AVANTHI’S SCIENTIFIC TECHNOLOGICAL AND

RESEARCH ACADEMY
Advanced Communication Skills Lab Manual

DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND

ENGINEERING
III-B.Tech

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EvaluationPattern:

AdvancedEnglishLanguageCommunicationSkillsLaboratorycanbebroadlyclassifiedinto two:

i) ComputerAssistedLanguageLab
ii) InteractiveCommunicationSkillsLab

Internal Assessment: 25 Marks

1) Twointernalswillbeconductedfor Labassessment
2) Studentsareadvisedto maintainarecordbooktomakeanoteoftheactivitiesdonein the
lab.Five marks will be awarded for the same.
3) Attendance will be taken regularly for the lab sessions for which five marks will
beawarded.
4) Awritten test for10marks will be conducted.
5) Studentsareevaluatedfor fivemarksfor activity.
6) Totalnumberofmarksforinternalassessmentis25.

ExternalExamination:50Marks

Externalassessmentisbasedona3hourexaminationprocess.

Evaluation Pattern

 Theory-20Marks
 Activity-10Marks
 VivaVoce-20 Marks

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 ListofExercises
UNIT Nameof theExercise PageNo
1 ActivitiesonInterpersonalCommunicationand 10-19
BuildingVocabulary
2 ActivitiesonReadingComprehension 20-25

3 ActivitiesonWriting Skills 26-39

4 ActivitiesonPresentationSkills 40-42

5 ActivitiesonGroupDiscussionandInterview Skills
43-55

6 ConflictManagement 56-62

7 Leadership Skills 63-68

8 TeamBuilding 69-72

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General Instructions:

1) Studentsareinstructed not to usepen drives duringlab sessions.

2) Headphonesshouldnotbeusedforanyotherpurposeexceptforlisteningtothe information

available through software.

3) Studentsarerequestedtobecarefulwhilehandlingandoperatingthecomputers.

4) Students must bring their lab manuals to the lab without fail and get them signed

bythe faculty – in – charge.

5) Useof mobile phones duringlabhours is strictly prohibited.

6) Studentsshould comeformallydressed. Jeans, shots,Tea-shirts arenot allowed.

7) Studentsshould maintainpunctualityin attendingthelabs.

8) Studentsshould entertheirnamesandcomputernumber inthelogin register.

9) Studentshould usethe samecomputereverytime.

10) StudentsarenotallowedintothelabwithoutIDcards.

11) Allstudents should activelyparticipatein thelabactivities.

12) Studentsareevaluatedbased on theiractiveparticipationand properbehavior.

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 Unit-1
ActivitiesonInterpersonalCommunicationandBuildingVocabulary

Interpersonal communication can be defined as the process by which people exchange

information, feeling and meaning through both verbal- and non verbal messages. It is a kind of
face to face conversation that takes place between strangers or known individuals, in anycontext
or situation. It is not just about what is actually said, the language used, but also focuses on how
it is said. The non-verbal messages sent through the tone of voice, facial expressions, gestures
and body language also play an important role.

Conversation is a form of interactive, spontaneous communication between two or more people.

Itisanimportantaspectinspokencommunication.Thedevelopmentofconversationalskillsand
etiquette is an important part of socialization. The development of conversational skills in
English among engineering students is the need of the hour.

Kinesics or Role of Body Language in Communication: Body language plays an important

role in communication. Most often it sends signals stronger than words. The sub conscious mind
controls the body movements, so listeners can easily understand if there is a difference in what
you are saying and thinking. Hence, it is very important that your words and body language
complement each other. Body language comprises of the gestures and movements we make ofthe
different parts of our body when communicating with people. Facial expression and eye
movements are very important while conveying your feelings. A smile on the face reflects
confidence. Right body posture enables you to control your voice easily. Your body weight
should be balanced on the feet to have right and correct posture. Observe your body language
when you are happy and confident. You will notice that your body is balanced and you take full
breath at easy and your body moves synchronously with your voice.

Why body language:-

 Bodylanguagecan instantaneouslyhelp to assessthe interest of people

 Itisapersonal wayofexpressingemotionswhenwordsdon’torcan’t help
 Itmakescommunication interesting

Positivebodygestures

Positive body gestures enhance confidence and security. They are signs of active participation
and leave a good impression. Positive gestures include:-

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  Walkingupright
 Shakinghandsconfidently
 Havingapleasantface.
 Noddinghead is a positive gesture
 A steadyeyecontact

Negativebodygestures
Negativegesturessymbolizeinsecurityandrestlessness.Suchgesturesshowlackofconfidence. Such
gestures should be avoided in interviews or meetings.

 Beingup tied
 Bitingnails
 Gettingdistracted
 Fakingasmile
 Lookingat somethingelsewhiletalkinginstead ofthespeaker
 Properetiquettesshould be followed.

Pointsto remember:-

 Neverbestiffwhile makingmovements.
 Avoidbodylanguagethat maybemisunderstood orlook unprofessional. E.g. Winking.
 Aconsistent eyecontactisa positivesign andmust be used.
 Avoidfiddlingwiththingsaround.Itmaydistractthe attention.
 Each body part movement signifies something and helps in interpreting. E.g. Standing
with hands on hips signifies aggressions, nodding signifies agreement and active
listening, biting nails signifies nervousness.
 Unlike emails, body language does not give time to think. Hence they must be used
appropriately.

Howtostarta conversation:

Starting a conversation to know someone, or breaking tongue-tied silence can be very stressful.
However, it is not difficult. The following guidelines can be used to start a conversation, when
there is nothing to talk about.

 Comment on the location or occasion: Look around to see if there is anything worth
pointing out. For instance, “I enjoy this view!” “Such incredible food!” etc.

 Ask an open-ended question: Open ended questions facilitate to start the conversation
andcontinuetheconversationwithease.Openendedquestionsgenerallybeginwith

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 question words like who, when, what, why, where and how. For example, “What sort of
books do you like?” Which season do you prefer the most etc.

 Learnhowtocombinegeneralremarkswithopen-endedquestions:Sometimeseither one
of these may be awkward or seem to be out of place or context on its own. In such
situations, combine general remarks with open ended questions for maximum effect. For
example, “That’s a beautiful hand bag, where did you get it?” This combination of
general remarks with open ended question allows the owner of the hand bag to talk about
the day she went for shopping and her experiences.

 Enquire about their pets:Talking about animals can create a common ground to speak
about when thereis absolutelynothingto talk in common. Don’t talk about yourpet, as it
may be annoying to some people. Instead, asking about their pets is a great way to allow
people to open up and talk with less effort.

 Acquire adequateknowledge on current events: Updatingone’s knowledge on current

affairs is a good way to start a conversation or continue the conversation. When you are
ready to start a conversation, you can say something like, “Did you read the news about
earthquake in Nepal?”

 Make use of previous discussions: If the person is a known individual, recollect the list
of topics already discussed and continue with one of them. For example, children, or
projects or bad news that he/she shared. This gives a topic to talk about, and also makes
them understand that you care about them.

 Pose questions that are easy to answer:Some questions are hard to answer and make
the person think sometimes, “Do I really have to answer this question?” Many people
prefer easy questions to hard questions. For instance, “What are your plans for today?”,
“How do you feel working in summer?”etc.

 Understand their feelings:Don’t ask questions that invade their personal space. Some
people experience discomfort in discussing topics such as weight, or lack of possessing a
degreeorqualificationetc.Bethoughtfulandavoidstartingaconversationonsuchtopics even
with strangers.

 Wash off your fears: When you feel that you are not able to participate in conversation,
with another person, it may be because you started telling yourself a few negative things
like you are boring, intruding or wasting their time. This can leave you embarrassed and
tongue-tied. Feeling self-conscious during conversation is not unusual and also not
productive.

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Tipsforan effective conversation:

 Introduce yourself,if youdon’tknowtheperson. Lookapproachable,tell theperson your

name and offer a firm hand shake and smile.
 Keep theconversation light andsimple, especially ifyouare still getting to know eachone
better.
 Use smalltalk toestablishrelationshipand affinity. Smalltalk can be started on topics like,
the purchase of new car, vacation plans, a newly planted garden etc.
 Talking about weather is a cliché, but if there is something unusual about the weather, it
can be a great topic for conversation.
 Followyourpartner’scueforasmoothconversation.
 Employ active listening strategies to know what they are saying and to summarize their
feelings.
 Ask and answer the questions as part of conversation. Ensure that they get adequate time
to talk.
 Tell the other person’s name as a sign of respect and to make them feel comfortable. It
makes the conversation real and intimate.
 Utilizeacknowledgement cues likenodding, givingshort but encouragingstatements like
“Is that true?”, “Is that so?” That’s quite interesting or amazing!”
 Keep your body language open and amicable. Nod while agreeing; make eye contact,lean
forward. This will make them feel more comfortable and makes the conversation more
natural.
 Keep a sensible bubble of personal space if the person you're talking to is a stranger or
someone that you don't know well.
 Remainengagedinthe conversation.
 Respondnaturally.Laughforafunnycommentorjoke.Don’tforcelaughter.
 Practice getting conversations started. It is little difficult in the beginning, but
becomeseasy with practice.
 Follow your partner’s lead:If your conversational partner appears to listen interestingly,
continue.If he or she looks at a clock or wrist watch, or searches for an escape strategy,
then you have been going on for too long. It is important to observe and followingyour
partner’scuestomake the conversationpleasant.Thismay be a hardskillto learn,but can be
practiced.
 Usesensorywords:Wordslike‘imagine’,‘feel’,‘tell’etc.encouragetheotherpersonto paint
an imaginary and descriptive picture as part of the conversation. This will makethe
conversation engaging and will also leave an impact on the other person.
Forexample“Howdoyou feelaboutthenew government?”
 Maintaintheequilibrium:Astheperson whostartedtheconversation,the responsibility

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 to continue the conversation and maintaining its momentum rests on you. If the other
person listens to actively and pose open questions back for you, take them as their cues
and keepthem engaged in conversation by asking them open questions.
 Don’t be afraid of pauses: Pauses can be looked at as opportunities to change the topics,
re-energize the conversation. Letting a pause for a long time is the only time that you
shouldthinkorworryaboutsilenceinaconversation.Aslongas youcanmovenaturally to the
next subject or topic, its fine and should not feel stressed.
 Give yourself an out:Entering into a conversation means that you can talk briefly with
yourfriends.Thiswillnotmakeyourpartnerfeeltrappedorobligated,andalsogives you an
opportunity to conclude, when necessary.

Role-Plays: Role playing is defined as pretending to be someone else or pretending to be in a

specificsituation that you arenot actuallyin at thetime. Anexampleofroleplayingis when you
pretend that your friend is your boss and you have a practice conversation in which you ask for a
salary hike.

In day to day life, we require information about many things. We have to ask for information
about various things and also give information to different people about different things.
Expressions utilized differ from situation to situation. For instance, the expressions used in
asking for information is different from complaining. Thus, the students should know the
differences and master them to be proficient in using the language. Few expressions that are
generally used during request are given below for better understanding as an example.

Making Requests:

 Could youpossiblygive meaglassof water?

 Doyouthinkyoucouldgiveme aglassofwater?

 Iwonderifyoucould givemeaglassof water.

 Wouldyoumindgivingmeaglassof water?

 Iwouldbe grateful ifyoucouldgivemea glassof water?

 Iwouldappreciateifyoucouldgivemea glassof water?

Helping students or trainers to understand human behavior is one of the most common problems
facedbyteachersandtrainers.Increasinglytutorsareusingexperientialmethodstogive

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individuals practice at dealing with real life problems, and many of these methods involve
theuseof role-play. Ifit is used well, role-playcan vastlyenhancethe learning experience, but often
the full potential of the role-play is diminished as it is ineffectively, or inappropriately, applied.

