

14. A boy doesn’t understand why his sister has mood swings during her

menstrual period.

a. gender

b. language

c. perpetual

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 d. emotional

15. When is the communication process complete?

a. when the message enters the channel

b. when the message leaves the channel

c. when the sender transmits the message

d. when the receiver understands the message

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 Lesson
Strategies to Overcome
3 Communication Barriers

Communication problems happen when we mix socially with others and even

in organizations where barriers of communication mostly experienced by the people

involved in interpersonal communications. They make mistakes as either they were

not able to understand the facts or information is not properly conveyed to them.

Effective communication becomes impossible or unattainable due to these

communication barriers. However, there are various strategies to avoid

communication barriers. The strategies are intended to promote active listening, or

a type of listening with the goal to “develop a clear understanding of the speaker’s

concern and also to clearly communicate the listener’s interest in the speaker’s

message.

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 What’s In

For the previous lesson, we learned about the models of communication in a

simple and practical understanding.

To help you recall the said lesson, a summary is provided below.

The purpose of a “model” is to offer a visual representation of a concept with the

intent of facilitating the understanding of it. Traditionally speaking, there are
three standard models of the communication process: Linear, Interactive, and
Transactional, and each offers a slightly different perspective on the
communication process.

To further refresh your memory on the previous lesson, try to answer the

activity below.

Activity 1: Let’s review

Direction: Encircle the letter of your answer.

1. Which of the following elements is missing in the transmission model?

a. noise

b. sender

c. receiver

d. feedback

2. Which of the following ideas is NOT a proposition of the Transactional Model?

a. Meaning is in people, not in words.

b. Communication creates shared meaning.

c. Communication involves both content and relationship dynamic.

d. Communication is complete once the message has been sent and received.

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3. What does it mean when a message is encoded?

a. It is understood by the receiver.

b. It is written with secret language.

c. It is converted for the appropriate channel.

d. It is created by the sender for a specific audience.

4. Which is not necessary for effective communication to take place?

a. The message should be ethical.

b. The message should be influential.

c. The message should achieve its intended effect.

d. The message should be understood as intended.

5. The sentence, "Did you get my message?" best describes which of the following

models of communication?

a. communication as interaction

b. communication as transaction: message

c. communication as action: message transfer

d. communication as simultaneous transaction

Thumbs up! You are now ready for the next activities

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 What’s New

With the absence of Mr. Google and with no books beside us, we can say that

communication is complete if the message we delivered, and the meaning we wanted

to relate, were received and understood. Most importantly, we obtain the feedback

that satisfies us based on our intention. Let us now do the first task. Read the

instruction provided below.

Activity 2: Explain the Analogy

Direction: Read the analogy and explain how you understand it by looking
at thepicture below.
“Communication is like an iceberg.”

10% above the surface

90% below the surface

Explanation:

How are you coping with our lesson? I hope that you are excited about the

activities that we will discuss in this module. Now, be ready!

Activity 3: Predicting the Outcome

Directions: Choose only ONE scenario below and write on the space provided a short

script about what will happen next. Then, answer the questions that follow.

Scenarios:

1. You are having a bad day and you feel frustrated, then your sister asks you to

wash the dishes.

2. You are the patient and the doctor is explaining to you the laboratory test

result using medical terms.

3. You finally have the opportunity to talk to your crush when suddenly a loud

rock music is played.

4. You are asked by your teacher to share about your weekend activity but you

are hesitant because you are very shy.

Write your mini script here!

Probing Questions

Direction: Based on Activity 3, answer the following questions.

1. Do you think there was a real communication in each of those situations?

Explain your answer.

Answer:

Answer:

2. What caused it?

Answer:
 What is It

Communication is never simple, even when it appears so. Even a simple word

can often become complex as there are many variables involved. There are different

ways of communication which made it complicated. Words do not necessarily have a

built-in meaning. We ordinarily use them in certain ways, but no two people use the

same word exactly alike. That is why, it is important to express words as clearly as

possible. Communication is not just about exchanging information, but it is about

understanding the sentiment and purpose behind the information given.

At the beginning of the module, you are asked to answer the pretest in relation

to the barriers to effective communication and various strategies to deal with

communication problem.

Communication breakdown/barrier occurs if there is a wrong perception by the

receiver. Let us now be familiar with the following barriers to effective

communication:

1. Emotional barriers are mental walls that keep you from openly

communicating your thoughts and feelings to others.

2.
Example: Adriana could not concentrate in listening to her
teacher because she was scolded by her mother before she
went to school.

2. Cultural barriers are the cultural differences of the people that lead to

misunderstanding of each other's customs, resulting in inconveniences

and difficulties.
 Example: Allen introduced his friend to an Indian woman who
happened to be their new classmate. His friend offered his
hand to greet the woman but she refused because for her, it is
a sign of disrespect.

Example: My parents are always in conflict because of their

differences. My mother used to ask questions to gain an
understanding while my father talk to give information rather
than asking questions.

3. Gender barriers are disagreements between men and women that affect

many aspects of their relationship and may take a long time to resolve.

