MODULE 1-COMMUNICATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY

This module introduces several concepts about communication beginning from the ancient
Greeks until the 21st Century. It will illuminate several perspectives about communication, being that it
is necessary and important skill that should be improved to become better citizen and to help in building
one’s society. This includes the uses of English language as it is lingua franca in the world. It provides
you with communication models, ethics in communication that you can use in the future, in your career,
and in your professional world.

Objectives:

At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:

1. Identify some importance of communication for you and for the society.

2. State the principles and processes of communication as embodied in the communication models.

3. Discover how the English language spread throughout the world and appreciate the differences
between standard English, World English’s and Philippine English.

Directions:

➢ Please read and understand fully each lesson in Module 1.

➢ State your explanations briefly in your own words at least three to five sentences each.
➢ Submit your answers after you have finished your activities.

INTRODUCTION

Communication can be defined as the process of transmitting information and common

understanding from one person to another (Keyton, 2011). The word communication is derived from the
Latin word, ―communis”, which means common. In our everyday living, for a communication to be
effectively transmitted, elements of communication must be present and these include a.)Speaker,
b.)Message, c.) Receiver, d.)Channel, e.)Feedback, and f.) Communicative Situation.

What is Language?
Language is a wonderfully rich vehicle for communication. It is a system of conventional
spoken, manual, or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and
participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the
expression of identity, play, imaginative expression, and emotional release. It has a system of rules (also
known as grammar), a sound system (phonology), and a vocabulary (lexicon). These are the requirements
for identifying a means of communication as a language. When people use language, they can understand

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each other because they belong to the same speech community. They can understand each other because
in their speech community, people share the same set of rules in the language system. While growing up,
people acquire the languages used by those in the community. This is the process of language
acquisition. The languages acquired while growing up are known as mother tongues, which may also be
referred to as first language. People discover later on that other language are needed various reasons.
These other languages may be referred to as second language. People learn these languages by studying
formally in school or informally on their own. This is a process of language learning.
What is Communication?
Communication as a term that takes on different contexts resulting in people having different
views in communication types. Since communication is generally defined as the exchange of thoughts,
ideas, concepts and view between or among two or more people. Context is the circumstances or
environment in which communication takes place. Such circumstances may include the physical or actual
setting, the value positions of a speaker/listener, and the relevance or appropriateness of a message
conveyed. It focuses on certain communication process and even groupings of people that constitute a
communication situation. Different contexts can impact ones communication. Each communication type
is governed by a particular circumstance. Hence, it is essential to pay attention and interplay of factors
surrounding the context of communication which may be physical, cultural, social, and psychological in
nature.

TYPES OF COMMUNICATION ACCORDING TO MODE

A message may be imparted through these types; verbal-non-verbal and visual. While communication is
often thought of as verbal, the non-verbal mode is equally essential as it enhances ones’ message.

• VERBAL-NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Effective communication calls for the blending of these two types. One cannot be separated from the
other. For example, door-to-door sales persons who demonstrate product knowledge can only be
effective if they know how to properly punctuate what they say with proper gestures and facial
expressions. Their communication with the customer begins upon greeting him/her with a welcoming
smile then assessing customer needs and answering customer queries enhanced by gestures and a
friendly, happy and pleasant disposition. It is through this mode that sales pole with excellent
communication skills are able to provide the best information needed, by that means convincing the
client to patronize their products.

• VISUAL COMMUNICATION
Visual communication, on the other hand, is the type of communication that uses visuals to convey
information and/or messages. Some examples are signs, symbol, imagery, maps, graphs, charts,
diagrams, pictograms, photos, drawings or illustrations, and even various forms of electronic
communication.

Visual communication now occupies an important place in any work environment. For instance,
during presentations, instructors, managers, doctors, lawyers, legislators and the like use visuals to
transfer data into digestible information. Very likely, they have greater success in catching the
attention of the audience making the latter easily recall the information. What makes visual
communication even more advantages is that it makes use of communication even more advantages

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 is that it makes use of technology that provides apps(applications), videos and images that rely less
on the printed word making presentations more interesting. This leaves a powerful effect on the
audience and prospective clients. Speakers/presenters should be mindful of the content of their
presentation since wrong and irrelevant information may lead to miscommunication. Likewise, they
should pay attention to graphic elements, such as position, color, size, shape and orientation as all
these play an important role in the presentation of slides. Audience size should be considered as well
when preparing slide presentations or other forms of visuals.