DiscussionQuestions:
1. Imaginethatyouaretravellinginatrainandwouldliketoconversewiththetraveler sitting
opposite to you. How will you start a conversation?

2. Youarethedirectorofacompanyanddecidedtoselectthebestmanageroftheyear. Talk to your

colleagues on the criteria you have decided upon to select.

3. Mrs. Mary is baking cakes when her daughterLinda came home from school. Write
animaginary conversation between Mary and Linda.

4. Youandyourfriendhavedecidedtoattendamusicalconcertinthecity.Writeafew lines of your

conversation about the concert you have planned to attend.

5. Youhappenedtomeetyouroldfriendinasupermarket.Writethedialoguesbetween you and

your friend.

6. Browseandfindoutvariousformalexpressionsusedinsituationslikecomplaining,
apologizing, giving and asking for information.

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 VocabularyBuilding
Vocabulary means a sum or stock of words employed bya language, a group, an individual or a
work or in a field of knowledge.It is the collection of words and terms available for used in
communication. Developing good vocabulary is not only important to writers and speakers. It is
important in everybody’s life both personally as well as professionally. The three main reasonsto
improve one’s vocabulary are:

 Itsharpensyour communication
 Itopensyourmind
 Vocabularyhelpsyoutobecomesuccessful

Tipstoimprove vocabulary

 Read, read, and read! The more you read novels, newspapers and magazines, the better is
your vocabulary, as you are exposed to number of different and new words.
 Keepathesaurusorpocketdictionary, orasmartphone.
 Maintaina vocabularyjournal.
 Learnawordaday,itssynonymsand antonyms.
 Learnwordroots(Etymology)
 Understandthe meaningsof as manyprefixes and suffixes.
 Rememberone-wordsubstitutes,business vocabulary.
 Practiceverbal analogy.
 Useidiomsandphrasesandcollocationsinyourspeech.

Synonyms:Asynonymsisawordthathasthesameorsimilarmeaningasanotherword. Ex: Deceit

– Dishonest

Antonyms:Anantonymisawordthatisoppositeinmeaningtothegivenword. Ex:
Turbulent x Tranquil

Idioms and Phrases: Understanding and remembering idioms and phrases is very important to
improve one’s vocabulary. The word ‘Phrase’ can be defined a small group of words standing
together as a conceptual unit, typically forming a component of a clause.
Ex: I cannot put up with that fellow. The italicized words are a phrase. The contextualized
meaning of the phrase is endured.

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An‘Idiom’canbedefinedasagroupofwordswhosemeaningcannotbepredictedfromthe literal
meaning of the constituent words.
Ex:To smellarat:tosuspectfoul dealings.

One-WordSubstitutes:Substitutingalongsentencebyasinglewordconveyingthemeaningof the
sentence.
Ex:A personwhom oneknows butis not particularlyaclosefriend-Acquaintance.

VerbalAnalogy:Analogymeanssimilaritybetweenlikefeaturesoftwothings,onwhicha comparison can be

made.
Ex:Playis related toground as prayisrelated to–temple

PrefixesandSuffixes:Prefixesareaddedtothe beginningofan existingwordinordertocreate a new

word with a different meaning.
Ex:Inthewordmulticultural-multiistheprefix,andculturalistheword.Thusanewword
multiculturalisformedbyaddingtheprefixtotheword. Suffixes are
added to the end of the existing word.
Ex: In the word childish, ‘ish’ is the suffix, and child is the word. Thus a new word childish is
formed by adding the suffix ‘ish’ at the end of the word child.

Business Vocabulary: It is defined as set of words used for specific purposes. For example, the
words used by a lawyer are different from the words used by an engineer.
Ex: Cash Cow: It is a business term that is used to talk about a business, investment or
productthat gives steady income or profits.

Collocations:Afamiliargroupingofwords,especiallywordsthathabituallyappeartogetherand thereby
convey meaning by association.
Ex:Richlydecorated,fullyaware,excruciatingpain etc.

StudyofwordoriginorEtymology:thestudyoftheoriginofwordsandthewayinwhichtheir meanings have

changed throughout history.
Ex: ThemeaningoftherootAudiis‘hear’.Wordslikeaudibleandaudiencecanbe remembered by
remembering the root word.

DiscussionQuestions/ Exercises

1. Identify any ten difficult words from a newspaper article and write their synonyms
andantonyms.

2. Googletofindout themeanings ofthefollowingidioms

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 1. BagofBones

2. PlayPossum

3. AHot Potato

4. APrettyKettle ofFish

5. ToBringto Book

3. Writeoneword to substitute thesentence

1. Personlackinginexperienceandcompetenceinartorscience----------------------------

2. Obvioustotheeyeormind---------------------------------

3. Fearofgreatheights-----------------------------

4. Todivideintobranchesorparts----------------------------------

5. Thescienceofcolors--------------------------

4. Selectanyfiveprefixesandfivesuffixes.Writetheirmeaningsandformasmanymeaningful
words as possible.

5. Completeeachofthesentencesbychoosingthecorrectwordfromthefouroptions given.

1. Dramaisrelatedtostage astennisisrelatedto----------------------
a. Field b. court c.net d. racket

2. Playisrelated todirector inthesamewayjournalisrelated to----------------------

a. Reader b.publisher c.producer d. editor

3. Diseaseis relatedto epidemicin thesame wayasskirmishis related to------------------

a. War b. ointment c.quarrel d. campaign

4. Horseisrelatedto hayinthe samewaycow isrelatedto-------------------------

a. Leaves b. fodder c.milk d. straw

5. Wellisrelatedtodepthasofficeisrelatedto---------------------------------
a. Subordinatesb. promotionc. efficiency d. authority.

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 Unit-2

ActivitiesonReadingComprehension
Introduction: Reading is an essential element at every stage of one’s life, especially in schools,
colleges and at workplace. This is because reading is a means of discovering information to
expand one’s knowledge and understanding of the subject of any kind and any field. Reading
helps in mental development and is known to stimulate the muscles of the eyes. It involves
greater levels of concentration and improves the conversational abilities of the reader.

ReadingComprehension passagesfindtheirplace ineverycompetitiveexamination.Apparently,

solving reading comprehension passages seems to be easy, but in reality, it is difficult. The
question that vacillates in every aspirant’s mind is “How to improve Reading Comprehension”?
Studentsareadaptedandcomfortableinsolvingsimpleandundeviatingpassagesintheirschools days,
but the task becomes difficult when it comes to competitive examinations. Students find
difficulty in understanding the vocabulary, concept of the passage and lose interest in solving
reading comprehension passages.

ReadingComprehension Strategies:

 Students often complain that they are unable to understand the given passage. If, you
happen to belong to this category of students, remember that you need not understand
each and every word, and at the same time you need to find out the summary or the gistof
the paragraph. Focusing on the key words is more important.

 Know your strengths. The conservative approach is, reading the passage and then
answering the questions. But some students do not feel comfortable with this approach.
Probably, they do not know which key words they have to remember, and waste a lot of
timeinreadingthepassageagainandagain.Insuchsituations,a‘bottomup’approachis followed,
where the students read the questions first and then look for corresponding answers from
the paragraph.

 Time management plays a crucial role. Apart from testing knowledge and skill,
competitive examinations also test an individual’s time management. Practice numerous
reading comprehension exercises with the help of a timer.

 Practice more. This will alone make you smart in managing time, understanding the
techniques and finally makes you proficient in answering the reading comprehension
passages.

 Improve your vocabulary. A person who has poor vocabulary stops more number oftimes
while reading a passage. Every time he/she comes across a new word, he/she stops

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 and tries to understand the meaning. In such situations, understanding the gist of the
passagebecomes difficult. Having good vocabularyimproves readingspeed. It also helps
in understanding the passage better and saves a lot of time.

 Useapencil while reading. Underlinethe keywords.

 Come back later. Sometimes when we don’t find answer for a particular question, we
generally tell ourselves that “Okay, let me proceed, I will come back to it later.” This is
indeed a good strategy and saves time, but before moving on to another question, circle
on your choice of answer, which you feel correct at the present moment. In most
situations when you go back to answer the question, you don’t remember the gist of the
passage. So, you have to read again from the beginning which consumes a lot of time.

 Most reading comprehensions are complex passages taken from scientific essays, well-
known fiction, literature or economics. Solving passages from different fields of
knowledge will not only give practice, but also increases vocabulary and reading speed.

 Focus on the content. Don’t let your mind to waver here and there.

GeneralVsLocalComprehension

General comprehension or Global comprehension means understanding the general meaning of

what an individual is reading. It is referred to the central idea of a multiple paragraph. Local
comprehension can be defined as the most important point about the topic of an individual
paragraph. The general meaning is stated in the paragraph and hence visible to the reader. The
local or implicit main idea was suggested in the paragraph and hence less visible to the reader.

Readingforfacts

Every reading passage contains facts and details.The facts and details tell more about the main
idea.Questionsaboutfactsanddetailsaskyouaboutsomethingthatwasstatedinthe passage.To answer
aquestion about afact ordetail, look back to thepassageto findtheanswer. Five WH questions and
one H question answers everything about facts or details. They are who, what, when. Where,
why and how.

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Guessingmeaningsfromcontext

The ability to infer the meaning of an unknown word either by looking at the vocabulary around
it or its context is an important reading skill. The context here either refers to the sentence or the
paragraph where the unfamiliar word appears which provides the reader with information that to
give meaning or sense of the term. Four types of clues can be used to support reading
comprehension. They are synonyms, antonyms, examples and definitions and generalknowledge.

Scanning

It is anothertypes of fast readingused to cover a great deal of material to locate a specificfact or

piece of information. While trying to find out meaning for a word in a dictionary, or looking fora
telephone number in the telephone directory, we scan and look for only specific information.
Scanning speed can be increased by regular practice and better concentration. Scanning is a very
important reading technique and serves several purposes, which include looking for

a. Aspecificpoint or fact

b. relevantdetailspresentedintheformof graphsor tables

c. aformulaein a text

d. aword ina dictionary

e. trainortelevisionschedules

f. referencesorbibliographicallistings

g.examination results

Skimming

It is the rapid surveyof the subject. This is to get a rough idea or to see quickly what the book is
about. It is a more sophisticated skill than scanning. The main objective of skimming is to
understand the central idea and the main points of a text. The reader has to read fast and make
quick analysis. Skimming involves three main skills: Identifying the central idea, recognizing
main ideas, and identifying the writing patterns of the passage. Skimming is indispensable for
better understanding of a text. Skimming should answer the following questions about a passage
or text.

Whatisthe overallpurposeofthetext?

Whatis thethemeorthe centralideaofthe passage?

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What is the organization of the passage?(general to specific, specific to general,
chronological,more important to less important, or less important to more important and so on.

Whatdoestheauthorintendtodo? (describe,instruct,report,narrate,persuadeandsoon.) What

are the main points of the text?

Inferringmeaning

Inferences are broadly referred to what “you read between lines.” Inferences are what the author
suggests or implies. The author wants the reader to arrive at the same conclusion the author has
arrived at. When the author implies something, the reader has to infer.

CriticalReading
Criticalreadingisengaginginwhat youreadbyposingquestionstooneself.Forexample‘What is the
author trying to say’? or ‘what is the main idea or argument presented’? It involves a reasoned
argument coupled with evaluation and analyses of what you read.
Note: Don’t spend lot of time in skimming and scanning to avoid drifting awayfrom the content
of the paragraph.

