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Siksha Srijan Academy Of Technology and Management

SIKSHA SRIJAN ACADEMY OF TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT

Contact : 7449393135 / 6291355543
BHM (3rd semester)
Health education and communication

What is Communication?

Communication styles change from person to person. During the process

of communication, a person may invoke several channels or modes or
methods to convey a message. But, the process of communication doesn’t
only depend on the source producing or relaying information.

It also equally depends on the communication method and the manner in

which the receiver understands the message. Let us first understand the
method by which we communicate.

Communication begins at a given point. The first step is the generation of

information. The second step is to put this information or data into a
medium for transmission towards the intended audience.

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Three Simple Definitions

• Communication means sharing of information
• Communication is the giving and receiving of messages
• Communication is the transfer of information from one or more people
to one or more other people.

Definition of Communication:

Communication can broadly be defined as exchange of ideas, messages

and information between two or more persons, through a medium, in a
manner that the sender and the receiver understand the message, I.E.,
develop common understanding of the message.

The word communication is derived from the Latin word ‘communicare’,

which means to share, impart, participate, exchange, transmit or to make
common. It emphasises on sharing common information, ideas and
messages. It is not merely issuing orders and instructions.

“Communication is the transfer of information from a sender to a receiver,

with the information being understood by the receiver”. — Koontz and
Weihrich

“Communication is the art of developing and attaining understanding

between people. It is the process of exchanging information and feelings
between two or more people and it is essential to effective management.”
— Terry and Franklin

“Communication is the sum of all things one person does when he wants
to create understanding in the mind of another. It is a bridge of meaning. It

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involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening and

understanding.” — Allen Louis

“Communication is the process by which people attempt to share meaning

via the transmission of symbolic messages.” — Stoner and Wankel

 COMMUNICATIONS PROCESS

Communications is a continuous process which mainly involves three

elements viz. sender, message, and receiver. The elements involved in the
communication process are:

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1. Sender: The sender or the communicator generates the message and

conveys it to the receiver. He is the source and the one who starts the
communication.

2. Message: It is the idea, information, view, fact, feeling, etc. that is

generated by the sender and is then intended to be communicated
further.
3. Encoding: The message generated by the sender is encoded
symbolically such as in the form of words, pictures, gestures, etc.
before it is being conveyed.

4. Media: It is the manner in which the encoded message is

transmitted. The message may be transmitted orally or in writing. The
medium of communication includes telephone, internet, post, fax, e-
mail, etc. The choice of medium is decided by the sender.

5. Noise: It refers to any obstruction that is caused by the sender,

message or receiver during the process of communication. For
example, bad telephone connection, faulty encoding, faulty
decoding, inattentive receiver, poor understanding of message due to
prejudice or inappropriate gestures, etc.

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6. Receiver: He is the person who is last in the chain and for whom the
message was sent by the sender. Once the receiver receives the
message and understands it in proper perspective and acts according
to the message, only then the purpose of communication is
successful.
7. Decoding: It is the process of converting the symbols encoded by the
sender. After decoding the message is received by the receiver.

8. Feedback: Once the receiver confirms to the sender that he has

received the message and understood it, the process of
communication is complete.

 IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION

1. The Basis of Co-ordination: The manager explains to the employees the

organizational goals, modes of their achievement and also the
interpersonal relationships amongst them. This provides coordination
between various employees and also departments. Thus,
communications act as a basis for coordination in the organization.

2. Fluent Working: A manager coordinates the human and physical

elements of an organization to run it smoothly and efficiently. This
coordination is not possible without proper communication.

3. The Basis of Decision Making: Proper communication provides the

information to the manager that is useful for the decision making. No
decisions could be taken in the absence of information. Thus,
communication is the basis of taking right decisions

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4. Increases Managerial Efficiency: The manager conveys the targets and

issues instructions and allocates jobs to the subordinates. All these
aspects involve communication. Thus, communication is essential for
the quick and effective performance of the managers and the entire
organization.

5. Increases Cooperation and Organizational Peace: The two-way

communication process promotes co-operation and mutual
understanding amongst the workers and also between them and the
management. This leads to less friction and thus leads to industrial
peace in the factory and efficient operations.
6. Boosts Morale of the Employees: Good communication helps the
workers to adjust to the physical and social aspect of work. It also
improves good human relations in the industry. An efficient system of
communication enables the management to motivate, influence and
satisfies the subordinates who in turn boost their morale and keeps
them motivated.

 Theory and/or Models of Communication in Business there is no

single communication model that contains all the elements of a
specific communication situation. The communication theorists
(Specialists) have developed different communication models till
date. Some of the important communication models are discussed
below:

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 Aristotle’s persuasion Model

 Newcomb’s Inter-Personal Communication Model
 Hoveland’s Persuasion Model
 Thayer’s Organizational Communication Model
 Shanon and Weaver’s Informational Theory Model
 Collin and Guetzkowr’s Group Communication Model
 Circular Model of Communication
 Interactional Model of Communication
 Berlo’s S-M-C-R model
 Modern Model of Communication

The above mentioned communication models are elaborately discussed in

the following pages in successive way.
Types / Models of Communication

Aristotle’s Persuasion Model: The Business Communication model

produced by Greek Philosopher Aristotle is popularly known as the
“Aristotle’s Persuasion Model”. According to him, “When any political
leader or a teacher delivers his speech in gathering and in class-room
respectively, their style of speech is included in persuasion model”. The
model is shown below:

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In this model, three elements of Business Communication Process have

been detected. There is no scope of responding by the receiver and his role
is neglected here. This model is considered as a one sided Business
Communication Model.

Newcomb’s Inter-Personal Communication Model: This is one of the

simplest models of Business Communication. In this model, there are three
parties to effective the Communication Process. According to Newcomb,
“There might be a third party between the sender and the receiver and
that third party can manipulate the Communication Process.” The model is
shown below:

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In the figure, there are three parties X, Y and Z and if any two parties want
to communicate with each other, they must depend on the third party and
the third party can influence the Business Communication Process. This
communication Model does not present all the elements of Business
Communication Process, even the sender and the receiver are not
identified here.

Hoveland’s Persuasion Model: This Model is almost same as the Aristotle’s

Persuasion Model but this basic deference between them is that in this
model the audience stays in a certain place and hears the speech and the
feedback of the audience’s response is returned to the speaker. The model
is shown below:

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Thayer’s organizational Communication Model: This model creates a link

between personal Business Communication and organizational structure.
In his model, Thayer has shown that the attempt to accomplish any task
through personal communication greatly influences the process of
organizational communication. The model is shown below:

Thayer has mentioned four levels in this Business Communication Model,

such as-intra-personal or individual, interpersonal, organizational and
technological. This model also shows how a person’s does communication
functions in organizational level. The behavior of sender and receiver can
be influenced by four elements biological, psychological, social and

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technological. Actually, this model shows how communication process is

affected by a person in organizational atmosphere.

Shanon and Weaver’s Information Theory Model: also called Modern

Communication Model. This model shows that the communication process
begins from the brain of the sender. The sender moulds his thought,
concept or ideas into message and sends to the receiver. Then the message
goes to the receiver through certain media and his brain receives it. After
the message being perceived, the reaction of the receiver is sent back to
the source of the message (Sender). The model also includes a transmitter
that converts the message info perceivable signal. The whole process can
be interrupted by noise. The model is shown below:

This Model is one of the most comprehensive models of communication as

it includes feedback and it is very close to the modern model of Business
Communication.

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Collin and Guetzkowr’s Group Communication Model: This model

analyzes the decision making process or communication in small and big or
large groups. The group communication is almost same as organizational
communication. The model is shown below:

From the figure, it is clear that the above three boxes indicate sources of
problem, group behavior and reward of work environment and the three
boxes below indicate sources of pubic behavior, interpersonal behavior and
interpersonal reward. In every group communication, this process is active
and environmental barriers in workplace and interpersonal environmental
barriers largely impact on the group communication behavior.

Circular Model of Communication: In real sense Business Communication

is a Two Way Process where the sender sends the message to the receiver
and after receiving the message, the receiver sends feedback to the sender.
The success of Business Communication Process largely depends on the
reaction or response or feedback of the receiver. The circular model of
communication emphasizes on the feedback system of communication.
The model is presented below:

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The circular model of Business Communication is an important

communication model where greater importance has been given on the
feedback of the receiver which is vitally important for effective Two Way
Communication.

Interactional Model of Communication: Tubbs and Moss have developed

the interactional model of Business Communication. This model shows the
communication process as an exchange process of message between the
parties. The model is shown below:

The figure shows that person X (Sender) sends a message to person Y

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(Receiver). Y becomes the sender when he sends response to X, who

becomes the receiver this time. This process will be continued until the
desired result of the parties is achieved. This is Two Way Business
Communication Model.

Berlo’s S-M-C-R Model: The S-M-C-R model of Business Communication

was developed by David K. Berlo in 1960. Where S stands for source, M for
message, C for Channel and R for receiver. The model is shown below:

The model shows that the source (Sender) transmits the message to the
receiver through some channel. It also indicates that both the sender
(Source) and the receiver are influenced by their own culture, social
system, knowledge, attitudes, communication skills and other factors.
Though this model doesn’t emphasize on feedback, it is a comprehensive
model, because it shows how the sender and the receiver can be
influenced by various factors that may also act as the sources of noise.

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The Modern Model of Communication: Over the period of time Business

Communication Process has been developed a lot. The communication
theorists are still investing their endeavour to make the Business
Communication system more compressive and conceivable by including
important and new items or elements in it. The modern communication
model has important and new items or elements in it. The Modern
Communication model has evolved from Shanon and Weaver’s information
Theory Model. The modern communication model is presented below:

Types Models of Communication in Business the Modern Business

Communication Model includes nine elements and emphasizes duly on the
feedback system. The figure shows that sender and receiver are the major
parties in the communication process; message and media are the major
communication tools, encoding, decoding, response and feedback are the
major communication functions and the last element is noise that can
create interruption at stage of the Business Communication Process.

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 The Broad Categories of Communication

Let us delve deep into the 5 types of communication observed between

the group of people or a formal team.

1) Verbal Communication - Verbal communication can also be called as

Oral communication. In very simple terms, any communication that
happens orally between people is known as verbal communication. The
objective of such communications is to ensure that people understand
whatever you want to convey. Because of its very nature, verbal
communications is more quick and precise then email communication.

In the era of messaging via Whatsapp or using email, people still prefer
personal meetings or phone calls (or face to face Skype calls) because they
are effective and much more convenient in conveying the message.

Nowadays, Verbal communication is an important aspect and is looked as a

key strength in an individual.

A manager or an executive needs to have good verbal communication

skills. A manager has to handle a team of people and he needs to be skilled
to convince the team of people in acting like he wants them to. Executives
meet many customers who are each different in terms of their
understanding and talking skills. Thus, Executives to need excellent verbal
communication skills.

The higher up an organization you go, the better should be the verbal skills
that you have. This is because you need to ensure that your speech is
precise and to the point and does not leave any scope for any
misunderstanding.

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An M.D or a C.E.O may be giving a television interview which is being

watched by 100’s of stakeholders of the company. Their speech and verbal
communication need to be precise so that they don’t mess up or are not
misunderstood. Even in tough times, the verbal communication skills of
these leaders play a major part in consoling the crowd.

Example of people who were great at the verbal communication (Great

ORATOR)

• Nelson Mandela
• Martin Luther King
• John F Kennedy
• Jawaharlal Nehru

2) Non-verbal / Interpersonal communication

How do you make people feel when you enter the room? Is your body
language strong and are you standing straight and erect or are you
slouched and tired? Are you clean shaven, looking your immaculate best
for a team meeting or are you shabby with shirts that are not ironed?
When you shake hands, do you do so strongly or do you just brush your
hand against others?
The above were some examples of Non-verbal communications or
interpersonal communications. One of the HR requirements for new
joiners in an organization is for them to have good interpersonal skills. This

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basically means that the employees should brush up on their non-verbal

skills.

If you were in a sales meeting and you have not achieved your target, how
will you react? Will you be steady and calm or will you panic and stutter?
These are important non-verbal skills and your growth might depend on
them.

A manager who panics and who is not good at non-verbal communication

will generally not be a favorite with his team members. This is because his
team members do not look up to him. A manager who stutters, who is not
well dressed, who has the wrong body language or someone who is not a
strong personality, will not gather a huge following behind him.

However, people with good personalities go a long way in motivating the

employees below them. If an employee is demotivated, just keeping a
hand on their shoulder and saying a few motivating words is enough for
the employee. Taunting them or making faces when talking to them,
ignoring them completely or imitating them will demotivate the employee
even further. Thus, non-verbal skills play a major role in office culture.

As employees grow into managers and as managers grow into leaders, they
become better and better at a non-verbal type of communications. They
know that their own calm headed behavior at times of panic is what will
keep the team in check. Similarly, they don’t let their teams get
complacent when the going is good.
Example of the Non-verbal type of communications

In Customer service, non-verbal and interpersonal skills play a huge role.

Imagine you were unhappy with a product and you went to the customer

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service department. Instead of understanding your problem, the customer

service executive gives a rude reply. Repeatedly you visit them and even
though the problem is not resolved, you don’t get a satisfactory answer.

Compare that with a customer service department which smiles when you
come in. They reassure you that they are on top of your problem. They are
proactive and update you themselves on when to expect the problem to
be resolved. Later on, they follow up whether you were satisfied with the
response and if there was anything they could do further.

This smile, the body language of reassurance, the listening ability are all
non-verbal type of communications. A good customer service executive
will pay special attention to them and will ensure that you leave satisfied!
Hiring good customer service executives, who have great interpersonal
skills, is the sign of a good organization which is focused on customer
satisfaction.

