Module 3 Communication Skills

Transcription

1 [As with all these modules, teachers should shape the session and choose activities according to the length of time available.] Overview Activity Secret Whispers Listening Quiz Different types of communication Active Listening and potential barriers to communication Timing 15 mins 15 mins 10 mins 40 mins Page 1 of 7

2 Secret Whispers Individuals receive and process information in different ways. To enable us to understand how this two-way process works and to test the different facets of our communication skills, we are going to play a game of Secret Whispers, but with a twist. Divide the students into teams of four and ask them to each pick one of the following roles: Illustrator Speaker Mime Artist Receiver Give the Illustrator and Receiver a clipboard with pen and paper/or a flipchart. Explain that it is a race between teams to complete the activity first Invite the teams to stand in a line spanning the room in the order of Illustrator, Speaker, Mime Artist then Receiver The Illustrator should face away from the rest of the team Give the Illustrator a piece of paper with the sentence When ants touch each other with their antennae it is one way they communicate Instruct the Illustrator not to show this to their team When you give the signal to start, the Illustrator should read this sentence to themselves They must then communicate this to the Speaker by drawing, they are not allowed to write any words The Speaker is not allowed to talk to the Illustrator but can communicate with them using signs or drawing The Speaker then whispers what they think the sentence is to the Mime Artist The Mime artist then mimes the sentence to the Receiver who writes down what they think the sentence is You may invite the students to switch roles and use another sentence if you wish At the end of the activity, compare the finished sentence with the original to see how good team communication was The quickest group will be the winner unless their sentences do not match up well or if you think they have cheated. Some Pointers Lead a discussion on the following: How did the Illustrators feel only being able to communicate by drawing? What difficulties did they find/see? Did they experience any frustrations? (You could relate this to the frustrations exhibited by young children learning to speak) Why was this happening? Which role in the activity was most difficult? Why? Was it because students felt outside their comfort zones? What have the students learnt during the activity? Page 2 of 7

3 Listening Quiz Ask each student to have a pen and paper ready to write down their answers to the following 10 questions. Each question will only be read once: 1 One month has 28 days; of the remainder, how many have 0? 2 Is there a law against a man marrying his widow s sister? If you had only a match and entered a room that had a gas lamp, an oil heater and a wooden stove, which would you light first? 4 A man builds a house with 4 sides, each side facing south, a bear comes up to the front door, what colour is it? 5 How many of each species did Moses lead on to the Ark? 6 How far can a dog run into the woods? 7 Take 2 apples from apples, what do you have? 8 How much dirt is there in a hole 4 x 2 x 2? 9 A farmer had 17 sheep, all but 9 died, how many did he have left? 10 If you drive a bus from London with 12 passengers, up to Leeds where 4 get off and 7 get on, then over to Manchester where get off and 7 get on and finally to Liverpool where they all get off, what is the driver s name? Different types of communication Split the students into small groups and ask them to write down all the different types of communication they can think of. Flipchart the responses and discuss each leading into when it s appropriate to use them. Face to face when you require a more personal response and need to see body language Telephone when you need to confirm details, gather information the best use of confirming a situation or answering a question that needs written proof Text for quick responses, possibly personal and informal Letter see above Skype/Video conference useful to see people s responses Body language can provide insights into what people are thinking/feeling Facial expressions as above. The last two are open to interpretation and can be perceived differently by each individual. Answers Impossible or No The match 4 White (North Pole) 5 None (Noah) 6 Half way (he s then on his way out of the woods) 7 2 (you have 2) 8 None (it s a hole) Your name (you drive the bus). Page of 7

4 Active Listening and responding positively Objectives The concept of Active Listening will be used to help students understand the importance of thorough questioning and not making assumptions. How it will work Share the idea that we often live in a place where we just hear, rather than listen: when the TV is on, when we are talking to friends, when we are on the phone. There is a lot of noise around us and we choose what we hear. Explain to the group that this is an Active Listening exercise. Ask the students to put everything away in a few moments they will need a pen but, for now, only their ears and brains are required. Explain that you will read out a passage that is only four sentences long. You will then ask them ten true or false questions based on what they have heard. Slowly and carefully, read out (exactly, word for word) the following four sentences: A businessman had just turned off the lights in the store when a man appeared and demanded money. The owner opened the cash register. The contents of the cash register were scooped up and the man sped away. A member of the police force was notified promptly. Read the sentences again, a little quicker, so that the information sinks in. Hand out the answer sheets and give the students two minutes to complete it ask them not to confer. Share the correct answers (see page 7). Share these points if they have not been mentioned: Only q and q6 have definite answers. The others will be assumptions Everyone makes assumptions and gets things wrong People read/hear/see what they want to rather than what is actually there We must consider all options before resorting to making an assumption. To reach the correct answers, we must have heard then listened and we would have needed to ask more questions before deciding on what our answers would be. Potential barriers to communication Objectives This session will help students recognise barriers to effective communication and encourage them to develop strategies that will overcome those barriers. How it will work Divide students into groups and give each group a flipchart and pen. Ask them to list as many barriers that hinder successful communication as they can. Page 4 of 7

