NATURE AND ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION

KEY TAKEAWAYS
Communication is a process of sharing and conveying messages or information from one person to another within and across channels,
contexts, media, and cultures (McCornack, 2014). There is a wide variety of contexts and situations in which communication can be manifested; it can
be a face-to-face interaction, a phone conversation, a group discussion, a meeting or interview, a letter correspondence, a class recitation, and many
others.

NATURE OF COMMUNICATION

1. Communication is a process.
2. Communication occurs between two or more people (the speaker and the receiver).
3. Communication can be expressed through written or spoken words, actions (nonverbal), or both spoken words and nonverbal actions at the
same time.

ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION
Communication is divided into elements, which help us, better understand its mechanics or process. These elements are the following:
1. SPEAKER – the source of information or message
2. MESSAGE – the information, ideas, or thoughts conveyed by the speaker in words or in actions
3. ENCODING – the process of converting the message into words, actions, or other forms that the speaker understands
4. CHANNEL – the medium or the means, such as personal or non-personal, verbal or nonverbal, in which the encoded message is conveyed
5. DECODING – the process of interpreting the encoded message of the speaker by the receiver
6. RECEIVER – the recipient of the message, or someone who decodes the message
7. FEEDBACK – the reactions, responses, or information provided by the receiver
8. CONTEXT – the environment where communication takes place
9. BARRIER – the factors that affect the flow of communication

MODELS OF COMMUNICATION
1. SHANNON-WEAVER MODEL
Known as the mother of all communication models, the Shannon-Weaver model (1949) depicts communication as a linear or one-way
process consisting of five elements: a source (producer of message); a transmitter (encoder of message into signals); a channel (signals
adapted for transmission); a receiver (decoder of message from the signal); and a destination. This model, however, has been criticized for
missing one essential element in the communication process: feedback. Without feedback, the speaker will not know whether the receiver
understands the message or not.
 As shown in Figure 2, this model is more interactive. There is a collaborative exchange of messages between communicators with the aim
of understanding each other. It also shows that a barrier, such as noise, may interfere with the flow of communication.

FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION
Basically, there are five functions of communication. These are control, social interaction, motivation, emotional expression, and information
dissemination.
1. CONTROL – Communication functions to control behavior.
2. SOCIAL INTERACTION – Communication allows individuals to interact with others.
3. MOTIVATION – Communication motivates or encourages people to live better.
4. EMOTIONAL EXPRESSION – Communication facilitates people’s expression of their feelings and emotions.
5. INFORMATION DISSEMINATION – Communication functions to convey information

FEATURES OF AN EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

In their pioneer book Effective Public Relations, Professors Broom, Cutlip, and Center (2012) list the 7 Cs of Effective Communication. This list is
widely used today, especially in public relations and advertising.
1. COMPLETENESS - Complete communication is essential to the quality of the communication process in general. Hence, communication
should include everything that the receiver needs to hear for him/ her to respond, react, or evaluate properly.
2. CONCISENESS - Conciseness does not mean keeping the message short, but making it direct or straight to the point. Insignificant or
redundant information should be eliminated from the communication that will be sent to the recipient.
3. CONSIDERATION -To be effective, the speaker should always consider relevant information about his/her receiver such as mood,
background, race, preference, education, status, and needs, among others. By doing so, he/she can easily build rapport with the audience.
4. CONCRETENESS - Effective communication happens when the message is concrete and supported by facts, figures, and real-life examples
and situations. In this case, the receiver is more connected to the message conveyed.
5. COURTESY -The speaker shows courtesy in communication by respecting the culture, values, and beliefs of his/her receivers. Being
courteous at all times creates a positive impact on the audience.
6. CLEARNESS - Clearness in communication implies the use of simple and specific words to express ideas. It is also achieved when the
speaker focuses only on a single objective in his/her speech so as not to confuse the audience.
7. CORRECTNESS -Correctness in grammar eliminates negative impact on the audience and increases the credibility and effectiveness of the
message.

BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION
There are instances when miscommunication and misunderstanding occur because of certain barriers. To become an effective
communicator, you should recognize these barriers that hinder the communication process. This will enable you to control the situation, reset
conditions, and start anew. The table below presents some barriers to effective communication with corresponding solutions.
WRITING AN EFFECTIVE BUSINESS LETTER
E-mail may be the quick and convenient way to relay daily business messages, but the printed business letter is still the preferred way to
convey important information. A carefully crafted letter presented on attractive letterhead can be a powerful communication tool.
To make sure you are writing the most professional and effective letter possible, use the business letter format and template below and
follow these basic business letter-writing.

BUSINESS LETTER TEMPLATE FIELDS:

1. DATE: Use month, day, year format, e.g., March 3, 20xx or 3 March 20xx
2. SENDER'S ADDRESS: It is a good idea to include sender's email and url, if available. Don't include this information if it's already incorporated
into the letterhead design. This will allow customers to find your small business more quickly.
3. INSIDE ADDRESS: Use full name. Mr./Ms. is optional
4. SALUTATION: Be sure to use a colon at the end of the name, not a comma as in personal letters
5. BODY TEXT: State why you are writing. Establish any connection/mutual relationship up front. Outline the solution, providing proof in the
way of examples and expert opinions. Group related information into paragraphs
6. CLOSING "CALL TO ACTION": State what the reader needs to do and what you will do to follow up
7. SIGNATURE BLOCK: Sign your letter in blue or black ink
8. ENCLOSURES: Use if you have an enclosure
9. CARBON COPY: Use if you are sending a copy to additional person(s)
LESSON 1: WHAT IS ACADEMIC WRITING

Rhetorical patterns are ways of organizing information. Rhetoric refers to the way people use language to process information, and this handout will
define a few rhetorical patters as well as each pattern’s general structure and purpose.

RHETORICAL PATTERNS USED IN ACADEMIC WRITING

Structured of Academic Writing
 DESCRIPTIVE WRITING - Good descriptive writing includes many vivid sensory details that paint a picture and appeals to all of
the reader's senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste when appropriate. Descriptive writing may also paint pictures of the
feelings the person, place or thing invokes in the writer.
 ANALYTICAL WRITING - Analytical Writing measure tests your critical thinking and analytical writingskills. It assesses your
ability to articulate and support complex ideas, construct and evaluate arguments, and sustain a focused and coherent
discussion. It does not assess specific content knowledge.
 PERSUASIVE WRITING - Persuasive writing is a form of nonfiction writing that encourages careful word choice, the development
of logical arguments, and a cohesive summary. Young children can be guided through a series of simple steps in an effort to
develop their persuasive writing skills. When to use: Before reading.
 CRITICAL WRITING - A simple definition of critical writing. Critical writing involves considering evidence to make reasoned
conclusions. A mistake many beginning writers make is to use only one source to support their ideas (or, worse, no sources,
making unsubstantiated statements).

Other patterns

ARGUMENT AND PERSUASION

 Take a definite stance on an issue, but take a stance that is reasonable and capable of being supported by data, statistics, and examples.
Don’t take an outlandish stance for its own sake.
 Avoid topics that are too obvious, such as abortion or gun control.
 Consider and refute views that do not agree with your thesis. When considering or refuting these views, use reason instead of dismissing
them. However, views that disagree with the thesis should be integrated into the paper instead of stuck at the end.
 Avoid logical fallacies.
 In general, use rational appeals as opposed to emotional appeals.

Example:
Because of injuries, neurological damage, and in-ring deaths, the rules of professional boxing need to be changed.
a. Paragraph 1: List off a number of possible injuries and discuss the frequency of injuries in boxing.
b. Paragraph 2: Discuss the prevalence of neurological damage in the sport and explain how life altering it can be for a person.
c. Paragraph 3: Explain why it is ridiculous that someone may risk his/her life for the sake of making money and entertaining people.
CAUSE AND EFFECT
 Show why something happened, what the consequences were, or what the consequences might be.
 Analyze either many causes with one effect or one cause with many effects.
 Choose a subject narrow enough that a writer can thoroughly examine it
 Include all relevant causes and effects need to be.
 Distinguish between the more important and relevant causes.
 Portray all causes and effects accurately; assumptions are not viable.
Example:
Due to video game consoles and fast food restaurants being accessible and affordable, child obesity has become a serious issue in American society.
a. Paragraph 1: List off all of the consoles available to children, the draw of video games to children, and how many consoles a house typically
owns.
b. Paragraph 2: Explain why a child may consume so much fast food, how many fast food restaurants are located in a square mile on average,
and the advent of dollar meals.
c. Paragraph 3: Combine the information from the first two paragraphs to describe how the two factors have attributed to child obesity and
explain how this assertion is true using statistics.