3) Written Communications - There are many ways that written

communications can be used. The number of ways is ever increasing with
the penetration of smartphones and the internet. One of the most
common forms of written communications used till date is Email. But
slowly, written type of communications is becoming more informal with
Whatsapp and other online messaging apps being used regularly.
All different forms of written communication can be formal or informal. If
today, we visit a court of law, you will find that even Whatsapp messages
are considered to be legal in nature. In fact, there have been so many cases
of celebrities brought under the scanner because of wrong written
communications on their social media account.

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Thus, the above example is further proof that written communication

needs to be used safely and effectively. In fact, written communication
between friends can be informal but this type of communication between
working professionals should always be formal so that any misquoted
words are not misused with ill intent.

The advantage of written communication is that it acts as the final word

once a decision has been taken. When you quote your prices to the
customer, when you rank a dealer on top, when you promote an employee
or when you launch a new product, you use written communication to
communicate the update to your team and your employees.

A problem with written communication is that it becomes too formal and

might incite ego or various political problems when written communication
is used. Newspapers are perfect examples of written words which create
controversy.

There is a very apt quotation “Words are mightier than swords”. A wrong
email delivered in the wrong hands can cause the world to turn upside
down. The many emails and documents released by Edward Snowden
which brought the US government under the scanner, are perfect examples
of how to use written documents safely and privately otherwise they can
bring a whole organization tumbling down (whether justified or not is a
different discussion)

4) Formal & Informal - There are two types of communication when

considering the formality of the communication. One is the formal and
official type of communication which can be emails, letterheads, memos,
reports and other such kinds of written material. These are considered as

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documentary evidence and certain formality is associated with them. You

cannot submit such formal documents and later deny them.
Informal communication is one where there is nothing official about the
communication that is happening. It can be known as Grapevine
communication. There is no specific channel of informal communication
because there is Social media, Whatsapp, SMS which are all vehicles of
informal communication which can be used by people.

Advantages of formal communication

• When you want to finalize policy and want to decide a course to adopt,
then formal communication is more effective
• Formal communication can help in establishing procedures and ensuring
that the steps are followed.
• Any promises or any official plans need to be formally documented so that
they can be referred to later.

Advantages of informal communication

• Informal communication helps the “Open door policy” and makes people
more confident and forthcoming with their ideas and creativity.  Informal
communication does not incite fear into peoples mind  Informal talks
encourage people to share their problems.

The problem with formal communication is that it is not personal and a

distance is maintained if you use only formal communications. Whereas on
the other hand, informal conversations can get out of hand and there can
be negative grapevine generated.

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5) Visual Communication - One of the industries which most prominently

uses Visual communication is the medical industry. New medicines which
come into the market have to be shown to doctors and the advantages
have to be explained. At such times, the medical representatives carry
informative pamphlets which are shown to the doctors and dropped with
the doctors.
These informative pamphlets have all the information about the medicine
so that doctors can feel confident in suggesting the medicine to their
patients. Similarly, many different industries are using
visual communication to help interaction with their customers so that
they can communicate their ideas better. Explainer videos as a concept is
rising and is becoming as one of the best types of communication observed
on websites.

There are many elements in visual communication that can be used by

marketers or companies.

• Colors (such as brand colors)

• Design (logo and brand design)
• Advertising
• Animations
• Illustrations
• Typography
• Presentations
• Video resume’s

In person to person communication too visual communication plays a role.

Consider the diagrams made by teachers on blackboards when explaining a
concept to a class of students. Or we can also take the example of graphs

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made in powerpoint by managers when doing a powerpoint presentation

to a team of executives or seniors.

To summarize, the type of communication most common are

In teams:
• Formal Communication
• Verbal Communication and Non-verbal communication
• Written communication
• Visual communication

In group of people:
• Informal Communication
• Verbal and Non-verbal communication
• Informal written communications
Above were all the different types of communications used by a group of
people or between the team.

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Types and Modes of Communication

1. Interpersonal
2. Interpretive
3. Presentational

THREE MODES OF COMMUNICATION

Interpersonal Interpretive Presentational

Two-way One-way One-way

communication with communication with communication
active negotiation of no recourse to the intended for an
meaning among active negotiation of audience of readers,
individuals meaning with the listeners, or viewers
writer, speaker, or
producer

Spontaneous Reader, listener or Presentation of

viewer interprets what information; not
Usually involves the author, speaker, or exchange
exchange of producer wants the
information receiver of the No direct
message to understand opportunity for the

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Meaningful active negotiation of

meaning exists

Participants observe Interpretation differs To ensure the and

monitor one from comprehension intended audience is another to
see how and translation in that successful in its their
meanings and it implies the ability to interpretation, the
intentions are being read, listen or view “presenter”
communicated and “between the lines,” needs make
adjustments and including knowledge of clarifications
understanding from the accordingly within the cultural
audience’s language mindset or perspective and culture

Speaking and listening Reading of authentic Writing (messages,

(conversation) texts (websites, stories articles,
and other literature, advertisements, flyers,
Reading and writing articles, signs) brochures, short
(text messages, stories, reports,
messages on social Listening to authentic scripts, Power Point
media, letters) texts (speeches, presentations);
messages, songs, radio
news, ads) Speaking (telling a
story, giving a speech,
Viewing of authentic TV or radio news, materials
(videos, drama presentations movies,
including skits,
presentations, TV presentation to jury)
shows, commercials, news,
plays)

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UNIT-2

LANGUAGE OF COMMUNICATION

Verbal and Non-Verbal - Communication – Written, Oral & Non-Verbal

Communication!

1. Verbal Communication – Written, Oral:

The word verbal means ‘connected with words and use of words.’ Any
communication using words is verbal communication. Words are the most
precise and powerful sets of symbols. Words denote as well as connote
meanings. That is why all serious or formal communication is usually in
words. Words, as we are all aware, can be written or spoken.

Thus, verbal communication can further be divided into two types:

(a) Oral Communication: “A wound inflicted by speech is more painful

than a wound inflicted by a sword”. As the term itself suggests,
communication through the spoken word is known as oral communication.
Of the working time spent in verbal communication : 9 % is in writing, 16
% in reading, 30 % in speaking and 45 % in listening.

In oral communication, words should be chosen very carefully so that what

they connote has the precise shade of meaning. The sender of the
message or his representative is usually the speaker, while the receiver or
his representative, the listener. Listening is also an important aspect of oral
communication.

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Factors in oral communication:

(i) The speaker

(ii) How he speaks
(iii) What he speaks
(iv) To whom he speaks
(v) Whether he receives a feedback

Pre-requisites of oral communication:

(i) Clear and proper pronunciation of words

(ii) Clarity and exactitude
(iii) Conciseness
(iv) Right tone
(v) Right style and vocabulary

Merits of oral communication:

(i) Saving of time and money: Oral communication saves money as well as
time. No money needs to be spent for producing oral communication since
it involves only the spoken word. Oral communication is, therefore,
economical.

Secondly, there is hardly any delay from the time when the sender sends
the message and the receiver receives it. The words are received and
understood as soon as they are spoken. Oral communication, therefore,
saves time, too.

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(ii)Immediate feedback: The feedback in most oral communication is

immediate. The words are received as soon as they are spoken, and the
receiver can also give his reaction immediately. The speaker can gauge the
mood and the response of the listener. The immediate feedback is an
advantage for the speaker.

(iii) Saves paperwork: Paperwork is minimal since communication is in

the form of spoken words.

(iv) An effective tool for exhortation: When the communication is oral,

you can try to persuade the listener. Doubts can be cleared immediately.

(v)Builds a healthy climate: A friendly atmosphere is created when you

communicate orally since there is less formality. You can also make
modifications in the communication immediately on the basis of the
feedback and response from the listener.

(vi) Best tool during emergency: Oral communication is the quickest

tool during an emergency. It is the best method of communication when
an immediate and fast response is critical.

Demerits of oral communication (limitations):

(i) Greater chances of misunderstanding: Unless it is recorded, you cannot

refer to an oral message again. There are, therefore, greater chances of a
message being misunderstood or misinterpreted. In fact, there is also a
chance that the message may not be understood at all.

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(ii)Bad speaker: Only an individual who can satisfy all the requisites of
effective oral communication can produce good results. More often than
not, a bad speaker may send the wrong message. When speaking, one
communicates through the articulation, voice modulation and body
language, too.

A message may be misunderstood if there is a disharmony among these

components. Also, as mentioned earlier, what the words connote and
what they denote should be in harmony, else the message may lead to a
conflict in understanding.

(iii) Ineffective for lengthy communication: Oral communication is not

useful for lengthy communication. Because of human limitations, there is
every likelihood that something important will be missed out.

(iv) Lower retention rate: Oral communication suffers from the

drawback of a low retention rate. A listener may absorb only some part of
an oral message since the attention span differs from person to person.
People also tend to forget an oral message quickly.

(v)No legal validity: Oral communication lacks proof of record. There is no

permanent record or proof of what has been said. An individual who has
given a message may deny it later; similarly, an individual who has been
given an oral message or instruction may say he never received it. Hence,
oral communication has very little value from the legal point of view.

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(vi) Difficult to fix responsibility: Since a message is transmitted orally,

it is difficult to fix responsibility. This may also lead to carelessness in the
implementation of a message.

(b) Written communication:

A message constitutes written communication when it is put in “black and
white.” It is a formal type of communication. The sender of the message or
his representative constitutes the writer.

Written communication is usually considered binding on business

organizations and is often used as evidence. Technological advancement
has enlarged the gamut of written communication through email and
other such facilities.

Factors in written communication:

(i) The writer

(ii) The content
(iii) The language used
(iv) The purpose of the communication
(v) The style adopted – formal or friendly
(vi) The receiver

Pre-requisites of written communication:

(i) How much to put in writing

(ii) What to leave out
(iii) When to stop
(iv) When to convey

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(v) By what means to convey

Merits:

(i) Precise and accurate: Written communication is generally prepared with

great care and precision. The very prospect of writing makes a person
conscious. You have to be very serious and organised while communicating
in the written form, because written communication is open to
verification.

(ii)Easily verified: Since written communication is on paper etc., it can be

read and re-read. It also offers itself to verification. There is also, thus, less
‘chance of someone twisting the message to his or her own advantage.

(iii) Permanent record: Written communication constitutes a

permanent record. It also acts like evidence. It proves very useful for
future reference as it can be preserved for years. For example, old orders
and decisions can serve as the basis for new ones.

(iv) Suitable for lengthy and complicated messages: Lengthy and

complicated messages can be understood better when they are in the
written form rather than in the oral. There is less chance of
misinterpretation and misunderstanding. Also, the language used is less
subject to change.

(v)Responsibility can be easily fixed: In written communication,

responsibilities of sender and receiver can be fixed easily. People have the
tendency of shifting responsibilities for mistakes, but this is difficult if the
onus is obvious in black and white.

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(vi) Has legal validity: Written communication is acceptable as a legal

document. Written communication has been used as evidence since time
immemorial.

Demerits:

(i) Slower method of communication: Written communication can be

timeconsuming since it may take even two or even three days to reach the
receiver (by letters, for instance). By contrast, oral communication is
immediate.

(ii)Further delay if clarifications are required: Written communication

hampers quick clarifications. The receiver may write back for clarifications
and wait for a reply, making the process tedious. Even if clarifications are
not needed, there is still a delay between the time the sender writes a
message and the receiver receives it.

(iii) Leads to too much of paperwork: Since written communication is

basically done on paper, one may tend to use it as escape mechanism
Paper-free offices remain a dream.

(iv) Always a possibility of ambiguity or lack of comprehensibility: It is

quite possible that the receiver is not able to comprehend the exact
meaning of a written message that he has received. The clarity of a written
message also depends upon the skill, or the lack of it, in the sender. If the
message has not been written properly, it will not be understood, either.

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(v)Costly in terms of money and man-hours: Writing letters is a costly

process not only because you need to spend money on postage, but also
because several persons are involved in the process of sending out a letter
from an organization. Their time costs organization money. While oral
communication can be short and quick, written communication, because
of its very nature, tends to be lengthy.

(vi) No flexibility: The written word is not subject to instant change

after communication. Therefore, conveying an afterthought may prove
very lengthy, and, at times, even impossible.
(vii) Literacy essential: It goes without saying that in written
communication, the sender as well as the receiver should be literate. In
fact, we may wrongly presume that they are so. In many Asian Countries,
where literacy is low, a written message will be meaningless for large
masses of illiterate persons.

Literacy also means literacy in the language of the message. The receiver
should know the language in which a message has been written. It is no
use receiving a message in English if you are not conversant with that
language.

Notwithstanding its limitations, it can be safely concluded that written

communication remains the spine of an organisation. Almost all formal
communication is in the written form.

Visual Aids:

A visual aid type of written communication in the form of an illustration in

tabular, graphic, schematic or pictorial from. Visual aids help

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communicators to get their message across more effectively to their

audience. Visual aids help by making the material more interesting,
clarifying and simplifying complex subjects and highlighting important
points for better retention by the audience.

A checklist for creating effective visuals is given below:

(i) Visuals should be simple and easy to understand and the design and
layout should contribute to the overall understanding of the subject.

(ii) Visuals should depict the data accurately and important points should
be emphasized.

(iii) Visuals should be appropriate for the intended audience.

(iv) Care should be taken that the type-face and fonts are clear and
readable and the captions short and informative.

2. Non-Verbal Communication:

Scientific analysis has shown that body movements and gestures constitute
55% of effective communication. Hence, non-verbal communication merits
great consideration.

Non-verbal communication involves things such as gestures, posture,

physical appearance etc. It takes place without written or spoken words.