5 Allow students around five minutes to complete their lists. Look for: Distractions Time Venue temperature/space Body language/eye contact Boring voices Lack of confidence/skill Lack of trust Lack of understanding/languages Over communication/ too much detail Technical content/ jargon Lack of understanding of what the audience wants or needs Inadequate feedback/ not checking for understanding Emotional interference for example, can you really send out a clear message when you are upset? The degree of knowledge and understanding of the communicator and audience The quality of information The use of an appropriate medium Lack of trust or honesty in the source Cultural differences Poor listening skills The position or status of the source. Once the students have completed their lists, invite them to place their flipcharts side by side. Compare the flipcharts. Some Pointers What similarities are there? Do they all agree with the lists? What else would they add? How to overcome these barriers How it will work Let s think about how we can remove or minimise the barriers that have been identified. To help us to do this, we can group the barriers into the following categories: Who and What Who we are communicating to the audience and what we are communicating the content Where and why Where we are communicating and why we are doing so When and How When and how to communicate. Divide the students into three groups and allocate one of the categories above to each group. Issue each group with a flipchart and pens. Allow students approximately five minutes to complete the activity. Invite them to prevent their findings. Look for: Who: Consider your audience Make it relevant to them Check your language: is it appropriate? Personal barriers What: Content of communication What do the audience need to know? Ensure it is relevant Accuracy, spelling, grammar, correct facts Preparation Tone of voice Page 5 of 7

6 Where: The venue is it convenient/accessible for all May need somewhere private i.e. for confidential discussions, not public space Check the environment, temperature, comfort, etc. Remove any distractions, noises/ sounds, cleanliness Can everyone attend? May need to consider other methods of communication to reach everyone Why: Objective of communication What do you want to happen? Why are you communicating this message? Select the most appropriate communication method for your audience. Some Pointers Ensure that the students justify/explain the choices they have made and how they can help remove barriers to effective communication. Homework Ask the students to complete the questions in the Learning Journal section of the Personal workbook: What have you achieved today? How will you apply the learning? When: Timing do you need to speak to an individual prior to a group arriving? Convenient time for the majority How long the communication is likely to take, will people listen for that long? How: Noticeboard Newsletter Team talk Telephone call Letter Text Tweet One-to-one chat Group discussion Page 6 of 7

7 Listening Exercise The Answers/Solutions Q1. A man appeared after the owner had turned off his store lights. A1. The statement is FALSE. It does not say the businessman who turned off the lights was the owner. Q2. The robber was a man. A2. The statement is FALSE. It does not say that the man who appeared was a robber, he could have been a milkman asking for payment, a courier needing cash on delivery Q. The man did not demand money. A. The statement is FALSE. He did demand money. Q4. The man who opened the cash register was the owner. A4. The statement is FALSE. It does not say the owner was a man. Q5. The storeowner scooped up the contents of the cash register and ran away. A5. The statement is FALSE. It does not say who scooped up the contents. It also says sped away, which could be in a car, on a motorbike Q6. Someone opened a cash register. A6. The statement is TRUE. Someone did open a cash register (the owner). Q7. After the man who demanded the money scooped up the contents of the cash register, he ran away. A7. The statement is FALSE. The story does not say who scooped up the contents, also the story says he sped away, which could have been in a car, etc Q8. The robber demanded money of the owner. A8. The statement is FALSE. It does not state that the man was a robber, or that he asked the owner for anything. Q9. The story concerns a series of events in which only three persons are referred to: the owner of the store, a man who demanded money and a member of the police force. A9. The statement is FALSE. We can t assume the owner is the businessman. Q10. The following events were included in the story. Someone demanded money, a cash register was opened, its contents were scooped up and a man dashed out of the store. A10. The statement is FALSE. The story states the man sped away, which could be upstairs, behind fixtures, into a cellar Page 7 of 7