TYPES OF COMMUNICATION ACCORDING TO CONTEXT

In this sub-section, context in communication is referred to as composite of people interacting with each
other. Communication may also be classified according to context: (1) intrapersonal; (2) interpersonal

INTRAPERSONAL COMMUNICATION
The Latin prefixes intra-means within or inside. Intrapersonal communication then means
talking to oneself. Some label it as self or inner talk, inner dialogue. Psychologists call it with other
names such as self-verbalization or self-statement. Intrapersonal communication can be defined also as
communication with ones self, and that may include self-talk, acts of imagination and visualization, and
even recall and memory (McLean, 2005). You read on your phone that your friends are going to have
dinner at your favorite restaurant. What comes to mind? Sights, sounds, and scents? Something special
that happened the last time you were there? Do you contemplate joining them? Do you start to work out a
plan of getting from your present location to the restaurant? Do you send your friends a text asking if
they want company? Until the moment when you hit the ―send‖ button, you are communicating with
yourself. Communications expert Leonard Shedletsky examined intrapersonal communication through
the eight basic components of the communication process (i.e., source, receiver, message, channel,
feedback, environment, context, and interference) as transactional, but all the interaction occurs within
the individual (Shedletsky, 1989). From planning to problem solving, internal conflict resolution, and
evaluations and judgments of self and others, we communicate with ourselves through intrapersonal
communication. All this interaction takes place in the mind without externalization, and all of it relies on
previous interaction with the external world.

INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION
Interpersonal communication can be defined as communication between two people, but the
definition fails to capture the essence of a relationship. This broad definition is useful when we compare
it to intrapersonal communication, or communication with ourselves, as opposed to mass communication,
or communication with a large audience, but it requires clarification. The developmental view of
interpersonal communication places emphasis on the relationship rather than the size of the audience, and
draws a distinction between impersonal and personal interactions. Family for many is the first experience
in interpersonal relationships, but as we develop professionally, our relationships at work may take on
many of the attributes we associate with family communication. We look to each other with similar
sibling rivalries, competition for attention and resources, and support. The workplace and our peers can
become as close, or closer, than our birth families, with similar challenges and rewards. To summarize,
interpersonal relationships are an important part of the work environment.

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 According to scholars, communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by
two or more persons. (Newman and Sumer). This means that there is transfer of ideas between two or
more individuals or groups. “Communication is the process by which information is transmitted between
individuals or organizations so that an understanding response results.”

Lesson1-Models of Communication

Hello! Let’stalk about communication. This is not a new term, isn’t it?
Why do you have to communicate with your friends, with your family, in your community, in your
school, and people in other countries. Can you name some importance of communication?

Objectives:

1. Determine the elements of communication and its importance.

2. Explain the models of communication.
3. Apply the gained knowledge in communication processes when communicating with friends and
family.

Directions:
1. Read and understand your lesson. Watch and learn the given links.
2. Answer questions completely.
3. Submit answers on time.

Engage

Activity 2. Watch, listen and study this link: Communication in the 21st Century: Is It What You Say,

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Not How You Say It? By |Vivian Ta under this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laDnZ_FWyhM

Write your comment and reaction on a sheet of paper and submit or turn it at the LMS on the prescribed
date. (10 pts.)

Explore

Read and understand this lesson.

According to James Humes, “The art of communication is the art of leadership.” He does not
believe that communication is a simple process though we communicate to one another everyday.
Communication is a learned skill whether this is writing, reading, listening, and speaking.
Communicating effectively is about the quality and delivery of timely and relevant information. So to be
effective you have to organize your thoughts, control your emotions, you have to use your words to
articulate concepts and arguments. Communication is an essential tool that helps you analyze, critique,
and negotiate with the world. It can help you in your personal and professional success in your life. So
you have to communicate accordingly through the following models.

➢ The earliest model comes from Aristotle at around 5 B.C. In this model Aristotle
explains that a speaker should adjust his message according to his audience and the
occasion to achieve a particular effect. The speaker should make his speech
especially for the occasion, filled with strong words, that were firm and straight to the
point in order is to persuade his audience. This model is speaker centered.
➢

Speaker Speech Audience Effect

Fig. 1 Aristotle’s Model of Communication

➢ The Shannon-Weaver model was created by Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver.
According to Flores (2016) this is often called the “ telephone model” since it was
developed because of the technology of the telephone and the “noise” coming from the
switchboard.

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 Information source Transmitter Reception
Destination

Sender Encoder
Channel Decoder Receiver

FEEDBACK

Fig. 2. Shannon-Weaver Model of Communication

The sender would be the person giving the message, while the encoder would be the
transmitter which converts the message into signals. The decoder would be the reception place
of the signal which converts signal into message.