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Non-verbal communication is those messages that are expressed by means

other than linguistic. While you can refuse to speak or write, it is
impossible to avoid behaving non-verbally.

Non-verbal communication is classified here in two different ways:

I. Non-verbal

II. a. Body language or kinesics – body movement, facial expressions,

posture, etc.

b. Vocal characteristics – paralanguage

c. Space – proxemics
d. Surroundings
e. Silence

Kinesics:
The study of bodily movement stoat form a part of non-verbal
communication is known as kinesics. It is an integral part our
communication. Existence as a receiver is supposed to observe non-verbal
communication 55% of the time. Our body consciously as well as

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unconsciously, conveys messages, moods attitudes etc. in the same way as

language uses sets of symbols to convey meaning.

(i) Facial expressions: The face is said to be the mirror of the mind.
Whatever we feel reflected on our face. The face can convey energy, anger,
grief, sincerity and a host of other feelings and emotions. A smile means
friendliness, while a frown means anger.

A creased forehead shows worry while a raised eyebrow shows surprise

hence it is very important to exercise a check and control over our feelings.
Although this is a difficult task, you can get positive results with continuous
efforts.

(ii)Gestures: Gestures are small body movements that transmit some

message. It can even be the transmission of specific information. Some
gestures maybe conscious while others may be involuntary. Some gestures
have an almost universal meaning, such as a headshake for a “no” or a
handshake as a “hello”.

Then there are other gestures that may have regional meanings. Strictly
speaking, gestures are a part of body language because our head and
hands tend to communicate by themselves in their own Way.

(iii) Posture: Posture is the position adopted by the body. It helps in

conveying a message. Each movement or position of the body has
expressive or defensive functions. Thus, the posture is an important
element in non-verbal communication. It reveals a great deal about an
individual.

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Posture concerns the overall bearing of the body. It includes the angle of
inclination and the position of the arms and the legs. A raised head
indicates openness, while a tilted head indicates curiosity.

However, one should remember that none of these postures have any
specific meanings of their own. They acquire meanings in association with
other symbols and in the context of communication.

(iv) Clothes: A man is often judged by his appearance. His clothes play
an important role in enhancing his personality. Shabbily dressed people
may cut a sorry figure. It is vital for one to look professional and efficient.
Accessories also play a major role in non-verbal communication.

Clothes and accessories relate to physical as well as socio-cultural

characteristics. Sometimes, clothes and accessories manage to live up to
the expectations of the receiver, while at times they send a message
through a violation of these expectations.

(v)Eye contact: Eyes are the windows to the soul. Eye contact constitutes a
very important factor of face-to-face communication. Through eye-
contact, the speaker gets signals whether the channel of communication is
open.

Discomfiture or nervousness results only in a brief eye contact; on the

other hand, a long and fixed gaze shows interest. Depending on our
feelings, we have smiling eyes, angry eyes, painful eyes, evasive eyes, and
so on.

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(vi) Silence: Silence speaks louder than words. It lays down the
relationship between communicators and their attitude towards each
other. Silence shows the inability to converse further. A student who has
not done his homework will stay mum when the teacher asks him for it.

Indicators of Non-verbal Communication:

Positive: (ii) Defensive (iv) Supercili

(i) Smile arms / legs ous
(ii) Open (iii) Slow expressions
posture (iii) speech (iv) (v) Immoder
Interested Fretting ate eye
expression (iv) expressions (v) contact
Moderate eye Deceitful looks
contact
(v) Accurate pitch
and volume of voice
Negative – Aggressive:
(i) Harsh voice
Negative – Submissive: (ii) Wagging finger
(i) Floundering voice (iii) Fast speech

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Body language:

Body language stands for the way the body communicates without words,
through the movement of its parts. The nodding of our heads, blinking of
our eyes, waving of our hands, shrugging of our shoulders, etc., are
expressions of our thoughts and feelings.

All these movements are the signals that our body sends out to
communicate. That is why this area of study has been called body language.
Just as language uses sets of symbols to convey meaning, our body,
consciously as well as unconsciously, conveys messages, attitudes, moods,
status relationships, etc.

The body language is very important. It has been observed that we may play
fast and loose with words, but our body speaks out the truth. Even if we try
to hide the truth or anything that we want to suppress, our body, our eyes,
our gestures may speak out loud and clear.

Paralanguage:
The world of communication that involves signs, signals, pitch, tone and
fluctuations to convey meaning is paralanguage. Para means ‘like’ or ‘akin’.
Paralanguage means “like language,” but not actually a language.

Anything that performs the task of communication as a language without

being a language in the conventional sense of the word falls within the
purview of paralanguage. Paralanguage is used to describe a wide range of
vocal characteristics which help to express and reflect the speaker’s
attitude. It is non-verbal because it does not consist of words.

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Verbal communication is concerned with the content of the message – what

is being conveyed? On the other hand, paralanguage is concerned with the
manner in which the message is conveyed – how is it being conveyed?

Paralanguage depends on voice, intonation, pitch, pause, volume, stress,

gestures, and signals. Through pitch and volume variation, stress on words,
etc. one’s voice can convey enthusiasm, confidence, anxiety and the
speaker’s mental state and temperament.

Voice: Voice is the first signal that we receive or use. A good listener can
gauge a lot from the voice itself. There are various categories of voices. A
voice can be sweet, soft, musical, cultivated, pleasant, nasty, clear or
indistinct, among other things. The voice can help reveal a speaker’s
background, mental state, education, sex and temperament.

Intonation: Intonation is the modulation of the voice and the shift in stress.
Intonation is a part of effective communication. For example, a message
with serious content should not be delivered in a high tone, but in a somber
tone.

Pitch: Pitch is the vocal slant of the voice. It is very important because it
reveals the speaker’s frame of mind. An unusually high pitch may reflect
agitation. An unchanging pitch maybe boring or monotonous, decreasing
the listener’s span of attention.

The pitch may also help us understand the speaker’s social position. A
person in a position of authority uses a higher pitch than a subordinate. The
flaring of tempers usually results in a change in the pitch.

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Pause: A pause emphasizes a message. A pause is to speech what a comma

is to prose. A pause at the wrong place may lead to miscommunication. For
example, the difference between ‘fruit trees’ and ‘fruit, trees’ is vast.

Volume variation: The speaker should adjust the volume of his voice
depending on the size of the audience. Larger the audience, the louder the
voice should be. Volume variation makes the speech effective. Sometimes
changing from loud to soft and from soft to loud have the desired effect.
Mixed signals: Mixed signals occur when the tone, pitch and facial
expressions of the speaker do not match the words that he is speaking. This
confuses the listener as to the exact motive of the speaker.

For example, an individual may congratulate another, but his tone may be
cold. In this case, the listener will not be sure whether the speaker is really
happy or is merely fulfilling a formality. Praise delivered in a sarcastic tone
conveys mockery.

Proper word stress: Communication can be made more effective by putting

proper emphasis or stress on the right words.

Overall impression: A message is understood by the listener not only by the

content, but also by the manner in which the speaker conveys it. The
speaker’s bearing, attitude, dressing style, physical appearance, age, gender,
accent and the quality and tone of the voice also affect the message that
gets communicated. For a message to be effective, the overall impression
given by the individual should be in consonance with the message that he
wants to convey.

Advantages of paralanguage:

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(i) No oral communication is complete without paralanguage as it is closely

connected to language itself.

(ii)To a large extent, paralanguage indicates the position and situation of the
speaker, whether in an organisation or in society.

(iii) It also reflects the speaker’s personality and background to a great

extent.

(iv) Paralanguage is indicative of the mental state of the speaker. A

discerning listener can derive the right conclusions from the pitch, tone and
speed of a message. This can often be very useful.
Limitations of paralanguage:

(i) Paralanguage is ‘semi’ or ‘like’ a language. It is not language by itself.

Therefore, not all the advantages associated with actual language can be
attributed to paralanguage.

(ii)Paralanguage involves the drawing of conclusions on the basis of a

number of peripheral (side) attributes. Such drawing of conclusions need
not always be right. In such a case, they may also serve to create undue
bias. This, in itself, makes paralanguage misleading or confusing at times.

(iii) Also, as speakers may come from different backgrounds, cultures

and situations, the conclusions from paralanguage may be difficult to draw,
especially to convey a message in its entirety.

Proxemics or territory or space:

Proxemics is another important type of non-verbal communication. The
term, proxemics is derived from the word proximity, which means
closeness. Proxemics is used with reference to space or territory. A lot of
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communication takes place non-verbally through the sheer manner in which

we use the space around us.

Scholars have also attributed a lot of non-verbal communication to the

colour, design, layout and utilisation of the space around us. This is also
proxemics. The space around us can be broadly classified as under:

Intimate space: Most body movements take place within 18 inches around
us. It is our most intimate circle of space. Only very close people or family
members can enter this space, be it through a whisper, a pat on the back or
a handshake. It means that the less the space between the two persons
communicating, the more intimate is the nature of communication.

Personal space: Personal space extends from 18 inches to four feet where
we have normal conversation with friends, colleagues and associates. It is
used in informal talks and impromptu discussions in which one may not be
averse to taking important decisions.

Social Space: This can be anywhere between four feet and 12 feet. It reflects
a formality of relationship. It also reflects a lack of spontaneous behaviour.
An individual’s responses are more collected and well thoughtout. Social
space reflects reason, planning and control, usually associated with business
communication within a formal relationship.

Public Space: This starts from a distance of 12 feet. One has to raise one’s
voice to be heard. There is a lack of personal feelings and an added sense of
detachment.

Paralanguage:
(i) Reflects feelings and attitudes of the speaker through a wide range of
vocal characteristics.

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(ii) Paralanguage gives important clues about the speaker’s educational,

national/regional background and mental state.
(iii) It is a systematic study of how an individual verbalizes.

Proxemics:

(i) Feelings and attitudes are reflected by the way people use space around
them.
(ii) Proxemics helps us to understand relationships and interaction patterns
between people.
(iii) Proxemics is also concerned with the use of space by groups of people.

Surroundings: How you organize the surroundings also contributes to the

communication. The room where you meet your visitors may be dazzling or
simple. It may be gaudy or sober. The decor of the place, the furniture, and
the artistic pieces that adorn your office, tell about yourself and your taste.

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

Personal Communication:

Personal communications may be one to one communication between

individual at informal (like talk between two friends) or formal level (like an
office discussion); private letters, memos, emails, personal interviews or
telephone conversations. Personal communications are only cited in text
and not included in the reference list, as the information is unable to be
retrieved by others.

Social Communication

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Social communication skills refer to all of the skills we need when using
language to communicate and engage in conversations with other. Social
communication encompasses the following skills:

• Using language for a range of functions, e.g. to provide information; to

question; to negotiate; to suggest; to clarify.
• Conversational skills, e.g. starting and finishing conversations; maintaining a
topic of conversation; taking turns in a conversation.
• Understanding shared and assumed knowledge, i.e. how much information
the listener needs to understand.
• Understanding and using non-verbal communication skills, e.g. eye contact,
facial expression, gesture, proximity and distance.
• Understanding implied meaning
Social Communication has three components:

1. The ability to use language for different purposes (e.g. to greet, inform
people about things, demand, command, request).
2. The ability to adapt language to meet the needs of the listener or situation
(e.g. talking differently to a baby versus an adult, talking louder when there
is lots of noise, being aware of the listener’s knowledge and giving more
information or less when needed).
3. Following the often “unspoken” rules of conversation and storytelling (e.g.
taking turns in conversations, looking at the speaker, standing at an
appropriate distance from the speaker, using facial expressions and
gestures). The rules of conversation are often different across cultures,
within cultures and within different families. It is therefore important for a
person to quickly understand the rules of the person with whom they are
communicating.

Business Communication

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The sharing of information between people within an enterprise that is

performed for the commercial benefit of the organization. In addition,
business communication can also refer to how a company shares
information to promote its product or services to potential consumers.

Communication is neither the transmission of a message nor the message

itself. It is the mutual exchange of understanding, originating with the
receiver. Communication needs to be effective in business. Communication
is the essence of management. The basic functions of management
(Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing and Controlling) cannot be
performed well without effective communication.

Business communication involves constant flow of information. Feedback is

integral part of business communication. Organizations these days are verly
large and involve large number of people. There are various levels of
hierarchy in an organization. Greater the number of levels, the more
difficult is the job of managing the organization. Communication here plays
a very important role in process of directing and controlling the people in
the oragnization. Immediate feedback can be obtained and
misunderstandings if any can be avoided. There should be effective
communication between superiors and subordinated in an organization,
between organization and society at large (for example between
management and trade unions). It is essential for success and growth of an
organization. Communication gaps should not occur in any organization.

Business Communication is goal oriented. The rules, regulations and policies

of a company have to be communicated to people within and outside the
organization. Business Communication is regulated by certain rules and
norms. In early times, business communication was limited to paper-work,
telephone calls etc. But now with advent of technology, we have cell
phones, video conferencing, emails, satellite communication to support

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business communication. Effective business communication helps in

building goodwill of an organization.

Differences between Business Communication and General

Communication

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STRATEGIES & BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION

TOP 10 ESSENTIAL SKI LLS FOR EFFECTIVE

COMMUNICATION
Being able to communicate effectively is an essential skill. Whether it’s in
our business life or our personal relationships, effective communication is
the key to our success. Here are my top ten essential skills for effective
communication. Master these skills now, and they’ll serve you well for a
long time to come!

1. Listening
One of the most important aspects of effective communication is being a
good listener. People do not like communicating with others who are only
interested in telling you what they want to tell you, and don’t listen to what
you have to say. Effective communication requires active listening, so
practice active listening until it becomes second nature to you.