CLASSIFICATION/DIVISION
 Put main things, people, places, into categories based on their similarities or analyze one thing, person, place and divide it into its
components.
 Make the purpose of classification clear and interesting. A paper classifying the different areas to study in college is not very interesting. A
paper classifying the different types of sexism in the classroom is interesting.
 Include the rule or principle used to classify items into groups. Clarify if each subject can fall into just one group or more than one group.
 Mention all essential categories.
 Use examples, details, and data to help readers distinguish between categories.
Example: There are three basic types of wind instruments: brasswind, woodwind, and free reed.
a. Paragraph 1: Describe the size, shape, material, sound and types of brasswind instruments.
b. Paragraph 2: Describe the size, shape, material, sound and types of woodwind instruments.
c. Paragraph 3: Describe the size, shape, material, sound and types of free reed instruments.

COMPARISON AND CONTRAST

 State a clear purpose regarding why the subjects are being compared or contrasted at the beginning of the paper. A paper about the
differences between summer and winter may have the correct structure, grammar, and mechanics; however, the paper must be interesting
as well as correct.
 Share enough features to make a comparison valuable.
 Choose a narrow enough thesis so that all major similarities and differences can be covered.
 Organize the paragraphs so that the ideas are compared and contrasted simultaneously by point in each paragraph or fully describe one
entity by point and compare and contrast when both entities are described.
Example:
To make a decision about whether to expand business in Japan or in Canada, a company needs to know the economics and business practices of
each culture.
a. Paragraph 1: Describe the economic situation in Japan or describe the economy in both Japan and Canada
b. Paragraph 2: Describe the business practices in both Japan and Canada regarding proper manners, meeting places, etc.
c. Paragraph 3: Compare how the two cultures are similar and different.

DEFINITION
 Explore a subject’s meaning fully. Differences within the definition are fine if they exist within the established boundaries.
 Drawn clear boundaries around the subject to avoid confusion with other subjects.
 Use examples, details, and anecdotes to strengthen a definition essay.

Example:
A family is a system of people who support one another, make sacrifices for the benefit of everyone in the family, and are comfortable around one
another.
a. Paragraph 1: Describe how family members support each other and what the different types of support are given.
b. Paragraph 2: Explain how family members make sacrifices for one another and how individual needs are often made less important for
the benefit of the family.
c. Paragraph 3: Describe how a person may act when they’re around his/her family as opposed to when he/she is in any other group of
people.

DESCRIPTION
 Fully describe a subject. The dominant impression should be obvious to the audience and should be closely tied to the purpose of writing.
 Make the description either subjective (emphasizing emotions) or objective (unbiased and unemotional).
 Keep a consistent point of view and organize the details clearly (if describing a room, does the description move consistently left wall to right
wall or ceiling to floor?).
 Vivid details should be used to support the dominant impression but should be left out or condensed if they are irrelevant to the dominant
impression.
  Use concrete language that appeals to the senses. Try to incorporate all five senses to evoke imagery in the paper.

Example:
Spam is a disgusting concept due to the amount of salt in the meat, the gelatinous substance covering the meat, and the incredibly long shelf life.
a. Paragraph 1: Give an impression of the overbearing salt flavor by describing the taste and texture of the meat using diction (word choice
eliciting an appropriate connotation for the point being made).
b. Paragraph 2: Describe the texture of the gelatinous preservative substance surrounding the meat, the smell, the color, etc.
c. Paragraph 3: Make an assertion that meat should need to be refrigerated and that it shouldn’t be able to sit on a shelf for years at a time.