EffectiveGoogling

Effective search is an important skill that everybody has to master. There are few tips to be
followed for effective googling.

1. Keepthesearchphraseshort

2. Use quotes

3. Searchawebsite

4. Searchadomainextension

5. Tellitwhatyoudon’t wantthroughaminus(-) sign.

6. Tellaboutwhatyoudon’twant.

7. Searchforthisor that

8. Usethe wild card

9. Avoid synonyms

10. Do aspecialtysearch.

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DiscussionTopics/Exercises

Readtheparagraphandanswerthefollowingquestions

Aprilfool’sDay

April fool’s Day, sometimes called All Fool's Day, is on the first of April every year. People can
play practical jokes. That's why you shouldn't believe what is said to you and you should be
doubtful of the people around you on this day. Someone might change the time on another
person's alarm to make him wake up very early or very late. Or she / he may put a lot of pepperin
another's food. Of course all this is done just for fun. When the trick is played people say "April
Fool" to make the poor person realize that it was just a joke.

Some of the well known and most successful pranks orpractical jokeswere on the media -
television, radio stations, newspapers... For instance, a BBC television program ran a famous
hoax in 1957, showing Italians harvesting spaghetti from trees. A large number of people
contacted the BBC wanting to know how to cultivate spaghetti trees. In 2008, the BBC again
reported on a newly discovered colony of flying penguins showing people walking with the
penguins in Antarctica, and following their flight to the Amazon rainforest.

Source:Wikipedia

Comprehension:

1. AprilFool’sDayisalsocalledFoolDay?
a. True
b. False
2. On this day
a. youmust be suspicious about what peoplearoundyou sayor do
b. Youshould wakeup earlyin order not to behoaxed
3. Afteryouplayatrickonsomeone
a. sayAprilFool
b. sayAprilFool'sDay
4. Afterthe announcementoftheBBC"spaghettidocumentary"
a. peoplebelieved thepieceof news
b. peoplecalled theBBC tocomplainabout beinghoaxed

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 Unit-3

ActivitiesonWritingSkills
Writingskillsaretendedtobeinborntalents.Butwithoutputtinguphardwork,theinnatetalents are of no
use. Sustained motivation and hard work are the two secrets to a good write up. The skill of
writing has taken last place in communicative skills (LSRW). To acquire this ability
continuouspracticeandinvolvementarenecessary. If youwouldwishtowritestartwriting,keep
writing and check your writing then rewrite. It is a process of answering umpteen (No. of)
questions related to the write up. Information gathering from dayto daylife experiences helps to
improve writing skills which are an integral part of good communication. The more effective
your writing skills are, the more you through influence on people around you.

Importanceand usesofgoodwriting skills:

1. Goodwritingskillsallowyoutocommunicatewithalargeraudienceeffectivelywith clarity and

ease.
2. Itenablesyoutomeetthedemandsof life.
3. Goodwritingskills createimpressionand avoidnegativereactions.
4. Theerrors in writingmayforcetheloss ofcredibility.

Strategiestodevelopwritingskills:

 Commandoverwritingcomesthroughpractice.
 Lifeexperiences shouldbeconvertedto activity‘writing’.
 Grammaticalerrors arecontinuouslychecked
 Actionwordsareconcentratedupon
 Accuracyandcoherence
 Redrafting
 Rememberyouraudienceandtheir requirement
 Themedium and styleofwriting
 Genderneutral language

DifferentTypesofWritingSkills

1. Letters,Formaland informal

2. ReportsProject reportsMemoreportsandminutesofmeetings

3. Résumé or Job Application

4. Emails

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 5. Portfoliowriting

6. Taking Notes

ImprovingOne’sWriting

Importanttips toimprovewriting skills

 Keepitsimple
 Keepit active: passivevoiceis avoided
 Worktogether:share theworkdone by showingitto specialistsin thatarea toget
feedback
 Invest on books and training: Look into dictionary or thesaurus to produce clear ad
understandable writing. Courses and workshops will help to improve writing
 Makeitinteresting.Asthereadersarenotfamiliarwithsubjectmatter,necessary details are
given
 UsenewandbetterTechnology:updateknowledgeofgivingheadings,margins, alignment
and new words
 Hiring a professional: when the volume of wring is large and professional matter, it
can be given to persons who are proficient in writing

RésuméorJobApplication

A Résumé is a calling card for one’s future. It is a brief summary of your talents, abilities
education, experience and skills. A successful Résumé will review summarize and present your
training,expertiseinthe saidfieldandachievementsclearlyand concisely. Itsmainpurposeisto
convince the prospective employer to contact you for an Interview. A Résumé is normally2 to 3
pages. But a Curriculum Vitae is longer.

Majoruses of a Résumé:

1. Tohelptogoforaninterview
2. Toprovidetheemployer withreferencematerialduringthe interview
3. Toserveasareminder to the employer afterthe interviewtosend a letter

TypesofRésumés

1. ChronologicalRésumé
2. FunctionalRésumé
3. CombinationRésumé
4. TargetedRésumé

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ChronologicalRésumé

It starts by listing your work history with the recent position listed first. Your jobs, educational
qualifications are listed in reverse chronological order, with the recent one first. Employersprefer
this type of Résumé because it is easy to assess one’s caliber.

FunctionalRésumé

This type of Résumé focuses on skills and experience rather than one’s chronological work
history. It is used most often by people who are changing careers or who have gaps in their
employment history. It highlights major skill areas. Skills are emphasized over work experience.
Job titles, Dates or names of the employers may be left out. You may describe or label this
section in varieties of ways.

 Skills
 Abilities
 Accomplishments
 Experience
 Areasofcompetence

CombinationRésumé

A combination Résumé lists a person’s skills and experience first. The employment history
comes next. With this type of Résumé one can highlight the skills relevant to the job one is
applying for. It also provides the chronological work history that employers prefer. You are
writing a targeted Résumé and need an effective way to match the skills to the job requirements.

TargetedRésumé

A targeted Résumé is a customised report which specifically highlights the relevantqualifications

and skills needed for the job. It gives an idea of requisite experience for thespecific position. This
Résumé is in response to an advertisement of a specific company with different career objectives.

RésuméStructure

The Résumé structure is important in more than one way. The ideal Résumé structure gives a
professional outlook while displaying a career – oriented attitude of the applicant. It influences
the flow of the Résumé and thereby affecting its readability. Hence, constructing the Résumé
perfectly will improve your chances of gaining the important interview call. Each applicant
decides on the structure as per his strengths, capabilities and expectations of the prospective
employer and hence, every Résumé tends to differ from the other. In general the structure
contains the following steps.

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  Presentation
 Planning
 Projectingskillsandstrengths
 Summary
 Formand style
 Expertadvice(petpeeves)
 Coverletter

ARésumé is divided in 3 sections Introduction,Primarysectionand secondarysection

Introduction:

Itcontainsaheader andobjectives.

Header includes name and contact details of the applicants. The name should be in bold letters.
The address, email id and telephone numbers are furnished.

Objectives:

It holds the aspirations and career plans. The applicant’s potential qualities and his expectations
from the job are clearly indicated here.

PrimarySection:

ItisthemostimportantpartofaRésuméwhereintheemployerspendsmaximumtimereadingit. So, the

contents, flow and the look of this section should be perfect. Ideally, the experience section
should get more prominence and therefore should be written first. Neverthelessapplicants can put
forth educational qualification section prior to the other ones.

Experience:

It contains work history, designation, place of work, total work duration and responsibilities.
While giving the above details bullet format and action words are used. Elaborate this section
wisely to bring out the best of the applicant’s capacities.

EducationQualification:

This section should include qualifications both education as well as additional, name of the
awarding bodies, year of passing and grades scored.

Certifications

Extracourses,internships,workshops, seminarsandtrainingsessions undertakenarelisted here.

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Achievements:

Anyextraeffortsput inand fetchedawards orrewards arementioned here.

Secondarysection

PersonalDetails:Itincludesfamilybackground,maritalstatus,age,interestsetc.

References: This includes the name and contact details of the people worked with or studied
under the guidance of. However the practice of writing references is thinning down and
concluded in one sentence, “available on request”. This is the last part of the Résumé.

GeneralEditingandProofReadingofarésumé

A fresh eye can spot any mistakes which were overlooked. If it is reviewed, the reviewer may
notice a better way of saying something. Misspellings can also be avoided.

Résumé Parsing Services: these are Computer Programs that filter through Résumés utilizing
key words.

Key words fromthejob posting: SinceaParsing Servicemaybeutilized,it is usefulto include

actual wording from the job posting within your Résumé.

Titles:Makesurethatthe jobtitles onyourRésumématch thejob position

Don’t use the page Header and Footer Features: your Résumé will probably not make it past the
Parsing Service if you put your contact information etc., as a header or footer. Using a page
header or footer on Résumé is a good way not to get noticed.

Legible andAttractive:

Stay with the Times New Roman, Verdana or courier. The font size for the content would be
between 11 and 12 and for headers it could be 12 or 14, Leave a margin of 1 1/2” to left and
right. The content should be in black, highlighting headers with dark gray or deep navy blue.
Bold and words in italics should be sparingly used.

Final Formatting

ChecksthejobpostingrequirementstobesureyouaresubmittingyourRésuméintheprescribed format
through email, postal mail (hard copy) or fax. Most commonly used format is Microsoft Word. A
file name should be given for your Résumé.

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CoverLetter:

The Cover Letter basically consists of a request or self recommendation. It is short explanations
ofwhyshouldtheemployer considertheapplicant? Acoverlettercanbe shortwhen youenclose a C.V.
It is best to personalise the letter for maximum impact on the reader, the recruiter. Only factual
information should be given in it. The opinion about the company can be briefly written along
with a mention of how it would help the applicant to work effectively in the workplace.

TheFormat

Acover letter usuallycontains threeparagraphs.Each parahas its own importance.

In the first para details of getting the information about the job i.e. through advertisements, job
portal, and internet are given.

The 2ndpara should be about appraising the growth of the company and applicant’s selfappraisal.
The skills and achievements also should be given.

The 3rdparaconsists conclusion with a complimentary word to prove one’s mettle. A brief
mention of the enclosures is also given.

All the 3 paras should be precise but very clear and impressive so that the employer can send an
interview call.

Tipsto preparea goodrésumé

1. See that a Résumé doesn’t have any typographical, spelling, grammar, syntax errors
orfactual errors
2. Keyinformation is given i.e. Name, address, phone number and email id at the top of the
first page. Objectives are listed next in concord with the job requirements
3. Experience,educationalqualificationsinreversechronologicalorder.Additionalinformation
regarding hobbies/interests is given
4. Specifythegoals foroptingthe job
5. Strengthsarehighlighted
6. Makecareful andstrategicchoicesashow toorganise,orderandconveyskills
7. Itshouldbe ‘You’attitudenotself.
8. Usemostimpressiveandpowerwords
9. Resultorientedapproach isused
10. Usephrases insteadof longsentences
11. Uselaserprinter
12. Watchthetenseused
13. Experiencesectionshouldcomebeforeeducationdetails

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Whatnot to writeina résumé

1. WordRésumé or C V on thetop
2. Fluffyrambling/ objectivesentences
3. Salary
4. Fulladdresses oftheformer employers
5. Reasons for leavingpreviousjobs
6. Personalstatistics
7. References
8. Your weaknesses

Discussion/Activity

GoogleandfindoutthedifferentformatsofthethreekindsofRésuméi.e.Chronological, functional and

combination.

E Correspondence

Emailisamediumofelectroniccommunication.Itcanbeusedforintraandintercommunication .These are

quick in transcending the information to far off places.