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So what is active listening? Active listening involves hearing and

understanding what a person is saying to you. Unless you understand
clearly what a person is telling you, you can’t respond appropriately. Gain
clarification by asking questions or rephrase what you’re being told, so that
you’re sure you fully understand the message that’s being conveyed to you.
For example, you could say “So, what you’re saying is…”

2. Be Clear and Be Concise

Convey your message using as few words as possible. Whether in person,
via telephone, or email, convey your message clearly, concise and direct. If
you are excessive with your words, the listener will either lose focus or just
be unsure as to what it is that you want. Before speaking give some
thought as to the message you want to convey. This will prevent you
rambling and causing confusion.

3. Be Personable
When communicating face to face with someone, use a friendly tone with a
simple smile, and ask a personal question. These things encourage the other
person to engage in honest, open communication. When using written
communication (e.g. email), you can achieve this by adding a simple
personal message, for example, “How was your weekend?”.

4. Be Confident
Confidence underpins all effective communication. Other people will believe
you will do as you say if you sound confident. Making eye contact, using a
firm but friendly tone (never aggressive), are all ways you can exude
confidence. Remember to always be listening to the other person and
looking out for those nonverbal clues.

5. Be Actionable
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The final important element of professional communication is action.

Especially in my position as project manager, it is important that the people
I work with always know what to expect after we talk. At the end of every
discussion, I try to quickly recap everyone’s next steps, making sure that
everyone understands and agrees upon what will happen next. If we have
different understandings of the expected result of the conversation, this
recap ensures that everyone is on the same page at the end of the
exchange.

6. Empathy
Empathy is the skill of being able to understand and share the feelings of
another person.
Even if don’t agree with the person you’re communicating with, it’s very
important that you understand and respect their view. Simply saying to that
person “I understand what you’re saying”, will let them know that you have
been listening to them, and that you respect their point of view.

7. Always Have An Open Mind

Being an effective communicator requires that every conversation is
approached with a flexible, open mind. This isn’t always easy to achieve, but
is very important to communicating effectively. Always engage in active
listening, and be sure to demonstrate empathy by acknowledging you
understand what the other person’s point of view is. Adopting this approach
will always ensure honest, productive communication.

8. Convey Respect
Other people will be more likely to engage in communication with you if you
respect them and their ideas. Simply addressing another person using their
name, will make them feel appreciated. If communicating via telephone,
always keep focused on the conversation and avoid being distracted in any

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way. When communicating through email, take time to construct and edit
your message, taking care to address the recipient by name.

9. Give and Receive Feedback

Giving and receiving appropriate feedback is an essential communication
skill, particularly for those of us whose roles include managing other people.
Providing constructive feedback, as well as giving someone praise, can
greatly increase motivation and build morale.

It is just as important that you accept and encourage feedback from others.
Always listen to feedback and act positively on it. If you’re unsure about any
aspect of the feedback, simply ask a question to gain clarification from the
other person.

10. Consider The Best Medium for The Job!

The final item on my list is knowing what the best form of communication is
to use. Being mindful of using the best form of communication will result in
your response being a positive one. Consider things such as, who it is you’re
trying to communicate with, how important the topic is, and how busy that
person might be. For example, asking your boss for a raise is never going to
be taken seriously if you do it by text – so consider what’s appropriate!

11. Use of Non-Verbal Communication

The words we choose make up just 7% of the message being conveyed,
which makes non-verbal communication all the more important. Body
language is an important communication tool. Your body language should
help convey your words. Other factors you should consider are things like
the tone of your voice, your hand gestures, and ensuring eye contact.

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A person is going to be encouraged to speak openly with you if you are

relaxed and have a friendly tone. Adopt an open stance position, with
relaxed legs and open arms. It is important that you make eye contact with
the person you are communicating with, but be careful that you do not
stare at them, as this is just uncomfortable. It is just as important that you
recognise the non-verbal signals being displayed by the other
person. These signals will give you an insight into how that person is feeling.

7 C’s of Effective Communication

We communicate all day long; at home, at work, with our next-door

neighbor and at the sports club. We communicate verbally, non-verbally
and in writing. Unfortunately, the message does not always come across as
intended. NOISE! This can lead to miscommunication and (small)
misunderstanding or the wrong impression.

The 7 C’s of effective communication, also known as the seven principles of

communication are a useful way to ensure good and business
communication. The 7 C’s of Effective Communication provide a useful
check list as a result of which both written and verbal communication pass
off in a clear, plain, target group-oriented and well-structured manner.

1. Completeness - The message must be complete and geared to the

receiver’s perception of the world. The message must be based on facts
and a complex message needs additional information and/ or explanation.
A good subdivision of subjects will clarify the message as a result of which
there will be a complete overview of what is said.
2. Concreteness – Concrete business communication is also about a clear
message. This is often supported by factual material such as research data

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and figures. The words used as well as the sentence structure can be
interpreted uni-vocally. Nothing is left to the imagination.
3. Courtesy - In addition to considering the feelings and points of view of the
target group, it is also important to approach the audience in a friendly and
courteous manner. Use of terms that show respect for the receiver
contribute towards effective communication. The same goes for the
manner in which you address someone. Not everyone will be charmed if
you use a familiar form of address and use of a formal address could come
across as too distant. By using the word ‘they’ a larger audience is
immediately addressed.
4. Correctness - A correct use of language has the preference. In written
business communication, grammatical errors must be avoided and stylistic
lapses or a wrong use of verbs are not sufficient either in verbal
communication. A correct use of language increases trustworthiness and
the receiver will feel that they are taken seriously.
5. Clarity- Clear or plain language is characterized by explicitness, short
sentences and concrete words. Fuzzy language is absolutely forbidden, as
are formal language and cliché expressions. By avoiding parentheses and
keeping to the point, the receiver will get a clear picture of the content of
the message. Briefly-worded information emphasizes the essence of the
message.
6. Consideration - Communicating with the target group (Consideration). In
order to communicate well, it is important to relate to the target group and
be involved. By taking the audience into account, the message can be
geared towards them. Factors that play a role in this are for example:
professional knowledge, level of education, age and interests.
7. Conciseness - A message is clear when the storyline is consistent and when
this does not contain any inconsistencies. When facts are mentioned, it is
important that there is consistent, supporting information. Systematically
implementing a certain statement or notation also contributes to clear

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business communication. When statements are varied, they will confuse the
receiver.

Effective Communication: Barriers and Strategies

Some basic skills can help you to be a more effective communicator in the
classroom. This Teaching Tip explores:

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Barriers to listening and strategies for effective listening;

• Barriers to accurate perception and strategies for accurate perception; and,

• Barriers to effective verbal communication and strategies for effective

verbal communication.

Barriers to listening

• Focusing on a personal agenda. When we spend our listening time

formulating our next response, we cannot be fully attentive to what the
speaker is saying.
• Experiencing information overload. Too much stimulation or information
can make it very difficult to listen with full attention. Try to focus on the
relevant information, and the central points that are being conveyed.
• Criticizing the speaker. Do not be distracted by critical evaluations of the
speaker. Focus on what they are saying - the message - rather than the
messenger.
• Getting distracted by emotional noise. We react emotionally to certain
words, concepts and ideas, and to a myriad of other cues from speakers
(appearance, non-verbal cues such as gestures, etc.). Make a conscious
effort to quiet your own emotional reactions so that you can listen properly.
• Getting distracted by external “noise”. Audible noise may be extremely
distracting. Some things can be minimized – e.g., turn down the ringer on
your phone, and notifications on your phone or computer while meeting
with someone. Other noises may be unavoidable – e.g., construction, other
people. Also, there may be figurative “noise” from the external
environment, such as distracting or inappropriate decor in a room, or
environmental conditions such as the room being too hot or cold.
• Experiencing physical difficulty. Feeling physically unwell, or experiencing
pain can make it very difficult to listen effectively. You may wish to
communicate that this is not a good time, and reschedule the discussion.

Strategies for active listening

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The following strategies are intended to promote active listening, or a type of
listening with the goal to “develop a clear understanding of the speaker’s
concern and also to clearly communicate the listener’s interest in the
speaker’s message” (McNaughton, Hamlin, McCarthy, Head-Reeves, &
Schreiner, 2008, p. 224).

• Stop. Focus on the other person, their thoughts and feelings. Consciously
focus on quieting your own internal commentary, and step away from your
own concerns to think about those of the speaker. Give your full attention
to the speaker.
• Look. Pay attention to non-verbal messages, without letting yourself be
distracted. Notice body language and non-verbal cues to allow for a richer
understanding of the speaker’s point. Remember that “active listeners need
to communicate to the speaker that they are involved and giving the person
unconditional attention” (Weger, Castle, & Emmett, 2010, p. 35).
• Listen. Listen for the essence of the speaker’s thoughts: details, major ideas
and their meanings. Seek an overall understanding of what the speaker is
trying to communicate, rather than reacting to the individual words or
terms that they use to express themselves.
• Be empathetic. Imagine how you would feel in their circumstances. Be
empathetic to the feelings of the speaker, while maintaining a calm centre
within yourself. You need not be drawn into all of their problems or issues,
as long as you acknowledge what they are experiencing.
• Ask questions. Use questions to clarify your understanding, as well as to
demonstrate interest in what is being said.
• Paraphrase. If you don’t have any specific questions to ask, you may choose
to repeat back to the speaker, in your own words, what you have taken
away, in order to allow the speaker to clarify any points (Weger et al.,
2010).

Barriers to accurate perception

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Stereotyping and generalizing. Be careful not to hold on to preconceptions

about people or things. We often have a tendency to see what we want to
see, forming an impression from a small amount of information or one
experience, and assuming that to be highly representative of the whole
person or situation.
• Not investing time. Making assumptions and ignoring details or

circumstances can lead to misconceptions. When we fail to look in-depth

for causes or circumstances, we miss important details, and do not allow for
the complexity of the situation.
• Having a distorted focus. Focusing on the negative aspects of a

conversation or a situation is a habit common to many people. Even though

we may recognize the positive things, we often give more weight to the
negative, allowing one negative comment to overshadow numerous
positive ones.
• Assuming similar interpretations. Not everyone will draw the same

conclusions from a given situation or set of information. Everybody

interprets things differently. Make sure to check for other people’s
interpretations, and be explicit about your own.
• Experiencing incongruent cues. As speakers, and as listeners, we are

constantly and simultaneously sending cues and receiving them from other
people. Try to be consistent with your verbal cues and your body language.
Do not say one thing and express something else through your body
language. Be aware of how your non-verbal communication relates to your
spoken words. If someone else seems to be sending a double message —
by saying one thing and expressing something else in their body language
— ask for clarification.

Strategies for accurate perception

• Analyze your own perceptions. Question your perceptions, and think about
how they are formed. Check in with others around you regularly, and be
aware of assumptions that you are making. Seek additional information and

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observations. You may just need to ask people if your perceptions are
accurate.
• Work on improving your perception. Increase your awareness of barriers to
perception, and which ones you tend towards. Check in with yourself
regularly. Seek honest, constructive feedback from others regarding their
perceptions of you as a means of increasing your selfawareness.
• Focus on others. Develop your ability to focus on other people, and
understand them better by trying to gather knowledge about them, listening
to them actively, and imagining how you would feel in their situation.

Barriers to effective verbal communication

• Lacking clarity. Avoid abstract, overly-formal language, colloquialisms, and

jargon, which obscure your message more than they serve to impress people.
• Using stereotypes and generalizations. Speakers who make unqualified
generalizations undermine their own clarity and credibility. Be careful not to
get stuck in the habit of using stereotypes, or making generalizations about
complex systems or situations. Another form of generalization is
“polarization” or creating extremes. Try to be sensitive to the complexities of
situations, rather than viewing the world in black and white.
• Jumping to conclusions. Confusing facts with inferences is a common
tendency. Do not assume you know the reasons behind events, or that certain
facts necessarily have certain implications. Make sure you have all the
information you can get, and then speak clearly about the facts versus the
meanings or interpretations you attach to those.
• Dysfunctional responses. Ignoring or not responding to a comment or
question quickly undermines effective communication. Likewise, responding
with an irrelevant comment -- one that isn't connected to the topic at hand --
will quash genuine communication. Interrupting others while they are
speaking also creates a poor environment for communication.

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Lacking confidence. Lacking confidence can be a major barrier to effective

communication. Shyness, difficulty being assertive, or low self-worth can
hinder your ability to make your needs and opinions known. Also, a lack of
awareness of your own rights and opportunities in a given situation can
prevent you from expressing your needs openly. See Eison
(1990)’s “Confidence in the Classroom: Ten Maxims for New Teachers” for a
set of maxims to think about when reflecting on your own confidence as a
communicator.

Strategies for effective verbal communication

• Focus on the issue, not the person. Try not to take everything personally,
and similarly, express your own needs and opinions in terms of the job at
hand. Solve problems rather than attempt to control others. For example,
rather than ignoring a student who routinely answers questions in class
with inappropriate tangents, speak with the student outside of class about
how this might disrupt the class and distract other students.
• Be genuine rather than manipulative. Be yourself, honestly and openly. Be
honest with yourself, and focus on working well with the people around
you, and acting with integrity.
• Empathize rather than remain detached. Although professional
relationships entail some boundaries when it comes to interaction with
colleagues, it is important to demonstrate sensitivity, and to really care
about the people you work with. If you don’t care about them, it will be
difficult for them to care about you when it comes to working together.
• Be flexible towards others. Allow for other points of view, and be open to
other ways of doing things. Diversity brings creativity and innovation.
• Value yourself and your own experiences. Be firm about your own rights
and needs. Undervaluing yourself encourages others to undervalue you,
too. Offer your ideas and expect to be treated well.
• Use affirming responses. Respond to other in ways that acknowledge their
experiences. Thank them for their input. Affirm their right to their feelings,

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even if you disagree. Ask questions, express positive feeling; and provide
positive feedback when you can.