4. Interpersonal barriers are challenges in interpersonal communication that

result in people's desires to participate within a conversation or explore ideas

that are given within a conversation.

Example: Procopio is unable to form genuine connections

with other people because he has many false perceptions
blocking the way.

5. Language barriers are figurative phrases used primarily to refer to linguistic

barriers to communication, i.e. the difficulties in communication experienced

by people or groups originally speaking different languages, or even dialects

in some cases.

Example: Mr. Cortez has the difficulty in understanding the

discussion because he is not familiar with the terminology
used by the speaker.
6. Perceptual barriers are the mental blocks that we create because of the

perceptions that we have of certain people, situations or events around us.

Example: John yells clipped phrases at a person he believes

is deaf. His yelling ends up looking ridiculous while failing to
communicate anything of substance.
 7. Physical barriers are the environmental and natural condition that act as a

barrier in communication in sending message from sender to receiver.

Example: Pepay was not able to hear her mother’s request

because the door of her room was closed.

This time, let us discuss some coping strategies in overcoming

communication breakdown. How do we avoid the communication breakdown? Let us

consider the following strategies:

Plan your message. Try to state the idea in a clear,

concise way using language that is understandable.
Stop once your point has been made and ask your
listeners for the reactions to ensure that they have
understood you accurately.

Repetition. As a speaker, repeat what you say if

you think the receiver shows confusion that
reflects into her facial expression.

Paraphrase. If you don’t have any specific

questions to ask, you may choose to repeat back
to the speaker, in your own words, what you have
taken away, in order to allow the speaker to clarify
any points.

Ask a question. Use questions to clarify your

understanding, as well as to demonstrate interest
in what is being said.

Listening intently. Listen for the essence of the

speaker’s thoughts: details, major ideas and their
meanings.
Eliminate distractions. Whether you’re
communicating in person or via email, make sure
you’re in a quiet environment (without any music,
external noise, your colleagues even!) to decipher
the message accurately and really listen to what
the other party is trying to say.
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 Be considerate. Do not monopolize the
conversation by giving others the chance to
speak.

Be concise. Messages that are short and ‘to-the-

point’ are comprehended more easily.

Pay attention to what is being said. Stay focus

to what the speaker is saying.

Be empathetic. You need not be drawn into all of

their problems or issues, as long as you
acknowledge what they are experiencing.

 The strategies mentioned above is equivalent to the 7 C’s of Communication.

There are 7 C’s applicable for both oral and written communication. One should

be aware of the 7 C’s of effective communication in order to deliver and understand

the message effectively.

7 C’s of Communication

Completeness. It includes everything that the receiver needs to hear

for him/her to respond, react, or evaluate properly.

Conciseness. It provides short and essential message in limited words

to the receiver.
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 Consideration. It means the speaker should always consider relevant
information about his/her receiver such as mood, background and etc.

Clarity. It implies emphasizing on a specific message or goal at a time.

Concreteness. It happens when the message is concrete and supported

by facts, figures, real-life examples and situations.

Courtesy. It means the speaker shows respect in the culture, values,

and beliefs of his/her receivers.

Correctness. It implies that there are no grammatical errors in

communication.

Effective communication is a two-way channel. It is not only about how you

deliver the message effectively in order to be understood by someone, but it is also

how you listen and understand the meaning of what is being said to make the other

person feel, heard and understood. If you failed to do so, this will create a real

blockage to understanding.

Are we communicating so far? I am sure the you learned so much from the

discussion. Now, let us proceed to the next activity to turn up your knowledge.

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 What’s More

Let us check your understanding of the topic by doing the next activities.

Activity 4: Guess what

Direction: Identify the coping strategies being described in each number.

1. You do not monopolize the conversation by talking only about

yourself.

2. You find it hard to concentrate because of the noise coming from

the other room. So, you move to a more convenient place to talk.

3. You take time to think about how others feel and be aware of the

people around us while still asserting our needs.

4. Use open-ended questions to get others more involved in the

conversation.

5. You need to repeat what you say if you see the receiver’s facial

expression shows a little confusion.

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Activity 5: Finding solution to the problem

Direction: Read the given situations below, then identify the barriers to effective

communication present in each situation. Give also your solution to avoid such

barrier.

Situation Barrier Solution

1. While you are having a class

discussion with your teacher

inside the classroom, a group of

students yelled in the hallway.

2. Pedro is a SHS student with

high vocabulary and linguistic

ability talks to Jose with low

ability. Jose could not

understand the words used by

Pedro that leads to

miscommunication of whole

message.

3. You could not concentrate in

listening to your teacher’s

discussion because you are

disappointed with your score on

the test.

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 What I Have Learned

It is time to check what you have learned from our lesson by answering

the following questions.

Activity 6: Tell me

Direction: Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What are the barriers to communication?

Answer:

2. What are the common reasons behind the communication problem?

Answer:

3. What are the different strategies to overcome communication breakdown?

Answer:

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4. As a student, why is it important to use various strategies in avoiding

communication breakdown? Cite a concrete example to prove your answer.