So when there is no signal, there is difficulty in decoding the message. When there is noise that
interferes with the message, the receiver would give the feedback as “choppy” or when the
message cannot be heard because of the signal. In the case of the telephone, the use of a channel
would be the cables, and in the case of the cell phone, the channel would be the radio
frequencies. The message may sometimes get lost because of the noise which can be physical or
psychological, and so feedback is essential component in communication to ensure that the
message is successfully received.

➢ The Osgood-Schramm Model - In this model pay attention to the role of the interpreter,
encoding (medium to send the message-a phone call, email, text message) and
decoding( audio or video signals) are not automatic processes both go through the filter of
the interpreter . Therefore the message may succeed or fail, based on the interpreters
appreciation of the message. There are times that the sender and the receiver may apply
different meanings to the same message and this is termed “semantic noise.”

Message

Encoder Encoder
Interpreter Interpreter
Decoder Decoder

Message

Fig. 3 Osgood-Schramm Model of Communication

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➢ The Osgood – Schramm model is about the role of the interpreter . The
encoding and decoding are not automatic processes both go through the filter of the interpreter. The
message may succeed or fail, based on the interpreter’s appreciation of the message. There are times
when the sender and receiver may apply different meanings to the same message, and this is termed
“semantic noise.”

According to Sneha Mishra (2017) this field of experience may constitute a culture, social background,
beliefs, experiences, values, and rules. For the message to reach the receiver, there must be a common
field of experience between the sender and the receiver.

field of experience field of experience

signal
source encoder decoder source

Fig. 4. Osgood-Schramm second model of communication

➢ This model is Eugene White’s Stages of Oral Communication. According

to White, it is possible to begin at any of the stages outlined in the model. Since it is a circular model, it
means that oral communication is a continuous process with no real beginning or no end. The most
important contribution from Eugene White’s model is the concept of feedback, which can only be
processed by the speaker if he or she has been monitoring the audience or the listener. Hence, the
speaker must also pay attention to the listener’s verbal and non-verbal cues (Flores, 201116)

Thinking Symbolizing Expressing

Monitoring Transmitting

Feedbacking Decoding Receiving

Fig. 5. Eugene’s White Stages of Oral Communication

➢ In conclusion, communication is not a simple process that starts with the speaker and
ends with the listener. There are many factors that should be considered:
➢ When it comes to the message, how the message is organized and what field of
experience it comes from should be taken into consideration.

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➢ When it comes to the sender, the best communication is the one that involves feedback. ➢ There
are several kinds of noise that may severely affect the reception of the message and thus should be
considered and avoided
➢ Cultural differences, technology, and interpretation need to be considered as well.
➢ To be a good communicator, you need to pay attention to how people are responding to the
message and adjust accordingly, rather than preoccupied with simply expressing yourself.

MAJOR FORMS/LEVELS OF COMMUNICATION

There are 5 forms/levels of communication:

1. Intrapersonal Communication- communication happens within the person. Hence, there is no

feedback and/or feedbacks are not interrupted.
Example: A person can communicate himself through praying.
2. Interpersonal Communication- communication happens between a group of persons.
Example: Ana is talking to Mrs. Maricar with regards to the school requirements.
3. Dyadic Communication- communication happens between two persons. Either way, the source
become the receiver and vice versa because of the dynamic and spontaneous flow of discourse.
One of the best examples of dyadic communication is between a patient and a doctor.
4. Small Group Communication- this communication usually happen in an organizational
communization and involves more than two individuals. The information coming from the source
down to the receiver and vice versa. There is a continuous sending and receiving of feedbacks.
5. Public Communication- this communication is a one way type model of communication as it no
longer requires the feedback of the receiver or the audience. The message of the speaker will be
sent to a huge number of audiences. For instance, public speaking like the State of the Nation
Address (SONA) of the president.
6. Mass Communication- this involves a large number of people and requires a tool to help
disseminating the information. This also no longer requires feedback from the audience to the
source. For instance, television news and advertisement. But in mass communication, there is no
direct access with the receiver. For that they need media like Newspaper, Radio, Television and
Internet. The audience feedback is very less or delayed.
When the message you convey are not communicated properly and felt guilty of not conveying the
message as it wants to be conveyed feels worse. It is because the effective communication is being
hindered by noise or in other reference, barriers. Some of the barriers that obstructs effective
communication include noise, inappropriate medium, assumptions, emotion, and use of jargons or
technical terms, and poor listening skills. These barriers are categorized into five. Physical,
Psychological, Cultural, Language Used, and Personal.