Barriers to Communication

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1. Physical Barriers
A communication is a two-way process, distance between the sender and the
receiver of the message is an important barrier to communication.
Noise and environmental factors also block communication.
An example of a physical barrier to communication is geographic distance
between the sender and receiver(s).

2. Language Barriers and/or Semantic Barrier:

Language and linguistic ability may act as a barrier to communication.
However, even when communicating in the same language, the terminology
used in a message may act as a barrier if it is not fully understood by the
receiver(s). For example, a message that includes a lot of specialist jargon and
abbreviations will not be understood by a receiver who is not familiar with the
terminology used.
Regional colloquialisms and expressions may be misinterpreted or even
considered offensive. See our page: Effective Speaking for more information.

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Semantic is the science of meaning. The same words and symbols carry
different meanings to different people. Difficulties in communication arise

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when the sender and the receiver of the message use words or symbols in
different senses. The meaning intended by the sender may be quite different
from the meaning followed by the receiver. People interpret the message in
terms of their own behaviour and experience. Sometimes, the language used
by the sender may not at all be followed by the receiver.

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3. Psychological / Attitudinal Barriers

The psychological state of the communicators will influence how the message
is sent, received and perceived. For example: If someone is stressed they may
be preoccupied by personal concerns and not as receptive to the message as
if they were not stressed.

Stress management is an important personal skill that affects our

interpersonal relationships. See our pages Stress: Symptoms and Triggers and
Avoiding Stress for more information.

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Anger is another example of a psychological barrier to communication. When

we are angry it is easy to say things that we may later regret, and also to
misinterpret what others are saying.
More generally people with low self-esteem may be less assertive and
therefore may not feel comfortable communicating - they may feel shy or
embarrassed about saying how they really feel, or read unintended negative
sub-texts in messages they hear.

Emotional Attitude:
Barriers may also arise due to emotional attitude because when emotions are
strong, it is difficult to know the frame of mind of other person or group.
Emotional attitudes of both, the communicator as well as the communicate,
obstruct free flow of transmission and understanding of messages.
Attitudinal barriers are behaviours or perceptions that prevent people from
communicating effectively.
Attitudinal barriers to communication may result from personality conflicts,
poor management, resistance to change or a lack of motivation. To be an
effective receiver of messages you should attempt to overcome your own
attitudinal barriers to to help ensure more effective communication.

4. Physiological Barriers
Physiological barriers to communication may result from the receiver’s
physical state.
For example, a receiver with reduced hearing may not fully grasp the content
of a spoken conversation especially if there is significant background noise.

Communication is generally easier over shorter distances as more

communication channels are available and less technology is required. The
ideal communication is face-to-face.

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Although modern technology often helps to reduce the impact of physical

barriers, the advantages and disadvantages of each communication channel
should be understood so that an appropriate channel can be used to
overcome the physical barriers.

5. Systematic or Organizational Structure Barriers

Systematic barriers to communication may exist in structures and
organisations where there are inefficient or inappropriate information
systems and communication channels, or where there is a lack of
understanding of the roles and responsibilities for communication. In such
organisations, people may be unclear of their role in the communication
process and therefore not know what is expected of them. Effective
communication largely depends upon sound organizational structure. If the
structure is complex involving several layers of management, the breakdown
or distortion in communication wall arise. It is an established fact that every
layer cuts off a bit of information. In the words of W.C.

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Bennis, “Communication gets distorted particularly as it goes up the

hierarchy.”
Moreover, information travelling through formal structure introduces rigidity
and causes-delay because of long lines of communication. Similarly, lack of
instructions for further conveying information to the subordinates and heavy
pressure of work at certain levels of authority also act as barriers to effective
communication.

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6. Personal Barriers:
Personal factors like difference in judgment, social values, inferiority complex,
bias, attitude, pressure of time, inability to communicate, etc. widen the
psychological distance between the communicator and the communicate.
Credibility gap i.e., inconsistency between what one says and what one does,
also, acts as a barrier to communication.

7. Status Barriers (Superior-Subordinate Relationship or Social Strata/Caste):

Status or position in the hierarchy of an organization is one of the
fundamental barriers that obstructs free flow of information. A superior
may give only selected information to his subordinates so as to maintain
status differences. Subordinates, usually, tend to convey only those things
which the superiors would appreciate.

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This creates distortion in upward communication. Such selective

communication is also known as filtering. Sometimes, “the superior feels that
he cannot fully admit to his subordinates those problems, conditions or
results which may affect adversely on his ability and judgment. To do so would
undermine his position as a superior being in the formal organization.” This
causes distortion in downward communication. A subordinate may also feel
reluctant to report his shortcomings or may not seek clarification on
instructions which are subject to different interpretations for fear of loss of
prestige in the eyes of the superior.

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8. Barriers Due to Inadequate Attention:

Inadequate attention to the message makes communication less effective and
the message is likely to be misunderstood. Inattention may arise because of
over business of the communicate or because of the message being contrary
to his expectations and beliefs. The simple failure to read notices, minutes
and reports is also a common feature.
Whatever be the reason, communication remains only a one-way process and
there is no understanding of the message, if the receiver pays little attention
to the message. In the words of Joseph Dooher. “Listening is the most
neglected skill of communication.” “half listening is like racing your engine
with the gears in neutral. You use gasoline but you get nowhere.”

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9. Premature Evaluation:
Some people have the tendency to form a judgment before listening to the
entire message. This is known as premature evaluation. As discussed in the
previous point, “half-listening is like racing your engine with the gears in
neutral. You use gasoline but you get nowhere.” Premature evaluation distorts
understanding and acts as a barrier to effective communication.

10. Resistance to Change:

It is a general tendency of human beings to stick to old and customary
patterns of life. They may resist change to maintain status quo. Thus, when
new ideas are being communicated to introduce a change, it is likely to be
overlooked or even opposed. This resistance to change creates an important
obstacle to effective communication.

11. Barriers Due to Lack of Mutual Trust:

Communication means sharing of ideas in common. “When we communicate,
we are trying to establish a commonness.” Thus, one will freely transfer
information and understanding with another only when there is mutual trust
between the two. When there is a lack of mutual trust between the
communicator and the communicate, the message is not followed. Credibility
gaps, i.e., inconsistency in saying and doing, also causes lack of mutual trust
which acts as a basic obstacle to effective communication.

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INTERPERSONAL INTRAPERSONAL
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14. Other Barriers:

There may be many other barriers, such as un-clarified assumptions, lack of
ability to communicate, mirage of too much knowledge of closed minds,
communication overload, shortage of time, etc., which cause distortion or
obstruction in the free flow of communication and thus make it ineffective.
Failure to retain or store information for future use becomes a barrier to
communication when the information is needed in future.

INTRAPERSONAL, INTERPERSONAL AND GROUP COMMUNICATION

Intrapersonal & Interpersonal Communication:

As the term, ‘intra’ means ‘within’, so the communication that takes place within
a person is called intrapersonal communication. On the other hand, the term
‘inter’ means ‘between’, so when the communication occurs between two or
more persons, it is said to be interpersonal communication.

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We, humans, are social animals, and we always need someone to talk or share
our opinions, news, and even feelings. Communication is a substantial part of
our life, whether we say something or not, it automatically conveys a message
to the persons surrounding us, because it is inescapable. It can be
intrapersonal communication or interpersonal communication. The major
difference between intrapersonal and interpersonal communication is that
the former is invisible, as it goes in our mind, the latter is visible as it takes
place between several parties.

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Definition of Intrapersonal Communication

The communication with oneself is intrapersonal communication. It involves

thinking, analyzing, interpreting, assessing, contemplating, feeling, etc. It is to
reflect the individual self, with a view to clarifying something.

It is an activity that takes place in our mind; wherein a person is involved in a

conversation with himself/herself, commonly known as ‘self-talk’ or ‘inner
speech’. The activity can be a monologue or internal dialogue, i.e. when you
imagine a conversation, in your mind with the absent other.

So, it is quite obvious that the sender and receiver are the same person.
Internal discourse, Solo-vocal communication and Solo written communication
are the three levels of intrapersonal communication. The three aspects that
govern the intrapersonal communication are:

• Self-Concept: Self-concept ascertains the way an individual takes

himself/herself, oriented towards others. The three factors in self-concept
are – Belief, Value and Attitude.
• Perception: It is what the mind receives and grasp from the outside world.

Definition of Interpersonal Communication

Interpersonal Communication is the one to one communication between two

or more persons, wherein exchange of ideas, information or messages takes
place through a channel. It can be a face to face communication between
parties, communication over mail, telephone and the like. In Interpersonal
Communication, the way something is said is as important as what is being
said. So, here, the tone of voice, body language, gestures, facial expressions,
have a great impact on the recipient. The features of interpersonal
communication are as under:

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• Inescapable: Whenever we try not to say anything to anyone at all, it says

something about our mood, attitude or nature, i.e. not by words but through
the non-verbal signals.
• Irreversible or Unrepeatable: Once something is being said, it cannot be taken
back, so neither it is reversible nor repeatable.
• Complex: Due to some variables involved in communication, it is a complex
process. The words used in the process of communication may not have the
same meaning for both sender and receiver, and this complicates the process.
• Contextual: Context plays a significant role in the communication process, as
in there is psychological, environmental, situational and relational context.

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Group Communication:
Group communication is an extension of interpersonal communication where
more than two individuals are involved in exchange of ideas, skills and
interests. A group is a number of people with a common goal who interact
with one another to accomplish their goals, recognize one another’s existence
and see themselves as part of the group. Groups provide an opportunity for
people to come together to discuss and exchange views of common interest.
There could be many different groups for as many different reasons. For
instance, casually formed groups with friends over a drink, coffee break,
games, dances or religious gatherings have a different purpose than that of
groups attending a meeting or seminar to help fight Drug Abuse or interacting
with committee members to draft a proposal.
Communication in a group, small or big, serves many goals including
collective decision-making, self-expression, increasing one’s effect, elevating
one’s status and relaxation. Group communication is considered effective as it
provides an opportunity for direct interaction among the members of the
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group; it helps in bringing about changes in attitudes and beliefs. Group

communication has limitations too, as group interaction is time consuming
and often inefficient, especially in an emergency. Besides, imbalances in
status, skills and goals, may distort the process and the outcome sharply.

Group communication is a mode of communication in an organization,

between employers and employees, and employees in teams/groups. Group
communication can further be looked from an marketing perspective as
communicating to a group of people or target customers in order to market a
product.
Small group communications can be looked at as groups of size 3 to 20. And
larger groups looked can be of sizes 100 to 200 in size. Group communication
can be effective, when there is a specific purpose to the communication, a
proper means of communication, and content of the communication suitable
to the target audience, and a proper communicator who can drive the
initiative and process.

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Group communication can be of various media channels, like social media,

digital media, print media, speeches and focus group communication etc. The
choice of the means of communication depends on factors like the target
audience, the means and availability of the communication mode, cost
implication for the communication initiative.
Groups have been classified as small groups and large groups. A small group
comprises of three to seven members. Small groups are informal and less
structured. Larger groups adopt formal rules to maintain order. There is more
chance for individual participation in small groups. Also small groups are easy
to manage and are more efficient in accomplishing tasks and making
decisions. Most researchers define a small group as having at least three and
no more than twelve or fifteen members.
A group needs to have at least three members; otherwise it would simply be a
dyad. With three members, coalitions can be formed and some kind of
organization is present. Too large of a group (more than twelve or fifteen
members) inhibits the group members’ ability to communicate with everyone
else in the group. Members must be able to communicate freely and openly
with all of the other members of the group. Groups will develop norms about
discussion and group members will develop roles, which will affect the group’s
interaction. A group must have a common purpose or goal and they must
work together to achieve that goal. The goal brings the group together and
holds it together through conflict and tension.

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UNIT-3

WHAT IS CLOSED READING?

Close reading is a thoughtful, disciplined reading of a text. Also called

close analysis and explication de texte.

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: THE detailed and careful analysis of a written work also :

the product of such analysis’

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When your teachers or professors ask you to analyze a literary text, they often
look for something frequently called close reading. Close reading is deep
analysis of how a literary text works; it is both a reading process and
something you include in a literary analysis paper, though in a refined form.

Close reading sometimes feels like over-analyzing, but don’t worry. Close
reading is a process of finding as much information as you can in order to form
as many questions as you can. When it is time to write your paper and
formalize your close reading, you will sort through your work to figure out
what is most convincing and helpful to the argument you hope to make and,
conversely, what seems like a stretch. This guide imagines you are sitting down
to read a text for the first time on your way to developing an argument about
a text and writing a paper. To give one example of how to do this, we will read
the poem “Design” by famous American poet Robert Frost and attend to four
major components of literary texts: subject, form, word choice (diction), and
theme.

Close reading is thoughtful, critical analysis of a text that focuses on significant

details or patterns in order to develop a deep, precise understanding of the
text’s form, craft, meanings, etc. It is a key requirement of the Common Core
State Standards and directs the reader’s attention to the text itself.

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Robert Frost, 1941. Library of Congress.

Design
I found a dimpled spider, fat and white,
On a white heal-all, holding up a moth
Like a white piece of rigid satin cloth—
Assorted characters of death and blight
Mixed ready to begin the morning right,
Like the ingredients of a witches’ broth
— A snow-drop spider, a flower like a
froth, And dead wings carried like a
paper kite. What had that flower to do
with being white, The wayside blue and
innocent heal-all?
What brought the kindred spider to that
height, Then steered the white moth thither
in the night? What but design of darkness to
appall?— If design govern in a thing so
small.