Characteristicsof anemail

1. Concisefewestpossiblewordsareused
2. Accurateformatisused
3. Clear:simple,familiar,directandspecificwords,appropriatelinkersandtransitional signals
should be used
4. Conventionaltone:formalandconversationaltoneis used
5. Single theme: logical development of the content with sub-ordinating ideas related to the
context.

Advantages

 Speed
 Quickdistribution
 Flexibilityto modify,edit and revise
 Easyattachmentof documents
 Lowcost

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Email format

 To:receiver’semailid

 CC(carbon copy)

 BCC(blind carboncopy)alineof privacyforpeople concerned

 Subjectline: titleof the message

 Attachments:downloadingmaterial forthereceiverto read

 Body:sender’saddress,date,recipient’snameandaddress,salutation,
complementary close,

Discussionquestions

a. Writean emailto the bookseller orderingforthe supplyof required books

b. Sendan emailtothecustomerinformingthedespatch ofthegoods required

c. Writetoyourcolleaguesinyourofficetosavealltheirdocumentsinviewofthe changes
to be made in the software.

Portfolio Writing

A professional portfolio is a tangible collection of items that charts your professional growth and
illustrates the best examples of the most relevant skills and experiences. It enables todemonstrate
allied qualifications clubbed with skills. The process of putting portfolio together helps to
determine how organized you are. It gives a clear picture of targets for chosen career. It is a
valuable tool that can be used throughout the career to assess the professional development,
negotiate effectively, prepare for performance appraisals, navigate career transitions and track
professional growth and opportunities. It is a proof of achievements and rewards. Job seekers
who use Portfolios often receive more offers at higher starting pay.

Creatingaportfolio:

Collect items that show case your skills and abilities in various areas. At the end of each
college semester or during each year of employment, collect and file evidence of activities,
work, assignment, internships, accomplishments, special trainings, workshops and artifacts.

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Theartifactsare:

 Communityorclubactivities

 Collegeextracurricular recognition

 Classroom experiences

 Special interests

 Professionalmemberships

 Specialskillsor certifications

 Workrelatedskills

 Serviceorvoluntarywork

Next step is selecting artifacts that exhibit accomplishments. Select material that is exemplary
and lead nearer to goals

Connect material to achievements with summaries or reflection papers that highlight learning.
Forexampleif youparticipateinleadershiptrainingworkshopconnectthepamphletwithwritten
summary of what is learned and growth prospects.

Sortoutportfoliomaterials andlearning outcomes.

Assemble a working portfolio by purchasing a professional binder, divider tabs, clear sheet
protectors and creative paper. Card stock for keeping photos and captions is a MUST. Use high
quality paper for lay-out pages and strive for consistency and professionalism

Aportfolioshould resembleascrapbook project.

Filteritintoatargetedpresentationtopotentialemployers andgraduateschools.

Forexample,apresentationportfolioforascholarshipapplicationmightincludeitemsrelatedto
Leadership, Service learning or Academic excellence.

A portfolio is a proof to show in an Interview that you are well qualified for the job. Use SIR
(situation, input and result) approach. Respond to the questions based on the above approach.The
portfolio can never be left with the interviewers.

Discussion topic:

Createyourportfolio.

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 TechnicalReportWriting
Introduction: A Technical report is a formal report designed to conveytechnical information in a
clear and accessible format. It is divided into sections which allow different readers to access
different levels of information. The purpose of the individual sections is to produce an accurate
professional document.

Rules of writing a Technical Report: Four general requirements should be met to writing areport.
They are

1. Clarity
2. Continuity
3. Conciseness
4. Objectivity
Clarity: The purpose of a technical report is to transmit conclusions and their supportive
evidences. To do this, a report must convey the exact meaning of the writer’s intention to the
reader. Ambiguity regarding mathematical symbols must be clearly defined, the grammatical
errors should be rechecked and figures and tables must be easily understood.
Continuity:Thematterofareportshouldbelogicallyarrangedsothatitisinterestingstatement. It
requires continuity between succeeding sentences, paragraphs and sections. The transitional
words, phrases and sentences may be influencing the reader so one should be careful in
maintainingthe continuity. Whilereferringfiguresandtableslimitthedistractionsthe references
should be either at the beginning or at the end of the report.

Conciseness: The reports should be concisely written by using fewest possible words and
illustrations. Omit irrelevant details and conclusions. The quality of the report is inversely
proportional to the length of it. The supporting evidences for every conclusion should be given
simultaneously.

Objectivity: Technical report should show the restraint and expect the reader evaluate the data
honestly. Do not try to hide the deficiencies in the research.No technical report is better than
research. The assumptions, hypotheses and results should be frankly stated in a report. Do not
write any matter which may cause irritation or to impress the reader.

TypesofTechnicalReports:

Informal reports: Memorandum, brief analysis, Tour report laboratory report field report and
inspection report

Formal reports: Committee reports Institution reports, Project reports, Survey reports, Status
reports, Progress reports, Annual reports, Letter report, Feasibility study, Damaged report,
Maintenance report and Project Proposal.

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TheFormatofa Report

Thereport should contain thefollowingsections

1. Titlepage/Cover page
2. Abstract
3. Contents
4. Introduction
5. Objectives
6. Procedure
7. Conclusion
8. Recommendationor suggestion
9. References/ bibliography
10. Acknowledgements
11. Appendices

Title Page:The title of a report or main text word is given at the beginning of a report in this
page.

Abstract: It is the summary of the whole report including important features, results and
conclusions.

Contents: Numbers and lists of all sections and sun-sections with page numbers. In other words
this is the preface or foreword of a report.

Introduction:Theobjectivesofwritingthe report shouldbelisted.

Procedure:Themethod andstyleofwritingthereportmaybe givenhere.Thissectionseparates the

main ideas and puts them in a logical order. The body of the report is divided into numbered and
headed sections.

Conclusion:Thesummingup ofthetheme(s)stated in themaintext.

RecommendationsorSuggestions: Detailsofopinionsforfurtherimprovement.

References/Bibliography: Details of published sources of material, other material including

websites are given.

Acknowledgments: List of people who helped you to prepare the report. This can be put after
contents page also.

Appendices:Anyothermaterial essential for the maximum understandingof the report.

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WritingStyles:

Presentation: As a part of assessment of a technical report, the following guidelines are

recommended.

a. The report must be printed on one side of white A4 size paper. It may be handwritten or
printed.
b. Marginsmustbeatleast2.5inches.
c. Pagenumbersstartaftercontentspage.Donotnumberthetitlepage,summaryand contents
pages.

Planning the Report: Collect the information from the library, handouts, lecture notes,
pamphlets, journals and reference books. Keep an accurate record of all the published references
to be used while writing a report. The following points should be remembered while writing
reference or bibliography.

 Thename ofthejournalor article

 Theauthor’sname
 Titleof the article
 Yearofpublication
 Volume number
 Issuenumberin brackets
 Pagenumbersifneeded
 Editionnumberif required
 Publisher
 Yearofpublication

Creativephaseof planning

Write the topics and ideas from the researched material in random order. Arrange them into
logical groups. Keep note of the topics that do not fit into groups in case they come to use later.
Put the groups into a logical sequence which covers the topic of the report.

StructuringtheReport:

Using the logical sequence of grouped ideas, write a rough outline with Headings and Sub-
headings.

Writingthe firstDraft

For the course work assignments, the readers, particularly in professional context would like to
consider the level of details given in the report. Begin writing the main text not the introduction.
Followtheoutlineintermsofheadingsandsideheadings.LettheIdeasflow.Donotworry

30
about style, spelling or word processing. If you are stuck, go back to the outline plan and make
more detailed preparatory notes to get the flow again. Make rough sketches of diagrams or
graphs. Keep a numbered list of references as they are included in the write up. Put the quoted
texts in quotation marks. Write the conclusion next, followed by the introduction. Do not write
the summary at this stage.

Revisingthefirstdraft

Thereportwill takeshapefrom this step.The accuracyand conciseness of thesubject matteris a

prime point here. Whatever information intended to reach the reader should be concentrated
upon. To achieve the above result, the means would help more than words. Diagrams, graphs,
tables and pictorial representations are the most widely used tools in revising the draft.

TheReportLayout

Appearance of a report is as important as its content. An attractive, clearly organized report

stands a better chance of being read. Use a standard 12pt font Times New Roman in the main
text. Use different font sizes, bold, italics and underline wherever necessary. Do not make too
many changes in the type style. Use side headings to break up the text and to facilitate reader.

Styles

Areportdocumentmostlyusesstyles calledNormal,Caption,Header,Programmeetc.Thereare a few

other points to note like, footer or foot notes. As far as possible, a report should contain limited
number of styles.

Note

Professional reports generally do not increase the font size for titles and headings.

Length:Therewillnotbeextracreditsforlongreports.So,concisereportsarepreferred.

Originality and Plagiarism

Whenever youmakeuse ofotherpeople’sideasor facts, you must indicate thisinthereferences. Any

phrases, sentences or paragraphs which are copied unaltered must be enclosed in quotation
marksandreferencedbyanumber.Thematerialwhichisnotreproduced unalteredshouldnotbe
putinquotations,butstillmustbereferenced. Itisnotsufficienttolistthesourcesofinformation at the
end of the report; indicate the sources of information individually within the report using the
reference numbering system.

Finalizing the report:Add page numbers, contents and title pages and summarize. The summary
should indicate the scope of the report and give conclusions. It must be intelligible.

31
Proof-reading

Re-checking every aspect of the written matter from the beginning to the end is absolutely
necessary. This act should be either done by the author or given to someone else to check the
contents, style, structure and layout. Don’t forget to record the person’s name in
acknowledgment.

Topics for discussion

1. Write a letter report for establishing language lab in engineering colleges with advanced
software.
2. Writeanote reportofthe importanceof readingrooms incollegelibraries.
3. Writeatechnical reporton thecollapseof anewlyconstructedbridgetoanewspaper
4. Reportontheeducationaltourundertakenbyyourcollege.

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 Unit-4

ActivitiesonPresentationSkills
An oral presentation is a formal address by a person to a group of people with or without using
visual aids and other tolls like slide show, video or audio clip successful presentations are
designed to meet the needs and expectations of the audience. It serves varies purposessuch as
improvingspeaking skills, increase the chances of getting good jobs and to gauge the strength of
oneself regarding language competency an persuasive skills. It is therefore, a conscious effort of
the speaker and is a purposeful communication and establishes the reputation of the speaker.

Toquote Emerson,“All thegreatspeakersweretheproductsofrehearse and practice”

TYPESOFORALPRESENTATIONS

Therearebroadlythreetypesof oralpresentations. Theyarei.Impromptu ii. Extempore

iii. Seminar

Impromptu
Impromptu refers to the type of oral presentation were the person has to speak on the spot
without any previous preparation this skill demands a good level of presence mind and self
confidence apart from the skill of organizing the materiel in a quick pace. Impromptu reflects
highly competitive and agile environment in which we work.

In the absence of earlier arrangement of ideas and structuring of arguments, the speaker might
fail to present a coherence speech. The looseness as when compare to a seminar presentation is
expected. However, one should make an attempt to reduce chaotic presentation.

Extempore

In this format of presentation, the speaker is given time for presenting his speech. He or she has
timetoworkandrework hisorherargumentsand ideastakingintoconsiderationtheequipments of the
delivery say brevity, coherence and ample supporting evidence etc. in extempore, we cannot
directly use the materiel, that is, read it out while delivering it to the audience. Consequently,
extempore presentation demands a deeper and thorough understanding of the issue/topic being
spoken.