MAJOR TYPES OF COMMUNICATION

Communication is a natural phenomenon that occurs between a person and group of person and purposely
interacting and exchanging ideas. Do you know that even if you do not utter a word, you are still
communicating? Generally, there are two types of communication mainly the VERBAL
COMMUNICATION and NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION.

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Simply, verbal communication is a form of communication in which it uses words to interchange
the information with other people either in the form of speech or writing. Meanwhile, nonverbal
communication, does not use words for communicating anything, but some other modes are
used, i.e. where communication takes place by way of unspoken or unwritten messages such as
body language, facial expressions, sign language and so forth.

However, as the world becomes more advanced, our means of communications changes. Whilst
the traditional modes of communication remain the same, various communication modes arose
and became not just the trend but become essential in exchanging information.
Communication mode refers to the channel through which one express his/her communicative
intent. It is the medium through which one conveys his/her thoughts. Views or feeling can be
communicated through faceto-face interaction, video or audio. The mode may also be text-
based.

The most common of all these modes is the face-to-face interaction. It is an informal or casual
conversation between two or more people. People engage in social conversations to establish
relationships or maintain them. It is one way of gaining new acquaintances or friends. How to
speak, what to speak, when to speak and to whom one is speaking are all important
considerations in building relationships

TRADITIONAL MODES OF COMMUNICATION

Face-to-face communication is the most common and widely used mode of communicating. This
includes casual conversation between two or more people and business meetings. Face-to-face is a very
easy communication style that everyone has experienced. It requires no extra materials, making this the
cheapest option for communication. It is also instant, and you get the benefit of visual cues from the
person or people to whom you are communicating. One advantage is face-to-face interaction is that aside
from directly hearing in the message being conveyed, you are able to note nonverbal cues through facial
expressions, gestures, movement or even objects or realize form the person you are communicating with.

MEDIATED COMMUNICATION
In contrary to face-to-face communication, Mediated Communication refers to a communication
that happens using the technological tools of Information and Communication Technology as a
mode of exchanging information to one person or another. These include the following;

Video communication is achieved by using Web cameras to connect two or more parties. This is the
nextbest communication option after face-to-face, as you get most of the same benefits. However, there is
always the possibility of bad connections or other technical issues that hinder the communication. If there
are no technical glitches encountered, this could be very effective mode of communication especially for
people separated by distance. For example, you may engage in a conversation via Skype with you loved
ones especially during significant, meaningful or memorable occasions. This is a convenient
communication mode for people how want to reach-out to each other despite distance.

Audio Communication is a voice-only form of communication, such as a conversation on a telephone.

This is a good instant communication tool if you catch the person instead of getting an answering
machine or voice mail, but it does not have the benefit of allowing you to see the other person. It is also

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more difficult to include more than two parties. An obvious down side of this mode is not being able to
see the body language or cues of the person you are talking to. However, if good listening skills is
applied, one may detect the tone and rising of intonation or pitch of the voice which may indicate the
feeling or mood of the speaker or listener.
The last mode is text-based communication. Although it can be linked or traced back to the traditional
mode of communication, however, because of the evolution of our communication we learned to adapt
and integrate it to our daily living to address such necessities. Like e-mail, text messaging and instant
messaging and social networking site such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram likewise offer text-based
interaction. Text communication includes Internet communication, such as email, instant messaging and
forums, text messaging and printed papers. Text communication does not have the benefits of audio and
video, but it is much easier to distribute information to a large group of people and save records of the
communication.

COMMUNICATION IN SOCIAL MEDIA

In the past, there are various modes through which we communicate. These modes took the form
of hand written messages, type written messages, short telegrams, computer encoded text, as well as the
audio and video conversations. Each mode of communication is distinct form the other, the ways in
which you craft our messages differ.
Now people can use email, social media, chat messengers, video conferencing, video calls, images,
videos, symbols, diagrams, charts, and emoticons, etc. for the communication. Many things are wasting
our time and we‘re becoming more busy than productive. The debates, questions, viral communications
are not achieving the desired results and conclusions. There are even newer topics to communicate the
next day and we start looking for the next conclusions.
If we follow good communication skills we can use many tools and platform for research and
development of nature including a synergistic development of humans, our environment and natural
sources. Technology has affected communication tremendously, but it is entirely dependent on us how
we use it.
Today with the rapid rise and spread of internet connectivity, the old forms of communication
have given way to new forms that make communication easier and faster. The emergence of social media
has created a new avenue for facilitating daily information and communication needs. As technology
grows and expands our range of communication, social media is becoming a vital tool for daily social
interaction. It creates opportunity for people to interact with each other in a way that is both helpful and
essential to socially motivate people. The rapid fire quick communication style that captivates the
millennial and other generation has shifted our conversations from ‗face-to-face‘ instances to ‗through –
the-screen‘ ones.