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SUBJECT
The subject of a literary text is simply what the text is about. What is its plot? What
is its most important topic? What image does it describe? It’s easy to think of novels
and stories as having plots, but sometimes it helps to think of poetry as having a
kind of plot as well. When you examine the subject of a text, you want to develop
some preliminary ideas about the text and make sure you understand its major
concerns before you dig deeper.

OBSERVATIONS

In “Design,” the speaker describes a scene: a white spider holding a moth on a white
flower.
The flower is a heal-all, the blooms of which are usually violet-blue. This heal-all is
unusual. The speaker then poses a series of questions, asking why this heal-all is
white instead of blue and how the spider and moth found this particular flower. How
did this situation arise?

QUESTIONS

The speaker’s questions seem simple, but they are actually fairly nuanced. We can
use them as a guide for our own as we go forward with our close reading.

• Furthering the speaker’s simple “how did this happen,” we might ask, is the scene in this
poem a manufactured situation?
• The white moth and white spider each use the atypical white flower as camouflage in
search of sanctuary and supper respectively. Did these flora and fauna come together for
a purpose?
• Does the speaker have a stance about whether there is a purpose behind the scene? If so,
what is it?
• How will other elements of the text relate to the unpleasantness and uncertainty in our
first look at the poem’s subject?

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Close reading includes:

Using short passages and excerpts

Diving right into the text with limited pre-reading activities
Focusing on the text itself
Rereading deliberately
Reading with a pencil
Noticing things that are confusing
Discussing the text with others o Think-Pair
Share or Turn and Talk frequently o Small
groups and whole class
Responding to text-dependent questions

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SELECTING A TEXT

Not every text is appropriate for students to read closely. For example, while
students enjoy reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, these novels offer simple
story lines and vocabulary that are easily understandable. When you are
done reading them, they don’t leave you pondering deep ideas. Close reading
should leave you considering thought-provoking messages that go beyond
the text.
Close read-worthy texts include enough complex ideas worthy of exploring
and discussing to sustain one or more days of instruction. According to Tim
Shanahan, close reading is a multi- day commitment to a text; you want
students to read a text that offers rich enough vocabulary, ideas, and
information to read, examine, and discuss over those days without feeling like
you’re beating a dead horse.
When selecting a text, you need to
consider the three components of
text complexity:
Qualitative measures,
Quantitative measures, and the
Reader and the Task. Each of these
is equally important when
considering the complexity of a text.

Questions to consider:

Qualitative

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Does this text offer ideas or information

that further students understanding of
the topic?
Does the text include a text structure that …
Does the text follow familiar language conventions—
sentence structures, word choices, etc.?
What background knowledge do my students need to
have to be successful with this text?

Quantitative

Is this text on an appropriate readability level for the students in my group?

How can I scaffold my students to ensure their success with this text?

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*The primary leveling tool used by the Common Core is Lexile. For more
motivation, prior knowledge,
information or to find the lexile of a text, visit Lexile.com.
experiences, etc.

Reader and Task Considerations

How much prior knowledge do my students have about this topic?
How interested are they?
What will be difficult for my students in reading this passage?
WHAT MAKES TEXT COMPLEX?

Close reading should occur with appropriately complex text. There are a
number of factors that contribute to text complexity. Teachers should
differentiate, or vary, how they approach a text with students depending
on the text complexity and students’ needs.

Vocabulary o Academic and

domain-specific terms
o Tier 2 vocabulary: high utility complex words that can be
used in multiple contexts Syntax

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 Coherence—Are the events and concepts logically connected and clearly

explained?
 Unity—Do the ideas focus on the topic and not include irrelevant or
distracting information?
 Audience appropriateness—Does the text match the background
knowledge of the target reader? Text structures
 Description
 Compare and Contrast
 Temporal Sequence
 Cause and Effect
 Problem and Solution Text features
 Headings/subheadings
 Signal words

STEPS IN CLOSE READING

1. FIRST READ: KEY IDEAS AND DETAILS
Set the purpose for reading and have students read text as independently as
possible. Depending on the text complexity and the readers, the first read
may be done independently, as a read aloud/think aloud, or paired or shared
reading. The first read should be without building background; students
should be integrating their background knowledge with the text as they read.
Focus on the key ideas and details in the text, making sure that readers know
the main idea, story elements, or key details that the author includes.

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Following the first read, have students Think-Pair-Share to assess what

they have gleaned from the text. By listening to students as they share,
you can determine the focus of the first read, etc.

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2. SECOND READ: CRAFT AND STRUCTURE

For a second, close read, select a portion or chunk of the text that is “close
read worthy.” That is, have students reread a section that includes complex
elements or ideas that they should explore to arrive at a deep understanding
of the text. After rereading, students discuss the text with partners or in
small groups, focusing on the author’s craft and organizational patterns. This
may include vocabulary choices, text structure or text features that they
author included.

Use a Text Dependent Question to focus or set a purpose for a close

rereading. After students share with partners or in small groups, have
groups share out with entire class to assess understanding.

3. THIRD READ: INTEGRATION OF KNOWLEDGE AND IDEAS

The third close reading of a text should go even deeper, requiring students to
synthesize and analyze information from several texts or media. They may
record their ideas on sticky notes, graphic organizer, or a thinking sheet.

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SCAFFOLDING STUDENTS IN CLOSE READING

While the goal for students is to read complex texts independently, not
all students will be able to achieve that immediately. Scaffolding
instruction is a model in which the teacher supports students and
gradually releases responsibility to the student. Pearson and Gallagher
(1983) coined this term based on the 1970’s work of Vygotsky. A key
model in scaffolding instruction is the Gradual Release of
Responsibility. In this model, the teacher begins by modeling, offering
students the highest level of support. As instruction continues and the
teacher monitors students’ learning progress, he/she gradually
releases responsibility to the students, guiding students’ progress and
eventually observing as they practice the skill independently (Pearson
and Gallagher, 1983).
Close reading may be scaffolded through these teaching methods:
• Shared reading
• Interactive read aloud
• Comprehension Toolkit lessons
• QAR
• Literature circles
• Questioning the author
• Reciprocal teaching
• Connecting to themes/essential questions
• Post-its
• Think sheets
• Jigsaws

For students who are struggling, you may support them though a
ThinkAloud, reading the text to the students and modeling your thinking

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as you answer a Text Dependent Question. As students become more

proficient in reading, discussing, and analyzing text, you may gradually
release the responsibility for reading & thinking to them. The idea is to
offer just the right amount of support so that students can

COMPREHENSION

Comprehension is the ability to understand and get meaning from

spoken and written language Comprehension is comprised of a complex
process involving knowledge, experience, thinking, and teaching
Therefore, effective comprehension instruction is necessary to help
students understand, remember, and communicate with others about
what is read to them and what they read

Comprehension skills are based on rich language and experience with

text from early in life.

1. Learning how to decode;

2. becoming fluent in decoding with an extensive repertoire (collection) of
sight words;
3. increasing vocabulary to include words commonly found in texts; and

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4. learning how to get meaning from text using comprehension processes

Student engagement in discussions about text results in higher-level

thinking skills, improved reading comprehension, and increased
motivation (Almasi, McKeown, & Beck, 1996; Gambrell, 1996). The
research also indicates that:

• Reading comprehension is the product of decoding skills and language

comprehension skills
• Some children decode words fluently and still have reading
comprehension problems that seem to stem from language
comprehension
• Studies of exemplary primary-grade teachers indicate that a focus on
comprehension as well as word identification and decoding skills is
beneficial
• Students learn to interact with text through read alouds that
incorporate explicit instruction, teacher modeling, and scaffolding that
encourage students to be metacognitive while reading
• Knowledge and understanding of text structure assists in
comprehension of the text. When students are familiar with text
structure, they organize the text as they read, which helps them
recognize and retain the important information

Comprehension Strategies
Research studies on reading and comprehension have shown that highly
proficient readers utilize a number of different strategies to comprehend
various types of texts, strategies that can also be used by less proficient
readers in order to improve their comprehension.

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1. Making Inferences: In everyday terms we refer to this as “reading

between the lines”. It involves connecting various parts of texts that it
isn´t directly linked in order to form a sensible conclusion. A form of
assumption, the reader speculates what connections lie within the texts.
2. Planning and Monitoring: This strategy centers around the reader’s
mental awareness and their ability to control their comprehension by
way of awareness. By previewing text (via outlines, table of contents,
etc.) one can establish a goal for reading-“what do I need to get out of
this”? Readers use context clues and other evaluation strategies to
clarify texts and ideas, and this monitoring their level of understanding.
3. Asking Questions: To solidify one understands of passages of texts
readers inquire and develop their own opinion of the author’s writing,
character motivations, relationships, etc. This strategy involves allowing
oneself to be completely objective in order to find various meanings
within the text.
4. Determining Importance: Pinpointing the important ideas and messages
within the text. Readers are taught to identify direct and indirect ideas
and to summarize the relevance of each.
5. Visualizing: With this sensory-driven strategy readers form mental and
visual images of the contents of text. Being able to connect visually
allows for a better understanding with the text through emotional
responses.
6. Synthesizing: This method involves marrying multiple ideas from various
texts in order to draw conclusions and make comparisons across
different texts; with the reader’s goal being to understand how they all
fit together.
7. Making Connections: A cognitive approach also referred to as “reading
beyond the lines”, which involves (A) finding a personal connection to
reading, such as personal experience, previously read texts, etc. to help
establish a deeper understanding of the context of the text, or (B)

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thinking about implications that have no immediate connection with the

theme of the text.[37]

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SUMMARY PARAPHRASING

How to Write a Summary by Paraphrasing Source Material

When you paraphrase material from a source, you restate the

information from an entire sentence or passage in your own words,
using your own original sentence structure. A paraphrased source differs
from a summarized source in that you focus on restating the ideas, not
condensing them.

It is important to check your paraphrase against the source material to

make sure it is both accurate and original. Inexperienced writers
sometimes use the thesaurus method of paraphrasing—that is, they
simply rewrite the source material, replacing most of the words with
synonyms. This constitutes a misuse of sources. A true paraphrase
restates ideas using the writer’s own language and style. Instruction on
how to paraphrase:

• Write a Summary the way you always have, i.e., selecting “word-
forword” passages from the essay included in this module. Cite the page
numbers in parentheses as you have up to now.
• Make a copy of your summary and place it below the original. Go into
the copy of your summary and try to paraphrase each “word-for-word”
passage that you cited.
• When writing a summary, remember that it should be in the form of a
paragraph.
• A summary begins with an introductory sentence that states the text’s
title, author and main point of the text as you see it.
• A summary is written in your own words.

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• A summary contains only the ideas of the original text. Do not insert any
of your own opinions, interpretations, deductions or comments into a
summary.
• Identify in order the significant sub-claims the author uses to defend the
main point.
• Using source material from the essay is important. Why? Because
defending claims with source material is what you will be asked to do
when writing papers for your college professors.
• Write a last sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple
rephrasing of the main point.

Example Paraphrase Writing Format

In the essay Santa Ana, author Joan Didion’s main point is (state main
point). According to Didion …PARAPHRASE 1…”. Didion also CLAIMS…
PARAPHRASE 2…”. Finally, she CLAIMS “…PARAPHRASE 3…” Write a last
sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of
the main point.

PARAPHRASE AND SUMMARY

Paraphrase and summary are different writing strategies that ask you to
put the argument of the author in your own words. This can help you
better understand what the writer is saying, so that you can
communicate that message to your own reader without relying only on
quotes. Paraphrases are used for short passages and specific claims in
an argument, while summaries are used for entire pieces and focus on
capturing the big picture of an argument. Both should be cited using
the appropriate format (MLA, APA, etc.). Paraphrase

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When you paraphrase, using your own words, you are explaining one of
the claims of your source's argument, following its line of reasoning and
its sequence of ideas. The purpose of a paraphrase is to convey the
meaning of the original message and, in doing so, to prove that you
understand the passage well enough to restate it. The paraphrase
should give the reader an accurate understanding of the author's
position on the topic. Your job is to uncover and explain all the facts and
arguments involved in your subject. A paraphrase tends to be about the
same length or a little shorter than the thing being paraphrased.

• Alters the wording of the passage without changing its meaning.

• Retains the basic logic of the argument.
• Retains the basic sequence of ideas.
• Can even retain the basic examples used in the passage.
• Most importantly, it accurately conveys the author's meaning and
opinion.
Summary
A summary covers the main points of the writer’s argument in your own
words. Summaries are generally much shorter than the original source,
since they do not contain any specific examples or pieces of evidence.
The goal of a summary is to give the reader a clear idea of what the
source is arguing, without going into any specifics about what they are
using to argue their point.
In your own words:
• State the thesis
• Main claims of their argument
• conclusion of the original material
In both the paraphrase and summary, the author's meaning and opinion
are retained. However, in the case of the summary, examples and
illustrations are omitted. Summaries can be tremendously helpful

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because they can be used to encapsulate everything from a long

narrative passage of an essay, to a chapter in a book, to an entire book.

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UNIT-4

DOCUMENTING

A document (noun) is a piece of information that one can use for

communicating something. In most of the cases it is a paper, that
contains information in the form of ink marks. But nowadays documents
can be digital as well.

Documenting is the art and science of creating, managing and keeping a

document.

To document (verb) means to produce an object by collecting and

representing information.

