Mary the Queen College (Pampanga)

We Transform Lives

Senior High School Department

Subject Code: EN11/12OC-Ia Module No./Title: Module 5: Effective

Communication Skills
Subject Description: The development of Period of Coverage:
listening and speaking skills and strategies for
effective communication in various situations.

Introduction:

Being able to communicate well does not come automatically. It requires understanding of
different communication principles, acquisition of many communication skills, and internalization of
important attitudes. An effective communicator must actually experience different communicative
situations where he or she learns how to communicate properly. He or she must participate in
conversation and interaction with many different people in diverse communicative situation involving
varied means of communication both verbally and non-verbally.

This lesson will discuss how to communicate for practical as well as social purposes. It gives
guidelines for participating in practical and social setting. Mastery of the skills discussed in this lesson
will help develop you into an effective communicator.

Objectives: After this lesson, the students should be able to learn the following:
1. Distinguish the unique features of one communication process from the other;
2. Explain why there are breakdowns in communication;
3. Enumerate various strategies to avoid communication breakdown;
4. Demonstrate sensitivity toward others in various communication situation.

Content:

Effective Communication Skills

Effective communication is much more than being able to talk; it is also the ability to listen and
understand others, to “read” and interpret body language and to know the best ways to get our points
across.

TO BE A BETTER SPEAKER:
1) Plan your message. What is the main idea you are trying to express? Try to state in a clear,
concise way using language that is understandable.

2) Be considerate. Do not dominate the conversation by talking only about yourself. Use questions
to probe the person’s feeling or opinions on the topic of conversation.

3) Speak clearly. Do not mumble or talk in the opposite direction of the listener. Also, use words
that you know the listeners might understand.

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4) Stay focused on the conversation. Doing something else while you are talking, such as typing or
working on a car, sends a message to the listener that you don’t think the conversation is worthy of
your full attention, and it could inhibit the listener’s to what you say.

5) Be brief. Don’t over talk a point. It may cause the other person to lose interest in the conversation.
Make your point meaningful and interesting by stating your ideas briefly.

6) Learn to “read” the listener. if the other person seems inattentive or uncomfortable, it is
probably not a good time to be carrying on a conversation. Recommend having the conversation at
another time.

TO BE A BETTER LISTENER:
1. Eliminate distractions. If you find it hard to concentrate because of your surroundings, move to
another RE or schedule another time to talk.

2. Make time to listen. If you are in a hurry or don’t have time, let the speaker know and schedule
another time to talk. Better to delay the conversation than to risk having an important conversation
cut short.

3. Practice reflective listening. Repeat what you think the speaker said to ensure you hears the
speaker correctly.

4. Listen for understanding. If you don’t understand what is being said, don’t be shy or
embarrassed to ask questions. It is better to ask for questions. It is better to ask for clarification
than to risk a misunderstanding that could lead to problem later on.

5. Question skillfully. Use open-ended questions to get others more involved in the conversation.
An open ended question cannot be answered with a “yes” or “no”; it allows others to talk at
length.

6. Wait for the speaker to finish. Don’t interrupt, even when it’s apparent the person speaking is
gathering his/her thoughts.

7. Pay attention to what is being sad. When someone is speaking, don’t spend that time preparing
your remarks or working on a project- listen.

In their pioneer book Effective Public Relations, Professors Broom, Cutlip, and Center (2012) list
the 7 Cs of Effective Communication. This list is widely used today, especially in public relations and
advertising.

1. Completeness
Complete communication is essential to the quality of the communication process in general. Hence,
communication should include everything that the receiver needs to hear for him/her to respond, react,
or evaluate properly.

2. Conciseness
Conciseness does not mean keeping the message short, but making it direct or straight to the point.
Insignificant or redundant information should be eliminated from the communication that will be sent
to the recipient.

3. Consideration

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To be effective, the speaker should always consider relevant information about his/her receiver such as
mood, background, race, preference, education, status, needs, among others. By doing so, he/she can
easily build rapport with the audience.

4. Concreteness
Effective communication happens when the message is concrete and supported by facts, figures, and
real-life examples and situations. In this case, the receiver is more connected to the message conveyed.

5. Courtesy
The speaker shows courtesy in communication by respecting the culture, values, and beliefs of his/her
receivers. Being courteous all the time creates a positive impact on the audience.

6. Clearness
Clearness in communication implies the use of simple and specific words to express ideas. It is also
achieved when the speaker focuses only on a single objective in his/her speech so as not to confuse the
audience.

7. Correctness
Correctness in grammar eliminates negative impact on the audience and increases the credibility and
effectiveness of the message.

Communication Breakdown and Noise

Breakdown occurs in the communication process from time to time. A breakdown in

communication occurs when the message or the feedback is not sent or received properly- at least in
the way that the sender intends- or is not received by the concerned party altogether.

Many of the causes of communication breakdown can be classified as noise. Noise is the technical
term used to refer to all the possible barriers to effective communication. Noise may be physical,
psychological, physiological, or semantic.

Physical noise comes from the environment (e.g., a distracting visual aid, unbearable weather,
extraneous noises, etc.)

Psychological noise originates from the emotional state, mental state, and psychological makeup of a
person (e.g., depression, anger, suspicions, etc.)

Physiological noise is “bodily conditions” that compromise the ability of a person to send or receive
messages (e.g., hunger, head ache, etc.)

Semantic noise refers to anything related to the meaning of words that distorts or masks a message and
confuses the listener (e.g., a speaker’s use of a foreign language, a listener’s limited vocabulary, or
differing interpretations of the meaning of a word, etc.).

Summary:

Communicative competence means knowing what to say, when, and how. It also requires that a
hearer properly understand what other speakers are saying.

Remember: Lacks of communicative competence can lead to a breakdown in communication.

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Learning Resources:

 Textbooks
 Powerpoint Presentation
 Digital learning resources such as text and image.
 Online Platform (NEOlms, Google Classroom, MS Teams, etc.,)
Evaluation:

#1
Identify the possible noises that can cause communication breakdown in the following situation.
Then describe how communication breakdown may occur. Afterward, propose a strategy to avoid or
remedy this breakdown. Present your strategy in class.

Situation:

As a member of the student council, you are tasked to take part in high school freshmen orientation
in your school. You are assigned to give the freshmen tips on ow to effectively hurdle their first year in
high school.

About 10 minutes before the orientation begins, the air conditioning system in the venue breaks
down. If the organizers decide to call the repairmen, it would take half an hour to fix the problem,
which would mean that the orientation could stretch on until past noon. Moreover, rain has started
beating down the roof and windows of the function room and shows no sign of letting up.

#2

Quiz
References:
 Fernandez, E. J., Masong, A. S., & Samillano, R. Z. Oral Communication for Senior High School
 https://www.managementstudyguide.com/seven-cs-of-effective-communication.htm
 Pena, A. R.(2016). Oral Communication. Quezon City: Vibal Group Inc.
Next Lesson: Intercultural Communication
Prepared by: Katelyn S. Albelar, LPT – SHS Checked by: Kim Kenneth T. Ayroso, LPT,
English Teacher MAEd – SHS English Coordinator

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