Seminar

For a student, seminar is important an early exposure to this form of oral presentation is a must.
Seminars are regularly organized and conducted in colleges with a primary objective of
evaluating certain features that are present in both the two earlier forms---- Impromptu and
Extempore.Theseprovidethe speaker withample time tocollectthematerialandorganizeideas.

33
Further, in a seminar like impromptu, the presence of mind, quick k grasp of situation andprompt
action are essential. In a seminar the speaker can access his or her material directly.

Elementsoforalpresentation

Atypical presentationwillhavethefollowing steps

A) Introduction
B) MainBody
C) Conclusion
D) Questionsandresponses

Introduction:A well beginning is half done. The speaker has to prepare thoroughly and motivate
the audience. The introduction therefore should be attractive, attention drawing and thought
provoking. There are various ways to kick-start the presentation.

*greetthe audience

*introduceyourself

*announcethe topiceitherbyaskingquestionsorbydirectlygivingcluesbeforedeclaringit.

*explainthe purposeof the presentation

*maintaintime(durationofthepot)

*specifywhenyouwould liketoask questions

*give anoutline ofthe ppt

Main Body

The main body should contain relevant matter, preferably divided into sub titles. Orderly
arrangement of these should cohere with the content. The relationship between the themes and
arguments should be clearly stated. It should contain a situation wherein, the audience can
effectively relate.

Conclusion

Themainpointhereis,toreinforcethecentralidea, givingabriefsummaryofthemainpoints. “Great is

the art of the beginning. But greater is the ending”

34
SpecificObjectivesofanoral presentation

1. Planning:-a.Purposeb.Audience c. Data neededand collectionof it d.Theaction plan

2. Topicselection:-Righttopicsuitableforself and alsoforaudience
3. Purpose:-Simple,concisestatementofintentionthathelpstofeelthepulseofthe listener
throughoutthe presentation

Stepsinvolvedinoralpresentation

1. Decidingthe topic. It isgoodto chooseatopicthatis decentand relevant

2. Collectingorgatheringinformation,dataandvisualsonthetopicchosen,accessing library,
internet and discussion with people.
3. Arrangingtheinformationinacoherentmanner.
4. Aroughdraft shouldbe preparedkeepingthelength andtimeofthe presentation.
5. Revisetheroughdraft numberoftimes,to make iterror proof.
6. Practice is essential. Rehearsing the speech before presenting it helps in boosting the
confidence. It helps to understand the flaws in delivery of speech for necessarycorrection.
Take the help of a friend or a mirror to practice.

Discussion Question

Prepareapresentation onanyinterestingtopicof yourchoice.

35
 Unit-5

ActivitiesonGroupDiscussionandInterviewSkills
Interview is an opportunityto meet the challenges of professional life on the one hand and to get
skilled personnel for the employer. It is an opportunity for both employee and employer. If the
applicant wants to exhibit his skills, knowledge, self-confidence and motivation, the interview is
the only way to determine the candidate’s caliber.

The interview has a wide range of uses. It is a form of oral communication, one to one or one to
group interaction which proves the unique identity of the applicant. Every interview has some
process involving the following steps.

1. Typeofinterview
2. Howtostartan interview
3. Establishingrapport
4. Exchanginginformation
5. Closingthe interview
6. Follow-upaftertheinterview
7. Conclusion

Afewaspectsregardinginterviewprocessare:

1. Arrangementofplace,timeand questions
2. Acquiringjobrelatedinformationandknowledge abouttherequirement
3. AssessingSWOCof oneself
4. Openingstrategies

Planning forthe interview:

After sending Résumé to a company, the candidate will get a call from the hiring manager. The
interview may be either a phone interview or in-person interview. The phone interviews give a
chance to the employer to feel your skill set on conserving. In-person interview are usually
conducted if the candidate survives the initial phone interview.Mostly the in-person interviews
are based in asking questions relevant the job or to the person by a panel of members.

Theopening strategies:

Thereare twostagesinopeningan interview.

1. Entranceandintroduction:Thebestwaytoenteraninterviewroomistoknock,askfor
permission to enter and then wait for a while before sitting down. Try to be comfortable
keeping your hands in the lap.

36
 a. Bepresentable,havetimesense, composedandgivecandid replies.
b. Befocused
c. Maintaineye contact
d. Introduceyourselfclearly
e. Smile
f. Beexpressive. Avoidusingmonotone.
g. Pronouncewords clearly
h. Beconcise
i. Stayfocused and to thepoint
j. Bedirect
k. Useappropriate handgesturesto emphasizekeypoints
l. Negotiate well

2. Attitude and Response: Interviewers will give a lead to the candidates. So try and take
cues from the tonal variations, facial expressions and thrust of questions.
a. Familybackground
b. Education
c. Initiation
d. Interpersonalskills
e. Aptitude
f. Appealing gestures

Inanyinterview therearethreestages:

1. Preinterview
 Identifyyourstrengthsandweaknesses, goals,skills,etc
 Researchthe company
 Rehearsewhatyouplantosay
 Practiceanswerstocommonquestions
 Preparequestionsto asktheemployer

2. Processinterview
 Makesureyouarriveafewminutesearly
 Be aware of nonverbal communication. Sit up straight, look alert, speak clearly
and forcefully, but stay relaxed. Make good eye contact, avoid nervous
mannerisms, and try to be a good listener as well as a good talker. Smile!
 Follow the interviewer’s lead, but try to get the interviewer to describe the
position and duties to you fairly early in the interview so that you can then relate
your background and skills in context

37
  Bespecific,concrete,anddetailedinyouranswers.Themoreinformationyou volunteer,
the better the employer gets to know you
 Offerexamplesofyourworkandreferenceswhichwilldocumentyourbest qualities
 Answer questions as truthfully and as frankly as you can. Answer honestly, while
trying not to say more than is necessary
3. Postinterview
 Takenotesonwhatyoufeelyoucouldimproveuponforyournextinterview
 Writeabriefthank-youlettertointerviewerindicatingyourinterestwithin24 hours of
your interview
 If offeredtheposition,oneto twoweeksisareasonableamountoftimetomakea
decision. All employment offers deserve whether you accept them or not

Interviewpreparation

Research is a critical part of preparing for an interview. Spend time in thinking about yourself
andthequestions youmightaskattheendofinterview.Self-assessmentwillenable youto know what
you have to offer an employer. It is very important to develop an inventory of skills, experience
and personal attributes that can be used to ‘sell yourself’ to employers.

Followingisa listofmarketableskillswhichare genericin nature.

 Analytical/Problemsolving
 Flexibility/Versatility
 Interpersonal
 Oral/Written communication
 Organization/Planning
 Time management
 Motivation
 Leadership
 Self-starter/Initiative
 Teamplayer

Typesofinterviews

1. Facetoface interview
2. Group interview
3. Behavioralinterview
4. Telephoneinterview
5. Panel interview
6. Stress interview

38
7. VideoConferencing

Face to face interview: This is also known as traditional interview. In this kind of interview the
employer and the job seeker can get to know each other about respective environment.

Group Interview: These interviews are conducted by large companies or MNC’s for graduates
at a time. They may give some exercises to solve in a group and observes the leadership and
communication skills of the participants. These interviews test the team work, listening
comprehension and stress managing skills among the group.

Behavioral Interview: In this, the candidates are asked to explain their skills, experience,
hobbies, projects and personal details.

TelephoneInterview:Thesearetoreducethe expenses ofreachingthe spot.

Panel interviews: The candidates will meet several higher authorities and answer the critical
questions by a panel of members. Usually this method is used to hire for advanced positions.

Stress interview: The main purpose of this interview is to test the candidate’s ability to handle
stress situations. The employer will ask continuous questions to answer without giving time to
think. The interviewer might openly challenge beliefs or judgment. Sometimes impossible tasks
are given to test your abilities but not aim at a solution.

InterviewthroughVideoconferencing

Interviews are also held through video conferencing. This is very akin to a face-to face job
interview because the interviewers can watch the candidate answering the question, and can also
assess his/her behavior and non-verbal gestures. Some organizations prefer to have a screening
interview through video conferencing. The video conferencing interview follows a fixed
structure. The number of interviewers varies from one to eight. The chair person of the selection
committee introduces the members of the committee to the candidate. Each expert may talk tothe
candidate and asks him/her questions. This will continue until each member talks to the
candidate. As the form and structure of a videoconferencing interview is akin to face-to-face
personal interview, the candidate may apply the same techniques and strategies of interviewing.

Tipsforsuccessful interviews:

 Keepallnecessaryinformationwithinyourreach
 Don’tbeafraid,haveaglassofwater
 Bea goodlistener
 Dresswell (Formal)
 Switchoffcellphone
 Keep control on bodymovements

39
  Maintaineye contact
 Don’tgive pauses
 HaveaSmileon the face

DiscussionQuestions

Therearemainlyseven types of questions that occur duringinterviews.

1. Open questions: To encourage the candidates to feel at –home. E.g. (i) Name some of your
interests?(ii) Tell something about yourself
2. Closed questions: To limit the scope of responses with specific answers. E.g. What is data
processing?
3. Probingquestions:Totestthedeeperunderstandingofthesubject.E.g.Doyouthink recession
might help Developing Countries?
4. Reflective questions:Toconfirmthecandidate’sstatements.eg.Doyouwantthepublic sector
companies be privatized?
5. Loadedquestions:Tojudgetheabilities.Eg.Youaretooshort.Don’tyouthinkthisis going to be a
handicap for you?
6. Hypothetical questions: To test the problem solving capacity. Eg. How do you tackle
theproblem of difference of opinion with your Boss at work?
7. Leadingquestions:Toknowthe desiredresponse. Eg.What isopinionaboutTRPratings?

GeneralHRinterview questionswithpossibleanswers:

1. Howwouldyoudescribeyourself?
My background to date has been centered on preparing myself to become the very best
engineer I can become. I was born and raised in …………….. I’ve graduated from the
JNTUniversitywithaB.Techdegreein….....................Ihaveworkedfor2yearsasajunior
engineer in LQ-Soft solutions. I enjoy playing cricket in my free time and learning
languages.

2. What specific goals, including those related to your occupation, have you established for
your life?
I want to be working for an excellent company like yours. I plan to contribute my
leadership, interpersonal, and technical skills. My long-range career goal is to be the best
engineer I can for the company I work for.

3. Howhasyourcollegeexperiencepreparedyou forthiscareer?
I have prepared myself to transition into the work force through real-world experience
involvingtravelabroad,internship,andentrepreneurialopportunitieswhichweregivento
meatourcollege.Asyoucanseefrommyacademic,extracurricularandexperiential

40
 background, I have unconditionally committed myself to success as an engineering
professional.

4. Whatinfluencedyoutochoosethiscareer?
I like engineering because my potential for success is limited only by how much ofmyself
I dedicate toward my goal. If any profession is founded on self-determinism, it surely
must be engineering.

5. Do you have the qualifications and personal characteristics necessary for success in your
chosen career?
I believe I have a combination of qualities to be successful in this career. First, I have
astrong interest, backed by a solid, well-rounded, state-of the-art education, especiallyin a
career that is technically oriented. I am convinced that I possess these characteristics and
am ready to be a successful team member for your firm.

6. Are you more energized byworking with data or bycollaboratingwith other individuals? I
like the validity of information and also like the energy that comes with working with
people?
The best thing about working in a group is combining the great minds from different
perspectives and comingup with somethingextremelygreat, compared with when you’re
working alone. At the same time, information can generate vitality in the project you’re
working on.

7. How would you describe yourself in terms of your ability to workas a member of a team?
I have had opportunities in both athletics and academics to develop skills as a team
player. I have experience of being team leader to do a project. I maintained excellent
communicationamonggroupmembersand coordinatedtowardsreachingourteam goals.