Social media and online communication is believed to be having adverse effect on social skills
and communication among adolescents. When social media did not exist and social communication and
interaction were the only way of communication. In the era of technology, social media interactions now
dominates both online and offline conversations. In a society where interacting and over-sharing is the
norm, you are probably more likely to speak to friends and family through electronic devices than face-
to-face. As more generations are born into the social age, social media will continue to be the favored
communication form among young people.

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 Being able to reach customers, co-workers and vendors quickly helps improve the efficiency of
any business operation. Mobile technology makes it easy to get or to keep contact information in a
mobile device. You can reach out with questions or updates from anywhere. For example, a manager in
the field trying to determine why an order hasn't arrived can quickly contact his office, supplier and
delivery courier within a few minutes from the offsite location.
Furthermore, technology has reduced the amount of face-to-face interaction or the number of
actual telephone conversations that people have. It is much easier to send a quick text rather than to
engage in a phone call. Although this efficiency is certainly a benefit, there is value to the chit-chat that's
now becoming lost. Relationships are built when a business knows its customer and discovers
opportunities to serve them more effectively through personal interactions.
When the message you convey are not communicated properly and felt guilty of not conveying
the message as it wants to be conveyed feels worse. It is because the effective communication is being
hindered by noise or in other reference, barriers. Some of the barriers that obstructs effective
communication include noise, inappropriate medium, assumptions, emotion, and use of jargons or
technical terms, and poor listening skills. These barriers are categorized into five. Physical,
Psychological, Cultural, Language Used, and Personal.

5 CATEGORIES OF BARRIERS
Physical Barrier- this barrier includes the defects in media or the medium for communication,
environment or geographical location, and physical disability like in hearing, vision, or speaking.
Psychological Barrier- it is the manifestations of human behavior and attitude when communicating.
These are emotions, past experiences or trauma, lacks retention of attention or simply inattentive, status,
and temperament.
Cultural Barrier- include the age and gender of the person, educational background, economic status
quo, popularity, religion, political views, and ethics.
Language Used- as the word posits, it refers to the contributory factor of the diverse language across the
world, dialect, and even its accent or the way the word is uttered. Nonetheless, colloquial term adds the
situation.
Personal Barrier- refers to the poor listening skills, egoistic, interpersonal trust, and ability to
communicate effectively.
For us to be a good communicator, one must develop the effective communications and be able to
identify the barriers in communication. Thus, identifying the purpose of the message and target audience
will give a solid framework and will determine the success of the communication. However, this cannot
be done in just one try, constant practice and developing good communications skills will improve the
way we convey the message to and equip us to converse with the people surrounding us without any
interferences or misunderstanding to both parties.
Explain

Activity 2: Answer the questions below in the discussion forum to be scheduled on a specific date. (10
pts. each)
1. Among the communication models that are discussed, what do you think is the model that fits to
your communication style; and why did you choose this model?

2. When do you say that communication process has been successful?

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Elaborate

Activity 3:
You are done with your reading, now you are going to test yourself by answering the following
questions. (15 pts.)
Activities you will do:
1. Communicate with your parents now. What did you observe? Did you follow any of the
models of communication? If not, why? If yes, prove it.
2. Have you experienced having a “choppy” or connection lost because of low signal?
Tell your experience in five sentences.
3. There are times that you misunderstood each other when communicating although the
message is very simple. What makes it difficult for both of you?

Evaluate

Activity 4. Identification: Write the correct answer on the blanks provided.

_______________ 1. Each person in this communication model is both a speaker and listener
________2. This model was developed because of the emergence of technology. _______________3.
This model was centered on the interpreters understanding. _______________ 4. It is the feedback
which is the most important in this kind of communication model.
_______________ 5. This mode4l indicates that the speaker and listener communicate better if they have
common fields of experience which overlap.
_______________6. According to him, this model is a continuous process, the speaker can begin at any
part of the process.
_______________7. He does not believe that communication is a simple one although we communicate
everyday.
_______________8. This is a term used when the sender and the receiver apply different meaning to the
same word.
_______________ 9. It is a dynamic process because human perception can change overtime.
_______________10. It involves this element of communication that is why it is considered the best
communication process.

GOOD LUCK!

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