Different sorts of documents

Prototypical Documents: Letters, memos, legal forms, Instruction
manual
Documents of Record: Newspapers and magazines
Books: Text book, Novels, Recipe books, Encyclopedia, Comic books

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Canonical Documents: The Bible,Iliad and Odyssey,Vedas, Ramayana,

Mahabharata, Quran, Code of Hammurabi,Tao Te Ching
Transactional Documents: Cheque, Contracts, Prescription, Receipt,
Form (document), Postage Stamp
Functional Documents: PDF files, PostScript files, XML files, Email
Non-Prototypical Documents: Post-it notes, Fortune cookie strips, Maps,
Paintings, milk cartons, cereal boxes
Non-Classical Digital Documents: Web Page, Weblog, Wiki
Boundary Examples: The plaque on the Pioneer 11 spacecraft, designed
by astronomer Carl Sagan, and using information assumed to be
universal is an extreme example of a document that is intended to
communicate with aliens. On the other hand, the recorded and printed
signals of the SETI project would constitute documents if they were
discovered to contain alien communication.
Everyday use
What most people understand, when they speak of a document one can
see from the connotations and denotations that appear in a search for
document. From these usages, one can infer the following typical
connotations:

Writing that provides information (especially information of an official

nature)
Anything serving as a representation of a person's thinking by means of
symbolic marks
A written account of ownership or obligation
To record in detail; "The parents documented every step of their child's
development"
A digital file in a particular format
To support or supply with references; "Can you document your claims?"
An artifact that meets a legal notion of document for purposes of
discovery in litigation
Document life cycle management technology

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Technology to manage documents has developed with documents

themselves. Of particular importances are practices concerning the
preservation, archival, destruction and management of documents.
These together are called the "document life cycle"

Physical preservation: Documents in both traditional physical forms and

in digital physical forms such as magnetic media must be physically
preserved. This aspect of document management deals with such issues
as the aging of paper (the innovation of acid-free paper is an advance in
preservation) and obsolescence of magnetic media.
Storage: This aspect includes management of scarce resources such as
shelf space and disk space, and associated technologies such as optimal
space utilization. Modern libraries such as the University of Nevada and
the University of Michigan often use complex space-saving technologies
such as robotic retrieval systems for stacks and moving bookshelves. In
the digital realm, the entire discipline of compression technologies can
be viewed as concerned with the storage of documents.
Cultural Preservation: This function, traditionally ascribed to librarians
involves the selection, arrangement and storage of documents in safe
places. The importance of this part of document life cycle management
can be seen in the impact of historical events such as the burning of the
Library of Alexandria. Today, library and information science has
developed into an important academic discipline.
Bibliometrics: This aspect of document management involves functions
of indexing, generating statistics and taxonomies, and improving the
usability of large collections of documents. The modern history of this
management technology dates back to Melvil Dewey and the Dewey
Decimal System. Today, the science of bibliometrics is largely concerned
with managing the impact of electronic technologies. This aspect must
also deal with ISBN numbers, Library of Congress data and other
standards.

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Digital Content Management: The explosion of digital content has

resulted in technologies to manage large collections of digital
information generated by organizations. Such systems must manage
access control and privileges, multiple electronic format, interface with
printing infrastructures and enable collaborative workflows around
documents.
Digital-Physical Interaction Management: As long as both paper and
digital documents continue to have value, the modern management
technologies to manage their interaction will continue. Key to this
management is the management of large scale and systematic scanning
of physical documents (such as the Google book scanning project).
Destruction: With the increased cost of identity theft, corporate
scandals and privacy concerns, the destruction of both paper and
electronic documents has become increasingly important to manage.
Technologies such as shredders play a role, as do verifiable processes of
destruction of electronic documents to ensure compliance with privacy
laws.
Security: Shannon's information theory has led to an entire discipline
that concerns itself with the security of documents, and associated
technologies such as encryption, as well as more physical security
features such as watermarks and making currency documents safe from
counterfeiting.
Transportation: The entire postal system, as well as modern courier
systems, is largely built on the need to move documents physically from
one location to the other.

5 TIPS FOR IMPROVING YOUR DOCUMENTATION IMMEDIATELY

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Is your organization’s documentation as effective as you would like it to

be? Do you have lots of time to train your team on effective
documentation skills? Probably not. So, here are a few simple and quick
tips to help you and your team to improve your documentation
immediately.

Tip 1) Quit it with the Passive Voice

The passive voice is a plague on effective documentation. It reduces its

clarity, its consistency, and the efficiency and tightness of the writing.
The passive voice is writing in which the subject of the sentence
denotes the recipient of the action rather than the performer. For
example, “the server was installed” represents the passive voice while
“the technician installed the server” represents the active voice. The
passive voice is more common in most documentation because it is an
easier, sloppier way of writing.

Writing in the passive voice is highly detrimental to documentation,

especially to process related documentation where it is essential to
understand which people or systems are performing the actions. The
good news is that this is an easy fix. Under your Grammar function in
Word, you can click on the “Passive Sentences” option and Word will
automatically check for passive sentences for you.

To improve your documentation immediately: Use the Passive Voice

grammar check function in Word to review your documentation and to
change passive sentences into clearer, sharper active sentences.

Tip 2) Use Simple Visuals to Engage your Reader

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You might not be a graphic artist, but you can improve your
documentation quickly through using simple visuals. Take advantage of
the many canned Shapes and Smart Art in Word to add a little “punch”
to your documentation to better engage your audience.

If you have Microsoft Visio, then take advantage of the many ways that
this program offers to draw simple diagrams which reduce your need for
extensive text and which improve your chances of stakeholder
engagement. One diagram that is particularly useful is the swim lane
diagram which illustrates actors and their actions. Without being a
process expert, you will be surprised how the simple Swim Lane will
improve clarity in roles, responsibilities, and processes for your team
and your organization overall.

To improve your documentation immediately: Create visuals in your

documentation to illustrate your key messages, replace blocks of text,
and to hold your readers’ attention.

Tip 3) Use Great Titles and Bullets

Remember, your audience generally wants to exert as little as energy as

possible when reading your work. They’ll just “skim” your document
looking for the main points. So, make things easy for them! Headers and
bullets, often combined with effective visuals, are as important as the
text. For some readers, headers and bullets are all that they will read.
Your reader might even make a decision about your work just by reading
the table of contents. So, when assessing your documentation, it’s
helpful if the entire gist of your work is communicated by the headers
and bullets alone. Does the reader understand what you are trying to
say? If they can understand most of what you are saying just by reading
the headers, then you have done a good job.

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To improve your documentation immediately: Revise your headers and

bullets to summarize the whole document.

Tip 4) Tame your Acronyms and Buzz Words

There is perhaps nothing more annoying when it comes to

documentation than walking onto a project or into a new organization
and to be unable to understand a single paragraph in the document,
because it is so full of acronyms and buzz words. Acronyms and buzz
words do not, let me repeat, make you sound smarter. In most cases,
they actually annoy your reader through hindering her ability to grasp
your key messages.

Avoid using excessive acronyms and buzz words whenever possible. Or

at least, define them upfront. In many cases, you should define
acronyms and frequently used words in a well thought-out Glossary at
the beginning of your documents or as part of your documentation
library.

To improve your documentation immediately: Learn to tame your use of

excessive acronyms and buzz words. If you need to use them, then
make sure that you define them upfront at the beginning of your
documents or documentation library.

Tip 5) Use the Reperformance Standard

One of the key challenges that organizations face in developing and

maintaining excellent documentation is that they do not have a
consistent standard for assessing their documentation. In reality, there
are many different types of and uses for documentation and using one
consistent standard is difficult. There is however one standard that

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provides a strong metric for most documentation. This standard is called

the “reperformance standard”.

The reperformance standard states that the documentation must

enable a user to “reperform” the related task or process. That is, the
documentation must have sufficient detail and communicate with
enough clarity through its text or visuals as a standalone document to
allow the user to execute the steps. Although more commonly used by
assurance and audit professionals, the reperformance standard can be
expanded to many other applications within organizations, including
training materials, user manuals, process documentation, and disaster
recovery documentation. So, test the quality of your documentation
against this standard and challenge yourself to ensure that you are
meeting it.

To improve your documentation immediately: Review your document

and ask: can someone else reperform these tasks based on what is
written here? If the answer is no – revise it so they can.

With these five simple but powerful tips, you can take your team and
your organization’s documentation to the next level – and you can do it
immediately!

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MAKING NOTES

Making notes is essential. The act of writing or recording notes helps

motor, visual and auditory recall. This makes the subject easier to
remember. You can learn more about note-taking in the following
section.

Individual styles

Everybody makes notes in their own ways. They are for your purposes
so the most important aspect is that they suit your purposes. Your notes
may be neat or messy, ordered lists or sprawling webs. This does not
matter as long as you can make use of them.

Methods of taking notes

Headings and bullet points

This is a very common way of making notes. It is especially useful if you

are making notes on a computer as you can reorganise information
under new headings. The heading is the key point or a question. The
bullets or list of points under it all refer to that one heading.

Double notes

These are notes where you use either two color or two columns or two
sheets of paper in order to make two connected sets of notes. The first

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set is a summary of what you are reading or hearing. The second set is
your commentary upon the first set. This is useful for separating out
other people's ideas and words from your own.

Pattern notes

These are notes that are organised around a central concept and work
their way out from that idea. Each line from the centre leads you into
more depth on a particular theme. Use colour and shape to make the
notes distinctive. Look for a particular image formed by the final shape
of the notes - or aim to develop a particular image. This will make the
notes more memorable.

Annotations

If you own the text, you can highlight key points and write additional
information and comments in the margins or underneath. This can save
time making longer notes, but is less effective for processing the
information and ensuring that you understand it than other forms of
notes.

Summaries

It is useful to summarise your notes on any one topic or questions down

to a few key points, quotes and examples. This familiarises you with the
material. It also makes it easier to carry the information around to refer
to on work placement or to revise for exams.

Lists

These are useful, for example for:

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 Identifying all the tasks that have to be undertaken on a particular day.

 Noting the key themes in a book or lecture.
 Numbering key points.
 Being able to see what you need to do or remember very easily.
 Identifying resources to follow up.
 Keep a record of resources such as useful web-pages.

Keep a record of sources

It is important to keep a very good record of where you gained each

piece of information so that you can find it again quickly and easily if
you need to check something about it. You will also need this
information when you make reference to the information in your work.
If you do not state where you get ideas, material and quotations, then
you may be accused of plagiarism and cheating.

Record the:
 Author's name and initials.
 The full name of the chapter, book or article.
 The name of the journal for printed articles or of the book for chapters.
 The place of publication.
 The date of publication.
 The publisher.
 The shelf reference or web address.
 It is also useful to keep a record of the ISBN number at the back of the
book.

Noting down quotations

Take special care when copying quotations. To avoid plagiarism:

 Copy only very small phrases or very short sections to quote in your
work.

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 Use a different colour pen to copy these.

 Make very few such quotes.
 Write down details of the source of the quotation and reference these in
your text and list of references.

Note Making

Note Making is a way of recording important details from a source. This

source can be any book, article, meeting or any oral discussion. In note
making, the writer records the essence of the information. It helps us to
understand and clarify thinking. Note making saves a lot of time by
going through the notes made. One can get a glimpse of a lot of
information from a short note.

Advantages of Note Making

A note making is a skill which improves by practicing. There are some

advantages of note making. Let us get to know some of them.
• It has great importance in exams or in academic writing
• It is an organization of main points for future use
• Note making helps in keeping the information handy whenever we
require
• It helps in recollecting and recalling the past events said or heard
• It helps in concentrating, understanding and provides a permanent
record
• Note making format helps a writer to go through bulky documents
quicker
• It helps in understanding a material if the notes are in own words
• It distinguishes between main points and details

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Note Making Format

There is a fixed note making format. One needs to follow this note
making format in order to have a clear and unambiguous understanding
from it. The note making format has:

Heading - It shows the title or the heading of note.

Subheading - As the name suggests, a subheading is a subdivision of the

main topic. One can use as many subheadings as he or she wants.

Point - Below subheading, there are some points which are the part of
the main topics.

Sub-subheading - One can add more headings below the points for
showing the category, types, advantages, etc.
Key or Keywords - The key portion of the note shows the various codes,
symbols or the abbreviation used. It helps to get a clear understanding
of the keys used in the note making format.

The Procedure of Note Making

• Read the passage provided

• Underline the important sentences. It helps to make headings and
subheadings
• Make a rough note first so as to get an idea
• Organize them in logical order or sequence for the final note
• Use the appropriate note making format
• Do not change the idea or the message of the passage

Points to Remember for Note Making Format

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• Avoid using long sentences as heading or title

• Never lose the main idea of the passage
• Ignore information which is less important
• Be brief, clear, and specific
• Use logical sequencing
• Use proper indention
• Leave no spaces to avoid confusion
• Do not include your own version or understandings
• Use abbreviations
• Make your note more memorable by adding colors, drawings, and
symbols

Note Making Format

A note making involves the selection, analysis, summarization, and

organization of information. There are different note making format. Let
us make ourselves familiar with them.

Split – page Format (A narrative note making format method)

In this method, the page is divided into two columns. The first column
had the standard notes. The second column will have a summary. This is
the most common note making format to note down lecture notes.

Diagram / Pattern format (A visual note making format method)

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In this method, the information is presented by a diagram. The main

topic is linked together by related ideas. This method is visually more
appealing and easy to understand.

Mind Map (A visual note making method)

In this method, the main points and all the related points are presented
through a map. It contains text and images both. For a clear
understanding, the information is linked in the proper sequence.

Outline Format (A visual note making format method)

In this method, the information is presented as an outline. Proper titles

and subtitles are numbered accordingly for this outline.

Question and Prompt Format (A visual note making format method)

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In this method, the main points are highlighted as a series of questions

and appropriate answers. It helps in revising the note in an easy way.