8. Wouldyoudescribe yourselfas goal-driven?

Yes. I demonstrated my goal orientation as president of the local community service. Iam
proud of the fact that I set a goal of signing 50 new members this year and accomplished
it.

9. Canyoudescribeyourlong-rangegoalsand objectives?
My primary objectivesaretolearnasmuchaspossibleaboutyourcompanyandlearn professional
techniques.

10. Whatdoyouexpect todoinn nextfiveyears?

41
 Although it is hard to predict future, I sincerely believe that I will become a successful
engineer.

11. Howwouldyouevaluateyour abilitytodealwithconflict?

Yes.IbelievethatIamgood athandlingit.Iexplain whatIneed fromthetask given.

12. Wouldyousaythatyoucaneasilydealwithhigh–pressure situations?

Yes. My past experiences gave me the courage to deal with serious situations effectively
attending to emergency on-call duties also.

13. Whatwerethereasonstoselectthis college?

This college has had a reputation as having an excellent infrastructure and state-of-Art
class rooms and skilled faculty to nurture my career.

14. Doyouthingthatyour gradesareanindicationofyouracademic achievements?

I have focused on gaining real- world experience. Sometimes my heavy load has not
allowed me to keep up with my studies, but my experience can be applied in my future
endeavor.

15. Describethecharacteristicsofasuccessful leader?

A successful leader should have vision, formulate strategies and communicates to the
team members.

16. Tellmewhatdoyouknowaboutourcompany?
You are respected worldwide. Over the last fifteen to twenty years you have excellent
track record and won many awards.

17. Which is more important to you, the job or salary?

Salarycommensuratewithmyexperienceandskills.

18. Howdoyoudetermineprioritiesinscheduling yourtime?

I know time management skills. Ilist the works as per their importance and complete the
work.

19. Tellmeaboutatimeyouhadtohandlemultipleresponsibilities?
Whileattendingthecollege, Iworkedasaparttimerinanotherfirmandwassuccessful. As a
student, I was coordinator for cultural, literary and sports committees.

20. Whatis yourgreateststrengthand weakness?

Iwork wellunder pressureto reachthe deadlines.MyweaknessisIwork too hard.

42
21. Howwouldyoudeal withdifficult persons?
Iwouldfirstkeepanopenmindandlistentothem,whichinitselfcalmsdownmost people.

22. What motivates you?

Recognitionandpromotion.

23. Whatisyourdefinitionofsuccess?
Success is never giving up.

24. Whyshouldwe chooseyou?

Because Iamthebestandmostappropriatepersonforthis job.

25. Ifwedidofferyouthejob,howwouldyoureact?
I would take it, thank you verymuch, when can I start (or) let me request you to give me
time as I am slightly indisposed.

43
 GroupDiscussion
Introduction

The prospect of a GD tends to leave good number of participants petrified. You can get rid ofthat
feeling of fear by remembering you have experienced group discussions right from childhood.
Remember thoseheated discussions you had across the dinner table with family members, friends
and relatives? Consciously or unconsciously, they have helped youlearn a thing or two about
discussing in a group. As a result, you would have often felt thedesire to prove that you were
right and they were wrong. A bundle of angst would build within you. Discard that feeling now.
Remember, a GD is a discussion -- and not a debate -- between the members of a group.

Therearetwokindsof GD.Structuredand Unstructured

Structured GD is where each participant gets specific time to speak. Unstructured is anyone inthe
group can speak at any point of time without disturbing general decorum.

44
Usesof a GD

1. Toexpressimportantpointsaboutagiven topic.
2. Tellingfacts about thetopic with justification
3. Todevelop oratoryskills
4. Todrivefearaway
5. Toshare opinions
6. Toarriveatapositiveconclusion

Themain areasofaGD are

1. Subjectknowledgeaboutcurrentaffairs,politics,socialissues,economicissues, scientific and

environmental problems.
2. Analysiswillhelptodiscardunimportantandirrelevantpoints
3. GD develops communication skills such as listening, language, expression,
articulationand pronunciation, verbal and non-verbal.
4. It develops leadership skills like initiation, assertiveness, self confidence, persuasiveness,
patience, body language and motivation.
5. Team management skills include adaptability, positive thinking, cooperation,
coordination and correcting attitudinal lapses.
Dynamicsof GD
1. Theopeningof aGD should beattractiveand directthecourseof discussion.
2. Reasoningabilityplaysan important role.
3. Plan a strategy
4. Themotivatoror theleader ofagroupshould roll thetopicon, avoidingpauses.
5. Theleadershould seethatbitter argumentsandpersonalcriticismare avoided
6. Understandingthe topicfrom allpossible angles
7. Summingup isveryimportant foragoodGD
8. Properbodylanguageandeyecontactmakes a GD effective.
9. Useposition, reason, exampleand position formula

45
Usefulphrasesof aGD
 Agreeing:Youareabsolutelyright
 Disagreeing:Iamsorry,Idon’tseeitinthat way
 Interrupting:Sorry,doyoumind, if Isaysomethinghere?
 Dealingwith interruptions: CouldIjust finish withwhatIam saying?
 Askingforinformation:Wouldyoumind sayingalittlemoreabout it?
 Addingmoreinformation: AnotherpointIwould liketo make is…..
DifferentpartsofaGD(for15minutesGD)
 Chaosperiod(1-2minutes)
 Periodofgeneratingideas (7-8 minutes)
 Buildingdiscussion on theideas (5-6 minutes)
 Conclusion(1minute)
Strategiesforeffectivegroupdiscussion
1. Theopeningsentences shouldcreateenthusiasmandinterest amongthe listeners.
2. Systematicimplementation ofthe content.
3. Bodygesturesor nonverbalcommunication shouldbebalanced.
4. Balancingthepointsof discussionwhen oppositionis raised.
5. Anticipationofpossible disruptions.
6. Politenessdoesn’ttendtoeithermutenessormuttering.
7. Open mindedness
8. Cheerfulpersonalitywhilerecappingthe ideas.

Do’sof aGD

 Listentothespeaker carefully
 Putyourthoughtsonpaper
 Initiatethediscussion ifyouarethoroughwiththesubject.
 Support yourpointwithsomefactsand figures.
 Giveothersa chanceto speakandrespecttheir contribution.
 Disagreepolitely.
 Donotforget tosummarize, if you arethe initiator.

46
Don’tsofa GD

 Sittingwithcrossedarmsandlegs.
 Throwingyour bodyorgans or limbs.
 Fidgeting
 Sittingstiff
 Scratching,prickingor rubbing
 Expressinganger oruncontrollable laughter
 Overspeakorintervene withoutproperusageofvocabulary
 Argueorshout
 Erraticstatistics
 Speakaboutinterculturalorsocioeconomicbackgroundofany participant.

Afewexpressionsusedin GD

Activity Expression
1. Lead the discussion *Itisnotdifficulttounderstandthe
problem but…..
*Theactual point of discussion is….
*Dearfriend,don’t deviate

2. Drawsomeoneinto discussion *whatisyouropinionaboutthis?

*Doyou agree,ifIsay…?

*MayIdrawyourattention…..?

3. Refocusthediscussion *forinstanceor example

* Ithink weare drifting

47
 4. Helpsomeonetoparticipate *Can youspeaksomething…?

* Canyouelaborate?

*Pleasecontinue…

5. Makesuggestions *couldyouexplain?

*Canyougive details…?

6. Conclude *attheend,Isay

* Iwill sum up

DiscussionTopics

1. Disastermanagementisstill adreaminIndia.
2. WhyshouldonlyGandhiji’s imprintbe oncurrency?
3. Researchis stealing.
4. Indianslack etiquette.
5. Womenempowermentisacursefor mankind.

48
 Unit-6

ConflictManagement
Introduction:

Conflict managementinvolves implementing strategies to limit the negative aspects of conflict

and to increase the positive aspects of conflict at a level equal to or higher than where the
conflictistakingplace.Furthermore,theaimof conflictmanagementisto enhance learningand
groupoutcomes(effectivenessorperformanceinorganizationalsetting)It isnotconcernedwith
eliminating all conflict or avoiding conflict. Conflict can be valuable to groups and
organizations. It has been shown to increase group outcomes when managed properly.

Definitions:

Conflict:

While no single definition of conflict exists, most definitions seem to involve the following
factors: that there are at least two independent groups, the groups perceive some incompatibility
between themselves, and the groups interact with each other in some way. Two example
definitions are, “process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or
negativelyaffected by another party”, and “the interactive process manifested in incompatibility,
disagreement, or dissonance within or between social entities”.
Thereareseveral causesof conflict.Conflictmayoccur when:

1) Apartyisrequiredtoengageinanactivitythatisincongruentwithhisorherneedsor interests.

2) A party holds behavioral preferences, the satisfaction of which is incompatible with

anotherperson's implementation of his or her preferences.

3) A party wants some mutually desirable resource that is in short supply, such that the wants of
all parties involved may not be satisfied fully.

4) A party possesses attitudes, values, skills, and goals that are salient in directing his or her
behavior but are perceived to be exclusive of the attitudes, values, skills, and goals held by the
other(s).

5) Twopartieshavepartiallyexclusivebehavioralpreferencesregardingtheirjoint actions.

6) Twopartiesareinterdependentin theperformanceoffunctionsor activities.

49
Whatdoorganizationsuseconflictmanagementfor?

zFor any organization to be effective and efficient in achieving its goals, the people in the
organization need to have a shared vision of what they are striving to achieve, as well as clear
objectives for each team department and individual. You also need ways of recognizing and
resolving conflict amongst people, so that conflict does not become so serious that co-operation
is impossible. All members of any organization need to have ways of keeping conflict to a
minimum -and ofsolvingproblems caused byconflict, beforeconflict becomesamajorobstacle to
your work. This could happen to any organization, whether it is an NGO, a CBO, a political
party, a business or a government.

Conflictmanagementistheprocessofplanningtoavoidconflictwherepossibleandorganizing to
resolve conflict where it does happen, as rapidly and smoothly as possible.

Conflictbetweenindividual

People have differing styles of communication, ambitions, political or religious views and
different cultural backgrounds. In our diverse society, the possibilityof these differences leading
to conflict between individuals is always there, and we must be alert to preventing and resolving
situations where conflict arises.

Conflictbetweengroupsof people

Whenever people form groups, they tend to emphasize the things that make their group "better
than" or "different from" other groups. This happens in the fields of sport, culture, religion and
the workplace and can sometimes change from healthy competition to destructive conflict.

Conflictwithinagroupof people

Even within one organization or team, conflict can arise from the individual differences or
ambitions mentioned earlier; or from rivalry between sub-groups or factions. All leaders and
members of the organization need to be alert to group dynamics that can spill over into conflict.

How toidentifysignsandstagesof conflict?

"Disputesofright"and"disputesof interest"

Especially in the workplace, two main types of disputes have been noted (although these two
types may also happen in other situations). These are:

50
  "Disputes of right", where people or groups are entitled by law, by contract, by previous
agreement or by established practice to certain rights. Disputes of right will focus on
conflict issues such as employment contracts, legally enforceable matters or unilateral
changes in accepted or customary practices. A dispute of rights is, therefore, usually
settled by legal decision or arbitration and not by negotiation.
 "Disputes of interest", where the conflict may be a matter of opinion, such as where a
person or group is entitled to some resources or privileges (such as access to property,
better working conditions, etc). Because there is no established law or right, a dispute of
interest will usually be solved through collective bargaining or negotiation.