NARRATION
 Choose an appropriate point of view (POV). Subjective POV includes language and details that reveal the emotions of the writer. The
following sentence is an example of a subjective point of view. “The cold wind blowing down the barren street made me feel very lonely.”
Objective POV describes something that wasn’t directly experienced by the writer. It is generally a non-biased and accurate account. For
example, “Braveheart won the Academy Award for Best Picture,” is an objective POV.
 Write the most important details for the purpose of the paper written about in great detail.
 Generally, organize the paper chronologically; if not, there should be a purpose for doing so.
 Use transitions to establish the progression of time.
 If dialogue is used, use it concisely to support the purpose of the story.

Example:
In the 2004 NBA Western Conference semifinals, the Minnesota Timberwolves played their most unforgettable game in the franchises history.
a. Paragraph 1: Describe the energy of the crowd, the intensity of the crowd, and the noise in the stadium.
b. Paragraph 2: Describe the team’s energy, key moments in the game where the momentum shifted, and amazing plays that lifted the crowd
off its feet.
c. Paragraph 3: Describe the celebration that ensued after Chris Webber missed the final shot of the game and the excitement surrounding the
Timberwolves’ win.

PROCESS ANALYSIS
 Define how a certain process is by analyzing it by including the essential steps.
 Think about how much your audience already knows before you decide where to begin describing the process. Don't assume your readers
have background knowledge that they may not have.
 Provide enough definitions of terms and be specific.
 Use appropriate transitions between paragraphs to distinguish the order and time of each step.

Example:
Throwing the perfect party has three important steps: preparing a proper party music playlist, cleaning the house to assure guest comfort, and providing
a vast assortment of beverages.
a. Paragraph 1: Explain the attention to detail and the various factors to consider that go into creating a playlist for a party.
b. Paragraph 2: Describe the different tasks to complete when cleaning the house. Be specific and utilize time to describe how long each task
takes and how long the entire step takes.
c. Paragraph 3: Describe the process of deciding which store to get the pop from based on location and price, and distinguish which beverages
are good for which occasions.

THESIS/EXAMPLE
 Exemplify a thesis statement with specific details, anecdotes, facts, and data. The controlling idea in the thesis statement at the end of the
introduction paragraph determines the specifics to follow.
 Use a ‘hook’ to get the readers attention in the introduction.
 Provide support for the thesis in each paragraph.
 Utilize transitions for coherence among paragraphs.
 Be consistent in tense and point of view.
 Conclude without blatant repetition.

Example:
Trees are important to the environment because they provide oxygen, create shelter for many creatures, and are aesthetically pleasing.
a. Paragraph 1: Use statistics to inform the reader how much oxygen a tree produces annually and how that affects the environment.
b. Body Paragraph 2: Describe how important trees are to the ecosystem and list different animals that use trees as shelter.
c. Body Paragraph 3: Describe, in depth and great detail, how the presence of trees can influence how aesthetically pleasing a landscape is.
Lesson 2: how should I read academic text

Determining the writers purpose

 To inform
 To entertain
 To persuade
 To inspire
Determining the writers tone
 Formal
 Casual
 Sarcastic
Determining the relevance of the text
 Literal meaning
 Implied meaning

SKIMMING and SCANNING are reading techniques that use rapid eye movement and keywords to move quickly through text for
slightly different purposes. SKIMMING is reading rapidly in order to get a general overview of the material. SCANNING is reading
rapidly in order to find specific facts.

LESSON 3: HOW CAN I USE THESIS STATEMENTS AS A WRITING STRATEGY

A THESIS STATEMENT is one sentence that expresses the main idea of a research paper or essay, such as an expository essay or
argumentative essay. It makes a claim, directly answering a question.