Solved Example for You

Problem: A person really wants to remember the information the

speaker is providing. What should he need to do?

1. Listen for non – verbal clues

2. Listen for verbal clues

3. Write down the important details

4. None of the above

Solution: 3. Write down the important details.

Problem: Why is it important to take notes?

1. Helps you remember

2. Improves your concentration level

3. Helps you prepare for tests

4. All of the above

Solution: 4. All of the above.

Writing Business Letter

Business Letters are mostly formal but also have semi-formal or informal
formats or templates.

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The look and feel, textual usage of business letter and format depends
on the following:

1) Purpose of letter (Objective/Subject/Problem addressed)

2) Addresser and Addressee - To whom the letter is written to and by
whom
3) Means of delivery

Parts of a Business Letter

This resource is organized in the order in which you should write a

business letter, starting with the sender's address if the letter is not
written on letterhead.

Sender's Address
The sender's address usually is included in letterhead. If you are not
using letterhead, include the sender's address at the top of the letter
one line above the date. Do not write the sender's name or title, as it is
included in the letter's closing. Include only the street address, city, and
zip code.

Date
The date line is used to indicate the date the letter was written.
However, if your letter is completed over a number of days, use the date
it was finished in the date line. When writing to companies within the
United States, use the American date format. (The United Statesbased
convention for formatting a date places the month before the day. For
example: June 11, 2001. ) Write out the month, day and year two inches
from the top of the page. Depending which format you are using for
your letter, either left justify the date or tab to the center point and type

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the date. In the latter case, include the sender's address in letterhead,
rather than left-justified.

Inside Address
The inside address is the recipient's address. It is always best to write to
a specific individual at the firm to which you are writing. If you do not
have the person's name, do some research by calling the company or
speaking with employees from the company. Include a personal title
such as Ms., Mrs., Mr., or Dr. Follow a woman's preference in being
addressed as Miss, Mrs., or Ms. If you are unsure of a woman's
preference in being addressed, use Ms. If there is a possibility that the
person to whom you are writing is a Dr. or has some other title, use that
title. Usually, people will not mind being addressed by a higher title than
they actually possess. To write the address, use the U.S. Post Office
Format. For international addresses, type the name of the country in
allcapital letters on the last line. The inside address begins one line
below the date. It should be left justified, no matter which format you
are using.

Salutation
Use the same name as the inside address, including the personal title. If
you know the person and typically address them by their first name, it is
acceptable to use only the first name in the salutation (for example:
Dear Lucy:). In all other cases, however, use the personal title and
last/family name followed by a colon. Leave one line blank after the
salutation.
If you don't know a reader's gender, use a nonsexist salutation, such as
their job title followed by the receiver's name. It is also acceptable to
use the full name in a salutation if you cannot determine gender. For
example, you might write Dear Chris Harmon: if you were unsure of
Chris's gender.

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Body
For block and modified block formats, single space and left justify each
paragraph within the body of the letter. Leave a blank line between each
paragraph. When writing a business letter, be careful to remember that
conciseness is very important. In the first paragraph, consider a friendly
opening and then a statement of the main point. The next paragraph
should begin justifying the importance of the main point. In the next few
paragraphs, continue justification with background information and
supporting details. The closing paragraph should restate the purpose of
the letter and, in some cases, request some type of action.

Closing
The closing begins at the same vertical point as your date and one line
after the last body paragraph. Capitalize the first word only (for example:
Thank you) and leave four lines between the closing and the sender's
name for a signature. If a colon follows the salutation, a comma should
follow the closing; otherwise, there is no punctuation after the closing.

Enclosures
If you have enclosed any documents along with the letter, such as a
resume, you indicate this simply by typing Enclosures below the closing.
As an option, you may list the name of each document you are including
in the envelope. For instance, if you have included many documents and
need to ensure that the recipient is aware of each document, it may be
a good idea to list the names.

\Typist initials
Typist initials are used to indicate the person who typed the letter. If you
typed the letter yourself, omit the typist initials.
A Note About Format and Font

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Block Format
When writing business letters, you must pay special attention to the
format and font used. The most common layout of a business letter is
known as block format. Using this format, the entire letter is left
justified and single spaced except for a double space between
paragraphs. Modified Block
Another widely utilized format is known as modified block format. In this
type, the body of the letter and the sender's and recipient's addresses
are left justified and single-spaced. However, for the date and closing,
tab to the center point and begin to type.
Semi-Block
The final, and least used, style is semi-block. It is much like the modified
block style except that each paragraph is indented instead of left
justified.
Keep in mind that different organizations have different format
requirements for their professional communication. While the examples
provided by the OWL contain common elements for the basic business
letter (genre expectations), the format of your business letter may need
to be flexible to reflect variables like letterheads and templates. Our
examples are merely guides.
If your computer is equipped with Microsoft Office 2000, the Letter
Wizard can be used to take much of the guesswork out of formatting
business letters. To access the Letter Wizard, click on the Tools menu
and then choose Letter Wizard. The Wizard will present the three styles
mentioned here and input the date, sender address and recipient
address into the selected format. Letter Wizard should only be used if
you have a basic understand of how to write a business letter. Its
templates are not applicable in every setting. Therefore, you should
consult a business writing handbook if you have any questions or doubt
the accuracy of the Letter Wizard.

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Font
Another important factor in the readability of a letter is the font. The
generally accepted font is Times New Roman, size 12, although other
fonts such as Arial may be used. When choosing a font, always consider
your audience. If you are writing to a conservative company, you may
want to use Times New Roman. However, if you are writing to a more
liberal company, you have a little more freedom when choosing fonts.

Punctuation
Punctuation after the salutation and closing - use a colon (:) after the
salutation (never a comma) and a comma (,) after the closing. In some
circumstances, you may also use a less common format, known as open
punctuation. For this style, punctuation is excluded after the salutation
and the closing.

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EXAMPLE OF A BUSINESS LETTER Date

July 20, 20xx
Sender's Address
GP & Associates
2053 SW Channing Avenue, Suite 400
Denver, CO 80016

Inside Address
Ms Tia Turfingeon
ACTION ITEMS
3400 Onesite Parkway
Denver, CO 80016
Sub: _________________________________________________
Saluation
Dear Ms. Turfingeon,
Body Text: I understand from our mutual acquaintance, Chad Johnson,
that you are looking to retain an accountant to assist you in the sale of
your business. I would welcome the opportunity to show you how GP &

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Associates was able to help Chad successfully sell his business earlier
this year.
As you'll see on our website, my associates and I have extensive
experience in financial accounting, internal audits, and tax compliance.
For the past several years, we have specialized in business evaluation
and transition services for sellers. We enjoy working closely with clients
throughout the sale process to ensure a smooth transition. As our
clients can attest, our various pre-sale price improvement strategies can
significantly optimize a business's sale price.
Should you be thinking of purchasing another business, please note that
we also offer business acquisition services. For your convenience, I have
enclosed additional information describing GP & Associates full range of
services.
Call to action: To set up an appointment to discuss your specific needs,
please contact me at 303-449-0037. I know how busy you are, so I will
give you a call on Tuesday to follow up if I haven’t heard from you.

Best Regards,
Signature Block
Greg Parker

Enclosures
CC:_______

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REPORT WRITING

Reports generally involve presenting your investigation and analysis of

information or an issue, recommending actions and making proposals.
There are many different types of reports, including business, scientific
and research reports, but the basic steps for writing them are the same.
These are outlined below.

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• Step 1: Decide on the 'Terms of reference'

• Step 2: Decide on the procedure
• Step 3: Find the information
• Step 4: Decide on the structure
• Step 5: Draft the first part of your report
• Step 6: Analyse your findings and draw conclusions
• Step 7: Make recommendations
• Step 8: Draft the executive summary and table of contents
• Step 9: Compile a reference list
• Step 10: Revise your draft report

You can also check our information on assignment writing for tips on
planning, finding information, writing and reviewing your work.

Step-by-step guide to writing an assignment

Step 1: Decide on the 'Terms of reference'

To decide on the terms of reference for your report, read your

instructions and any other information you've been given about the
report, and think about the purpose of the report:

• What is it about?
• What exactly is needed?
• Why is it needed?
• When do I need to do it?
• Who is it for, or who is it aimed at?

This will help you draft your Terms of reference.

Step 2: Decide on the procedure

This means planning your investigation or research, and how you'll write
the report. Ask yourself:

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• What information do I need?

• Do I need to do any background reading?
• What articles or documents do I need?
• Do I need to contact the library for assistance?
• Do I need to interview or observe people?
• Do I have to record data?  How will I go about this?

Answering these questions will help you draft the procedure section of
your report, which outlines the steps you've taken to carry out the
investigation.

Step 3: Find the information

The next step is to find the information you need for your report. To do
this you may need to read written material, observe people or activities,
and/or talk to people.

Make sure the information you find is relevant and appropriate. Check
the assessment requirements and guidelines and the marking schedule
to make sure you're on the right track. If you're not sure how the marks
will be assigned contact your lecturer.

What you find out will form the basis, or main body, of your report – the
findings.

For more on finding information:

Research and reading

Steps for writing an assignment

Step 4: Decide on the structure

Reports generally have a similar structure, but some details may differ.
How they differ usually depends on:

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• The type of report – if it is a research report, laboratory report,

business report, investigative report, etc.
• How formal the report has to be.  The length of the report.

Depending on the type of report, the structure can include:

• A title page.
• Executive summary.
• Contents.
• An introduction.
• Terms of reference.
• Procedure.
• Findings.
• Conclusions.
• Recommendations.
• References/Bibliography.
• Appendices.
• The sections, of a report usually have headings and subheadings,
which are usually numbered

The basic structure of a report (PDF 262 KB; opens in a new window)

Step 5: Draft the first part of your report

Once you have your structure, write down the headings and start to fill
these in with the information you have gathered so far. By now you
should be able to draft the terms of reference, procedure and findings,
and start to work out what will go in the report’s appendix.
Findings

The findings are result of your reading, observations, interviews and

investigation. They form the basis of your report. Depending on the type

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of report you are writing, you may also wish to include photos, tables or
graphs to make your report more readable and/or easier to follow.

Graphs - BBC Skillwise website (opens in a new window)

Appendices

As you are writing your draft decide what information will go in the
appendix. These are used for information that:  is too long to
include in the body of the report, or
• supplements or complements the information in the report. For
example, brochures, spreadsheets or large tables.

Formatting and presenting your assignment

Step 6: Analyse your findings and draw conclusions

The conclusion is where you analyse your findings and interpret what
you have found. To do this, read through your findings and ask yourself:

• What have I found?

• What's significant or important about my findings?  What do my
findings suggest?

For example, your conclusion may describe how the information you
collected explains why the situation occurred, what this means for the
organisation, and what will happen if the situation continues (or doesn't
continue).

Don’t include any new information in the conclusion.

Step 7: Make recommendations

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Recommendations are what you think the solution to the problem is

and/or what you think should happen next. To help you decide what to
recommend:  Reread your findings and conclusions.
• Think about what you want the person who asked for the report

should to do or not do; what actions should they carry out?

• Check that your recommendations are practical and are based

logically on your conclusions.

• Ensure you include enough detail for the reader to know what

needs to be done and who should do it.

Your recommendations should be written as a numbered list, and

ordered from most to least important.

Step 8: Draft the executive summary and table of contents

Some reports require an executive summary and/or list of contents. Even

though these two sections come near the beginning of the report you
won't be able to do them until you have finished it, and have your
structure and recommendations finalised.

An executive summary is usually about 100 words long. It tells the

readers what the report is about, and summarise the recommendations.

Step 9: Compile a reference list

This is a list of all the sources you've referred to in the report and uses
APA referencing.

APA referencing

Step 10: Revise your draft report

It is always important to revise your work. Things you need to check
include:

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• If you have done what you were asked to do. Check the
assignment question, the instructions/guidelines and the marking
schedule to make sure.
• That the required sections are included, and are in the correct
order.
• That your information is accurate, with no gaps.
• If your argument is logical. Does the information you present
support your conclusions and recommendations?
• That all terms, symbols and abbreviations used have been
explained.
• That any diagrams, tables, graphs and illustrations are numbered
and labelled.
• That the formatting is correct, including your numbering, headings,
are consistent throughout the report.
• That the report reads well, and your writing is as clear and
effective as possible.

You might need to prepare several drafts before you are satisfied. If
possible, get someone else to check your report.

ILLUSTRATION:

https://templates.office.com/en-in/papers-and-reports

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TRANSLATION

English to Hind or Punjabi

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1. Read the text

2. Underline the key words and difficult words
3. Know their meaning
4. Translate in your words in Hindi or Punjabi

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References:

Elison, J (1990). Confidence in the classroom: Ten maxims for new

teachers. College Teaching, 38 (1), 21-25.

McNaughton, D., Hamlin, D., McCarthy, J., Head-Reeves, D., & Schreiner,
M. (2008). Learning to listen: Teaching an active listening strategy to
preservice education professionals. Topics in Early Childhood Special
Education, 27, 223-231.

Weger, H., Jr., Castle, G. R., & Emmett, M. C. (2010). Active listening in
peer inter-views: The influence of message paraphrasing on perceptions
of listening skill. International Journal of Listening, 24,

https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-intrapersonal-
andinterpersonal-communication.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/
businesscommunication.html https://www.mbaknol.com/business-
communication/introduction-togroup-communication/

(National Institute for Literacy [NIFL], 2001).

(Fielding & Pearson, 1994).

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1. (Pressley, 2000). (Rand Report, 2000)

• (Gough, 1984; Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998).

• (Morrow, Tracey, Woo, & Pressley, 1999; Smolkin & Donovan, 2002;
Taylor, Pearson, Clark, & Walpole, 2000).

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