Stagesof conflict

The handling of conflict requires awareness of its various developmental stages. If leaders in the
situation can identifythe conflict issueand how farit has developed,theycan sometimessolveit
before it becomes much more serious. Typical stages include:

 Where potential for conflict exists in other words where people recognize that lack of
resources,diversityoflanguageorculturemaypossibleresult inconflictifpeoplearenot
sensitive to the diversity.
 Latent conflict where a competitive situation could easily spill over into conflict e.g. at a
political rally or in the workplace where there are obvious differences between groups of
people.
 Openconflict -which can betriggered byan incident and suddenlybecomerealconflict.
 Aftermath conflict the situation where a particular problem may have been resolved but
the potential for conflict still exists. In fact the potential maybe even greater than before,
if one person or group perceives itself as being involved in a win-lose situation.

Signsofconflictbetweenindividuals

In the organization leaders and members should be alert to signs of conflict between colleagues,
so that they can be proactive in reducing or resolving the conflict by getting to the root of the
issue. Typical signs may include:

 colleaguesnotspeakingtoeachotherorignoringeach other
 contradictingand bad-mouthingone another
 deliberatelyundermining ornot co-operatingwith eachother, to the downfall of theteam

Signsofconflictbetweengroupsof people

Similarly, leaders and members can identify latent conflict between groups of people in the
organizationorthecommunityandplanactionbeforetheconflictbecomes openanddestructive:

51
  cliquesorfactionsmeetingtodiscussissuesseparately,whentheyaffectthewhole organization
 onegroupbeingleftoutoforganizinganeventwhich shouldinclude everybody
 groupsusingthreateningslogansorsymbolstoshowthattheirgroupisrightandthe others are
wrong

Howtobuildteamworkandco-operation(…andsominimizethepossibilityofconflict)

 shareinformation bykeepingpeople in thegroupup-to-date with current issues

 expresspositiveexpectationsabouteachother
 empowereachother-publiclycreditingcolleagueswhohaveperformedwelland encouraging
each other to achieve results
 team-build-bypromotinggoodmoraleandprotectingthegroup'sreputationwithoutsiders
 resolvepotentialconflict-bybringingdifferencesofopinionintotheopenand facilitating
resolution of conflicts

Howtomanageandresolveconflictsituations? Collective

bargaining

Especiallyin workplace situations, it is necessaryto haveagreed mechanisms in placefor groups of

people who may be antagonistic (e.g. management and workers) to collectively discuss and
resolve issues. This process is often called "collective bargaining", because representatives of
each group come together with a mandate to work out a solution collectively. Experience has
shownthatthisisfarbetterthanavoidanceorwithdrawal,andputsdemocraticprocessesinplace to
achieve "integrative problem solving", where people or groups who must find ways of co-
operating in the same organization, do so within their own agreed rules and procedures.

Conciliation

The dictionary defines conciliation as "the act of procuring good will or inducing a friendly
feeling".SouthAfricanlaborrelationslegislationprovidesfortheprocessofconciliationinthe

52
workplace, whereby groups who are in conflict and who have failed to reach agreement, can
come together once again to attempt to settle their differences. This is usually attempted before
the more serious step of a strike by workers or a lock-out by management is taken; and it has
been found useful to involve a facilitator in the conciliation process. Similarly, any other
organization (e.g. sports club, youth group or community organization) could try conciliation asa
first step.

Thedifferencebetweennegotiation,mediation,andarbitration:

Three methods of resolving situations that have reached the stage of open conflict are often used
by many different organizations. It is important to understand these methods, so that people can
decide which methods will work best for them in their specific conflict situation:

 Negotiation:this is the process where mandated representatives of groups in a conflict

situation meet together in order to resolve their differences and to reach agreement. It is a
deliberate process, conducted by representatives of groups, designed to reconcile
differencesandtoreachagreementsbyconsensus.Theoutcomeisoftendependentonthe power
relationship between the groups. Negotiations often involve compromise - one group may
win one of their demands and give in on another. In workplaces Unions and management
representative usually sue negotiations to solve conflicts. Political and community groups
also often use this method.
 Mediation:when negotiations fail or get stuck, parties often call in and independent
mediator. This person or group will try to facilitate settlement of the conflict. The
mediator plays an active part in the process, advises both or all groups, acts as
intermediary and suggests possible solutions. In contrast to arbitration (see below)
mediator’s act only in an advisory capacity - they have no decision-making powers and
cannot impose a settlement on the conflicting parties. Skilled mediators are able to gain
trust and confidence from the conflicting groups or individuals.
 Arbitration:means the appointment of an independent person to act as an adjudicator(or
judge) in a dispute, to decide on the terms of a settlement. Both parties in a conflict have
to agree about who the arbitrator should be, and that the decision of the arbitrator will be
binding on them all. Arbitration differs from mediation and negotiation in that it does not
promote the continuation of collective bargaining: the arbitrator listens to and
investigatesthe demands andcounter-demands andtakesover theroleofdecision-maker.
People or organizations can agree on having either a single arbitrator or a panel of
arbitrators whom they respect and whose decision they will accept as final, in order to
resolve the conflict.

53
Howtobe aneffective mediator?

Aneffectivemediatorneeds certainskillsinorderto achievecredibilityand results:

 preferablyaprovenrecord ofsuccess inmediationor negotiation

 theabilitytogain thetrust, acceptance and co-operationofconflictingparties
 clearthinkinginidentifyingthereal problemsand offeringpractical solutions
 knowledgeableabouttheorganizationalstructures,strategiesandattitudesofthe conflicting
parties; as well as any relevant laws or agreements
 Tactful and diplomatic with the necessary powers of persuasion and strong character
tonudge the participants progressively towards an agreement.

How torunamediationprocess?

Themediation process can bebroadlydivided into the followingthreestages:

Stage1:Introductionandestablishmentofcredibility

During the first stage, the mediator plays a passive role. The main task is to gain the trust and
acceptance of the conflicting parties, so that they begin to believe that he/she will be capable of
assisting them fairly as a person on whom they can rely at all times. An experienced mediator
will leave most of the talking to the disputing parties, but will listen attentively and ask probing
questions to pinpoint the causes of the dispute, obstacles to a possible settlement and to identify
the issues in order of priority. Once credibility is achieved and sufficient background knowledge
gained, the mediator may begin to persuade the parties to resume negotiations, possibly with a
fresh perspective.

Stage2:Steering thenegotiationprocess

In the second stage, the mediator intervenes more actively in steering the negotiations. He/she
may offer advice to the parties, attempt to establish the actual resistance point of each party and
to discover areas in which compromises could be reached. The mediator will encourage partiesto
put forwardproposals and counter-proposals and (when asolution appears feasible)will begin to
urge or even pressurize the participants towards acceptance of a settlement.

Stage3: Movementtowards afinal settlement

An experienced mediator will know when to use diplomacy and when to exert pressure towards
final settlement of the dispute. Timing and sensitivity to personalities and strategic positions is
important to maintain credibility and avoid rejection by one or more parties in the process.
He/shemightusebi-lateraldiscussionswithindividualsorgroupsandduringthefinalstages

54
may actuallysuggest or draft proposals for consideration. In the event of a final settlement being
reached, the mediator usually assists the parties in the drafting of their agreement, ensuring that
both sides are satisfied with the wording, terms and conditions of the agreement.

The process of mediation is dynamic and finely-tuned. A good mediator has to be flexible and
inventive, must ensure that his/her personal values are not imposed on the conflicting parties. At
most a mediator can advise, persuade or cajole them towards agreement

Generalsuggestions forConflict Management:

a) Organization Learning and Effectiveness- In order to attain this objective, conflict

management strategies should be designed to enhance critical and innovative thinking to
learn the process of diagnosis and intervention in the right problems.

b) Needs of Stakeholders- Sometimes multiple parties are involved in a conflict in an

organization and the challenge of conflict management would be to involve these parties in a
problemsolvingprocess thatwillleadtocollectivelearningandorganizationaleffectiveness.
Organizations should institutionalize the positions of employee advocate, customer and
supplier advocate, as well as environmental and stockholder advocates.

c) Ethics - A wise leader must behave ethically, and to do so the leader should be open to
new information and be willing to change his or her mind. By the same token subordinates
and other stakeholders have an ethical duty to speak out against the decisions of supervisors
when consequences of these decisions are likely to be serious. “Without an understanding of
ethics, conflict cannot be handled”

Do not avoid the conflict, hoping it will go away. Ask the participants to describe specificactions
they would like the other party to take. It would also be beneficial to have a third party
(meaninganon-directsuperiorwithaccesstothesituation)involved.Thiscouldbeanindividual member
or a board dedicated to resolving and preventing issues. Lastly, do not meet separately with
people in conflict. If you allow each individual to tell their storyto you, you risk polarizing their
positions.

55
 Unit-

7LeadershipSkill

Introduction:

Leadershiphasbeendescribedasthe“processofsocialinfluenceinwhichonepersoncan enlist the aid

and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task.

56
Leadershipinvolves:

 Beingable tomotivate&direct others

 Takingresponsibilityfor thedirection& actionsof ateam
 Settingobjectives.
 Organizing&motivatingothers.
 Takingtheinitiative
 Perseveringwhenthings arenotworkingout.
 Takingapositiveattitudeto frustration/failure.
 Acceptingresponsibilityformistakes/wrongdecisions.
 Beingflexible:preparedtoadaptgoalsinthelightofchangingsituations.

Howtobecomea leader?

 Useinitiativeto act on opportunities. Become a leader before other people view you as
one. Healthy organizations reward those who take the lead, not just those with formal
management roles.
 Takeresponsibilityforown objectives: set priorities.
 Display a"can do"attitude even in demanding situations... Try to solve problems, rather
than to pass them on to other people. First answer is ‘yes, I’ll make it happen’.
 "Gotheextramile"whenaskedtodotasks.Gobeyondyourjobdescription.Dowork that gets
you noticed.
 Showenthusiasm:thiswillbenoticedandyouwilleventuallyberewarded.
 Take ownership of problems: anticipate potential problems, take pre-emptive action and
act quickly to resolve problems.
 Introduceimprovementsto thewaythingsare done.
 Developinnovativepractices.Valueinnovative thinking.
 Learnnewskills that willenhancecapability.
 Commonsenseis not common!

Usingtheappropriatestyleofleadershipindifferingcircumstances
Leadership involves managing, coordinating and supervising, taking responsibility for people;
directing, organizing and motivating them. A good leader will use a variety of styles of
leadership according to the situation whereas bad leaders tend to fall in to just one style. In
practice, most leaders use both task-oriented and people-oriented styles of leadership.

At university, aparticipativestyle may be most appropriate. Whereas a production manager in a

factorymayneed to use aproceduralorauthoritativestyle much or the time. So you need to take
into account the nature of the task.

57
 A fire officer dealing with a serious fire may need to be authoritative, making instant decisions
and barking out commands, but when training staff, a participative style will be more effective.

Different individuals also require different styles. You may need to manage an intelligent,
competent and trustworthyteam member byusingtransformational techniques whereas someone
who is lazy and unreliable may require an authoritarian style.

Whatmakesacharismaticleader?