Example

FUNCTIONS OF THESIS STATEMENT

1. The thesis statement expounds on an answer to an issue or topic.

2. A thesis statement gives direction to the academic text
3. A thesis statement defends a writers claim.

GUIDELINES IN FORMULATING A THESIS STATEMENT

1. Your thesis should be expressed as a declarative sentence, not as a question.

2. Your thesis statement should be more than just a statement of fact about a topic.
3. Your thesis should contain enough supporting details and should be more than just a title.
4. Your thesis statement should be specific enough to be defended.
5. Your thesis should reflect your opinion, giving enough arguments that can be proven.

LESSON 4: WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF SUMMARIZING AND PARAPHRASING AS WRITING STRATEGIES

SUMMARIZING. A summary is a synthesis of the key ideas of a piece of writing, restated in your own words – i.e., paraphrased. You
may write a summary as a stand-alone assignment or as part of a longer paper. Whenever you summarize, you must be careful not to
copy the exact wording of the original source.

To PARAPHRASE is to rewrite something 'in your own words'. Lecturers like to see you using paraphrasing in your writing because it
demonstrates what you know and understand about their subject (because it is in your own words). Most of youracademic reading texts
are made up of paraphrases.
TYPES OF SUMMARIES

 Summaries present text information in an abridged form. They can be placed in one of two categories:

 INFORMATIVE SUMMARIES – objective reports on the text’s content.

DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARIES – objective reports about the text.

 Both techniques of summarisation can be applied on expository texts (scientific, technical, or other type of non-fictional works) or on narrative
texts, which are usually but not mandatory, literary texts.

 Please note that the main requisite of any summary is to present a concise and clear presentation of the main ideas that form the meaning
of the written work (or of other type of resource), while eliminating the unnecessary details that are not absolutely necessary for the overall
understanding.

INFORMATIVE SUMMARIES

 Informative summaries accurately convey the information contained in a text or in other type of resource. An informative summary should be
objective i.e. “without personal opinions in presenting the ideas in the source text”.

 Thus, informative summaries are recommended for scientific, non-fictional works or to present objective reports of factual content.

 The main types of informative summaries are: outlines, abstracts, and synopses.
Outlines present the plan or the “skeleton” of a written material.
Outlines show the order and the relation between the parts of the written material.

DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARIES

 Descriptive summaries depict the original text (material) rather than directly presenting the information it contains. A descriptive summary
should portray, in an objective way, the texts structure and main themes.

 Descriptive summaries often play the role of reviews for fictional or literary works: books, movies, video clips, articles, essays etc. In this
case, the descriptive summary can include statements about sense and significance of the summarised work.

LESSON 5: HOW CAN I USE OUTLINING AS A WRITING STRATEGY

An OUTLINE is a plan for or a summary of a writing project or speech. Outlines are usually in the form of a list divided into headings and
subheadings that distinguish main points from supporting points. Most word processors contain an outlining feature that allows writers to format outlines
automatically.

Types of outline
 Topic outline
 Sentence outline
 Alphanumeric Outline
 Decimal outline
There are two main types of outlines: Topic and Sentence outlines. Both types are hierarchical outlines but a topic outline is far more brief.

 A TOPIC OUTLINE provides a quick overview of topics to be included in an essay. You are probably already familiar with this structure.
Look at a syllabus from one of your courses. It is probably the equivalent of a topic outline, with topics listed for each unit, and readings and
assignments under each. After each heading in a topic outline for an essay, a maximum of several words is used to identify the topic or idea
that will be discussed under the given heading.

 In a SENTENCE OUTLINE, the thesis and topic sentence of each supporting paragraph are fully written out. The sentence outline forces
part of the essay to be written out in sentences before the first draft. Here are examples of sentence and topic outlines:
OUTLINE PATTERNS FOR ESSAY STRUCTURE

There are multiple patterns you can use for outlines, each serving a unique purpose. Generally speaking, the following outlines represent possible
structures for organizing your essay:

 Compare - Contrast
 Chronological
 Sequential
 Advantages - Disadvantages / Pros vs. Cons
 Cause - Effect
 Problem - Solution
 Topic-specific

Cardinal rules in Outlining

1. Observe parallelism.
2. Include general ideas in your heading. For your subheadings, use specific ideas.
3. Expand your heading into more than one idea.

Lesson 6: what is critical thinking