Answer:

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 What I Can Do

Are you now ready to apply what you have learned about the barriers that

hinder communication and effective strategies to avoid communication breakdown?

Let us begin.

Activity 7: Let’s draw

Direction: Make a 6-framed comic strip showing how a strategy is used to solve a

communication breakdown. (10 points)

Draw your comic strip

here!

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 Rubric for Comic strip

Criteria 4 3 2 1 Total
Story Theme This comic The comic This is really There is no
& created in has a clear made an just random story.
six panels story. The attempt at a words and or Action does
reader can story, but it’s images and not not make
easily identify not quite clear. much of a sense from
the beginning, Most of the story. Some of one panel
middle, and action makes the action to another
end of the sense from one makes sense
story in six panel to from one panel
panels. another. to another
Characters Characters Characters are Characters are Characters
are visually visually visually lack visual
distinct with distinct with distinct with distinction
expressive some expressive and lack
traits in all expressive traits in some expressive
panels. traits in most panels. traits.
panels.
Landscape Landscape Landscape and Landscape and Landscape
and Props and props are props relate to props relate to and props
directly the action and the action and are not
related the characters in characters in chosen or
action and most panels. one panel. do not
characters in make
all panels. sense.
Problem or It is easy for It is fairly easy It is fairly easy It is not
Conflict the reader to for the reader for the reader clear what
understand to understand to understand problem,
the problem, the problem, the problem, conflict or
conflict or conflict or conflict or situation
situation in situation the situation the the main
the comic main main characters
between characters face characters face.
characters. and why a face, but it is
problem exists. not clear why
it is a problem.
Captions & Captions are Captions make Captions may Captions
Text well written sense and or may not don’t make
and edited for there are 1-2 always make sense and
correct spelling, sense and there are 5
spelling, punctuation or there are 3-4 or more
punctuation grammar spelling, spelling,
and grammar. errors. punctuation, punctuatio
or grammar n and
errors. grammar
errors.
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Activity 8: Let’s do it

Direction: Make a dialogue about the following scenario:

Pretend that it is your first meeting with your new classmate. Introduce

yourself to him/her. Be sure to observe or apply the 7 C’s for effective

communication.

Make a dialogue here!

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 Assessment

Congratulations for having made it this far! Now, let us check what you have

learned. Follow the direction carefully.

A. Directions: Some of the statements below are true about the strategies to effective

communication and some are not. Write T before the number if the statement is true

and F if the statement is False. Write your answer on the space provided before the

number.

1. Use simple words and phrases that are understood by everybody.

2. It is okay to interrupt the speaker once you have a question or

clarification about what is being tackled by the speaker.

3. Always pay undivided attention to the speaker while listening.

4. While listening, you can glance here and there as long as you are in

front of the speaker.

5. Always ask for a clarification if you have failed to grasp others’ point

of view.

6. Do not instantly react and mutter something in anger.

7. When you talk to others, you should not assume too quickly that they

understand the message that you convey.

8. You can freely use technical terms and terminologies to the majority

of people.

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 9. When you communicate, choose what you want to say and how you

want to say it.

10. Verbal communication is better than non-verbal communication.

B. Direction: Answer the following question below and write your answer on the

space provided.

During this pandemic, what barrier of communication have you experienced

in your family or community? What did you do to solve the problem?

Answer:

_ _

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 Additional Activities

Great job! You are finally done with your Assessment. Now, it is time to reinforce

your understanding of the lesson by accomplishing the given task.

Direction: Choose one (1) of the three (3) given tasks below.

Task 1: Write and record a one-minute speech, giving tips to the people on how to

avoid communication breakdown and post it to the class fb group.

Task 2: Make a mini-poster about avoiding communication breakdown. Add your

original slogan about how one can avoid communication barriers. Use a

1/8-sized illustration board.

Task 3: Compose a short song about how to avoid communication breakdown.

Record and post it in the class fb group.

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 Answer Key

Assessment What’s More What I Know

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References

Books:

Flores, R., (2016). Oral Communication in Context. Rex Printing Company, Inc. Sta.
Mesa Heights, Quezon City.

Sipacio, P. and Balgos, A. (2016). Oral Communication in Context for Senior High
School. C & E Publishing Company. South Triangle, Quezon City.

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 DISCLAIMER
This Self-learning Module (SLM) was developed by DepEd SOCCSKSARGEN
with the primary objective of preparing for and addressing the new normal.
Contents of this module were based on DepEd’s Most Essential Learning
Competencies (MELC). This is a supplementary material to be used by all
learners of Region XII in all public schools beginning SY 2020-2021. The
process of LR development was observed in the production of this module.
This is version 1.0. We highly encourage feedback, comments, and
recommendations.

For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Department of Education – SOCCSKSARGEN

Learning Resource Management System (LRMS)

Regional Center, Brgy. Carpenter Hill, City of Koronadal

Telefax No.: (083) 2288825/ (083) 2281893

Email Address: [email protected]

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