 Keepupgoodeyecontact
 Developagenuinesmile.
 Haveanopen bodyposture
 Keep yourhands apartwith palms forwards or upwards and away from your face
whentalking.
 Standupstraightbutbe relaxed.
 Letpeopleknowtheymatterandyouenjoybeingaroundthem.Nodwhentheytalk, briefly touch
them on the upper arm.
 Ingroupsmove around to appear enthusiastic, lean slightly forward and look at everyone
in the group from time to time.
 Keep yourmessagessimpletounderstand.
 Whenspeaking,beclear,fluent,forcefulandarticulate,evokeimagery,useanupbeat tempo,
occasionally slow for tension or emphasis

Leadership Skills

 Many years of experience in Exploring have shown that good leadership is a result of the
careful application of following skills that any leader or officer can learn to use.
 UnderstandingtheneedsandCharacteristicsofthe Post
 Eachindividualparticipantofthegrouphascertainneedsand characteristics.
 Aleader shouldunderstand his orher ownneeds and characteristics.
 Aleadershouldunderstandtheneedsand characteristics ofeachparticipantofthe
group. This helps the leader to deal with each person as an individual, totreat that
individual with respect, and to help the person.
 Thisunderstandinghelpsin planningthe programand ingettingthings done.
 Thisunderstandingcreates trustand buildscondenseamonggroupparticipants.
 Throughconversationandinformalsurveysofpostparticipants,tryto findout:
 Whytheyjoinedyourpost?
 What theyexpect from thepost’sprogram?
 Whattheirmajor interests?
 Whataretheirfutureplans?

58
Knowingandusingtheresourcesof thegroup

 Resources include all those things necessary to do a job. Resources also include people, because
people have knowledge and skills. Knowledge is what a person learns through familiarity or
experience what you know. Skill is the ability to use what you know. Attitude includes the
desire to do something motivation and the belief that you can do it condense.
 When the leader uses the knowledge and skills of group participants to get a job done, the
participants gain experience and improve skills. They also develop a positive attitude toward
using a skill.
• Keepthe post’sprogramcapabilityinventoryup-todate and useit in planning.
• Understandthepurposeandresourcesofyourparticipatingorganization
• Findoutyourpostparticipants’skills,interests,andresources.

Communicating

 Toimproveyourskills ingettinginformation:

a. Payattention andlisten carefully.

b. Makenotesandsketches.
c. Askquestionsandrepeatyourunderstandingofwhatwassaid.

 Toimprove yourskillsin givinginformation:

d. Besureothersarelisteningbeforeyouspeak.
e. Speakslowlyand clearly.
f. Drawdiagrams,ifneeded. Askthosereceivinginformationtotake notes.
g. Havethelistenersrepeattheirunderstandingofwhatwassaid.Encourage questions.

Planning

PlanningisanimportantpartofeverythingwedoinExploring.Thefollowingisasimple process for

1. Considerthetaskand objectives.Whatdoyouwantto accomplish?

2. Considertheresourcesequipment,knowledge,skills,andattitudes.
3. Considerthealternatives. Brainstorm.
4. Reachadecision,evaluatingeachoption.
5. Writethe plandown andreviewitwith thepost.
6. Executetheplan.
7. Evaluatetheplan.

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 Evaluating

 Evaluatinghelpsmeasuretheperformanceofa groupin gettingajobdoneand workingtogether. It

suggests ways in which the group can improve its performance.
 Therearetwobasiccategoriesofevaluation questions.
 Afteranyeventor activity,askthese questions:

 Gettingthejob done
 Was the job done?
 Was the job doneright?
 Wasthe job doneon time?
 Keepingthe group together
 Wererelationshipsbetweengroupparticipantshelpedor hurt?
 Wasparticipationequallydistributedamonggroupparticipants?
 Did the groupenjoytheactivity?
 Didthegrouphandleconflictswell?

Controllinggroupperformance

 A leader influences the performance of the group and individual participants through his or her
actions. Why is control needed?
 Agroupneeds control as an engineneeds athrottleto keep it from runningitselfinto theground. A
group works together best when everybodyis headed in the same direction. If a plan is to be
properly carried out, someone must lead the effort. Control is a function that the group assigns
to the leader to get the job done. Control happens as a result of recognizing the difference
between where the group is and where the group is going. The leader is responsible for
developing a plan to help the group get to its goal.
 Setting the example is the most effective way of controlling the group. When working with post
participants, do the following:

a. Continuallyobservethegroup.Knowwhatis happeningand the attitudeofthe group.

b. Make yourinstructionsclearand pertinent.
c. Pitchinandhelpwhen necessary.
d. Quicklydeal with disruption. Guidethe post towardself-discipline.

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Counseling

Counselingis important…..

 Tohelp peoplesolveproblems
 Toencourageor reassure
 TohelpanExplorer reachhisorher potential
 Counselingcan beeffectivewhenaperson is
 Undecidedheor shecan’t makeadecision
 Confusedheor shedoesn’t haveenoughinformation or hastoo much information
 Lockedin he orshedoesn’t knowanyalternatives

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 Unit-8
TeamBuilding
Introduction:

Team-buildingis a philosophy of job design in which employees are viewed as members of

interdependent teams instead of as individual workers. Team-Building refers to a wide range of
activities, presented to businesses, schools, sports teams, religious or nonprofit organizations
designed for improving team performance. Team-building is pursued via a variety of practices,
andcanrangefrom simplebondingexercises tocomplex simulationsandmulti-dayteambuilding
retreats designed to develop a team (including group assessment and group-dynamic games),
usuallyfallingsomewhereinbetween.Itgenerallysitswithinthetheoryandpractice oforganizational
development, but can also be applied to sports teams, school groups, and other contexts. Team-
building is not to be confused with "team recreation" that consists of activities for teams that are
strictly recreational. Team-building can also be seen in day-to-dayoperations of an organization
and team dynamic can be improved through successful leadership. Team-building is an important
factor in anyenvironment, its focus is to specialize in bringingout the best in a team to ensure self
development, positive communication, leadership skills and the ability to work closely together as
a team to problem solve.
Work environments tend to focus on individuals and personal goals, with reward &
recognition singling out the achievements of individual employees. "How to create effective
teams is a challenge in every organization "Team building can also refer to the process of
selecting or creating a team from scratch.
Team Dynamics
When assembling a team it is important to consider the overall dynamic of the team. When
building a team we have to account for these five dynamics that are fundamental to team
success:
1. The Team Member. Successful teams are made up of a collection of effective individuals.
These are people who are experienced, have problem solving ability, openness to addressing
the problem, action oriented and charismatic personal style.
2. Team Relationships.For a team to be successful the members of the team must be able to
give and receive feedback.
3. Team Problem Solving.An effective team depends on how focused and clear the goal of
the team is. A relaxed, comfortable and accepting environment and finally, open and honest
communication.
4. Team Leadership. Effective team leadership depends on leadership competencies. A
competent leaderis: focused on the goal, ensures acollaborative climate, builds confidenceof

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team members, sets priorities, demonstrates sufficient “know-how” and manage performance
through feedback.
5. Organizational Environment.The climate and culture of the organization must be
conducive to team behavior.
Reasonsforteambuilding:
The overall goals of team building are to increase the teams understanding of team dynamics
and improve how the team works together. Unlike working as a group, working as a team
incorporates group accountability rather than individual accountability and results in a
collective work product. Team-building encourages the team approach to working on a
project. There are many advantages to this approach. These advantages include the following:

 Increasedflexibilityin skills and abilities

 Moreproductivethan work groupswith individual mindset
 Morebeneficialintimesoforganizationalchange
 Encouragebothindividualand teamdevelopmentand improvement
 Focusesongroupgoalstoaccomplishmorebeneficialtasks

Leadershiprolesinteambuilding:
Successfulteamleadersfrequentlycontain sixofthesameleadership abilities.
(1) Ateamleader isusuallygoal-orientedto keepteam theon track.
(2) Theymust promotea safeenvironment wheremembers canopenlydiscussissues.
(3) A leader must build confidence amongst members by building and maintaining trust and
offering the members responsibilities.
(4) Aleader should betechnicallycompetent in matters relatingto team tasks and goals.
(5) It is important for a team leader to set a manageable list of priorities for the team to keep
members focused.
(6) Finally, leaders should offer clear performance expectations by recognizingand rewarding
excellent performance, and provide feedback to others.
Carl Larson and Frank Lafasto conducted a three year study of over 75 diverse teams. By
interviewingkeymembers ofeach team, Larson &Lafasto identified eight effectivestrategies a
leader should employ to enhance team-building:
1. Establishclearandinspiringteamgoals
2. Maintainaresults-orientedteam structure
3. Assemblecompetentteam members

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4. Striveforunified commitment
5. Provideacollaborativeclimate
6. Encouragestandardsofexcellence
7. Furnishexternalsupportandrecognition
8. Applyprincipledleadership
Team culture
In an effective teamculture, the concept of context is addressed. Team members understand
why they are participating on the team and how the team fits within their organization.Team
members spend time defining their team culture by agreeing upon team norms and
expectations within the company’s overall team context. Finally, team members understand
that 20%oftheproblems theywill experienceas a team will fall within thecontext ofthetask or
mission the team is assigned to accomplish. The other 80% of the problems will relate to their
team culture and the processes team members establish and commit to for interacting.
Typesof teambuildingexercises
Team-building exercises consist of a variety of tasks designed to develop group members and
their abilityto work togethereffectively. There are manytypes of team-buildingactivities that
range from games for kids to games and challenges that involve novel and complex tasks that
are designed for improving group performance by addressing specific needs.
Team-building can range from simple social activities - to encourage team members to spend
time together- to team development activities -designed to help individuals discover how they
approach a problem, how the team works together, and discover better methods of
communication.
Team interaction involves "soft"interpersonal skillsincluding communication, negotiation,
leadership, and motivation - in contrast to technical skills directly involved with the job at
hand. Depending on the type of team-building, the novel tasks can encourage or specifically
teach interpersonal team skills to increase team performance.
Whether indoor or outdoor, the purpose of team building exercises is to assist teams in
becoming cohesive units of individuals that can effectively work together to complete tasks.
Communication exercise:This type of team building exercise is exactly what it sounds like.
Communications exercises are problem solving activities that are geared towards improving
communication skills. The issues teams encounter in these exercises are solved by
communicating effectively with each other.
• Goal: Create an activity which highlights the importance of good communication in team
performance and/or potential problems with communication.

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Problem-solving/decision-making exercise:Problem-solving/decision-making exercises focus
specifically on groups working together to solve difficult problems or make complex
decisions. These exercises are some of the most common as they appear to have the most
direct link to what employers want their teams to be able to do.
• Goal: Give team a problem in which the solution is not easily apparent or requires the team
to come up with a creative solution
Planning/adaptability exercise: These exercises focus on aspects of planning and being
adaptable to change. These are important things for teams to be able to do when they are
assigned complex tasks or decisions.
• Goal:Showtheimportanceof planningbeforeimplementingasolution
Trust exercise:A trust exercise involves engaging team members in a way that will induce
trust between them. They are sometimes difficult exercises to implement as there are varying
degrees of trust between individuals and varying degrees of individual comfort trusting others
in general.
• Goal:Createtrustbetweenteam members

Conclusion

a) Ateam is agroupofpeople workingtowards a common goal.

b) Teambuildingisa processof enablingthe teamto achievethatgoal.

c) Thestages involved in team buildingincluding clarifyingthe goal, identifyingtheinhibitors

and removing them.

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References

 http://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/interpersonal-communication.html#ixzz3Zo3C60Js
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversation
 http://www.wikihow.com/Start-a-Conversation-When-You-Have-Nothing-to-Talk-About
 10Sure-FireStrategiestoImproveYourVocabulary
 https://litemind.com/top-3-reasons-to-improve-your-vocabulary/
 http://grammar.about.com/od/c/g/collocationterm.htm
 http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/prefixes-and-suffixes
 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/analogy
 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/idiom
 http://examples.yourdictionary.com/phrase-examples.html
 http://grammar.about.com/od/e/g/etymologyterm.htm
 http://www.esmonline.org/webpages/tdonahue/index.cfm?subpage=1873266

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