“The New Literacy Set” Project

2015-2017

NURTURING SELF-AWARENESS OF ONE'S OWN COMMUNICATION

(SELF-CRITICISM) AND SELF-EMPOWERMENT
Communication literacy curricula
Workshop number 1

Name of the institution: Institut Carles Vallbona

Date: April 2016

Goal of the workshop: To help students realise the importance of their communication with
others and develop their skills in order to improve the way they give information to others.
To understand the communication process, be aware of how information is lost when it is being
conveyed from one person to another and to learn to identify the problems caused by the poor
transmission of information.

Learning outcomes: At the end of the lesson the student will be able to:

1. The cognitive domain (knowledge-based):

 Recognise the characteristics and features of their own communication.

 Recognise the characteristics of effective communication.
 Determine the advantages and disadvantages of their own communication.
 Identify and analyse the strengths and weaknesses of a communication
process.

2. The Affective domain (emotive-based):

 Argue and justify the benefits of effective communication.

 Identify and evaluate their communication process.
 Recognise the need for improvements in their communication process to make
it more effective.

3. The Psychomotor domain (action-based):

 The students will be able to put into practice the communication knowledge
they have acquired.
 They will be able to conduct effective communication in real-life situations.

Teacher qualifications: The competencies that teachers should have include general
professional knowledge and skills, knowledge and application of new methods of learning and
teaching (ICT – Padlet creation and usage) and knowledge and application of evaluation and
self-evaluation methods.

Anticipated age of participants: The workshops should be suitable for students aged between
14 and 18.

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Class methodology:
Didactic type of class: The class is more heuristic, as the students arrive at their knowledge
and become more reflexive. They reach conclusions based on experiential situations.

Sociological form of class: The workshop is primarily based on practice and demonstrations,
working alone, in pairs and in a group. Ideally the group should not be more than 15 people for
the introductory activity.

Working methods: During the class, different methods are used including talking, giving a
demonstration, practical work, critical thinking, debating, cooperative learning, individual and
group reflection.

Class resources and supplies: Room wide enough to walk round without tables. A computer
with a projector, 7 blindfolds and sheets of paper.

Estimated cost: The estimated cost of performing this workshop will be minimal.

Time schedule: The workshop will last about 60'-90'. It would be a good idea to perform the
activity at the beginning of the year, so students are aware of the importance of effective
communication.

Courses: The content of this workshop is suitable for tutorials, language classes and civics and
ethics classes, among others.

Evaluation: Students who have participated in the workshop will be evaluated using a rubric
that includes items on attitude, participation, expression (giving instructions) and respect.
There could also be an oral self-evaluation, based on the reflections on the communication and
the possible weaknesses that make a communication process less effective.

Literature:
For the students: Not necessary.
For the teachers:

 Fiske, J. (1990.) Introduction to Communication Studies, New York, Routledge.

 Craig T. R., Muller, L. H. (2007.) Theorizing Communication: Reading Across Traditions,
London, SAGE Publications.
 Burnett, P. C. (2002.) Teacher praise and feedback and students’ perceptions of the
classroom environment, Educational Psychology, 22(1), 1–16
 Brockner, J., Derr, W. R., & Laing, W. N. (1987.) Self-esteem and reactions to negative
feedback: Towards greater generalizability, Journal of Research in Personality, 21, 318–
334.
 Johnson, D.W. (1993). Reaching out: Interpersonal effectiveness and self-actualization.
Boston, Allyn and Bacon

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 https://www.anxietybc.com/self-help/effective-communication-improving-your-social-
skills
 http://www.selfawarenessworkshops.com/4573/self-awareness-and-effective-
communication

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WORKSHOP ARTICULATION
INTRODUCTION:

Time: 40 minutes.

Content: Importance of effective communication.

Goal: The goal of this introductory activity is to learn how a message distorts.

Material: A room without tables nor chairs is needed as well as 7 blindfolds.

Development:

For the initial activity, we will start by splitting the group in 2 through a game. For instance,
students are asked to line against the wall according to their height or the length of their hair
or their birthday without saying anything. This last version can be used if they know each other
previously.

Then the teacher takes 7 students and places them in the centre of the room in a circle facing
inside it. The other 7 students are required to watch and will blindfold the eyes of the students
in the circle when the teacher says so.

The teacher explains the activity: No words can be spoken during the whole activity. When
everyone is blindfolded, the teacher will make a secret set of movements to the person on
his/her right. For instance: moving his fingers on the shoes of the other, pressing one knee,
and tickling the other's arm. When he/she is finished doing these actions, he/she can unfold
his/her eyes.

Now is the turn of the other person to repeat these actions to the person next to him/her. This
person will repeat these actions to the person on his/her right as well and when the circle is
closed up, everyone will be with their eyes open. Last, the teacher receives the movement
"message" and everyone will learn how much the message has changed from the beginning, as

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the teacher explains the original movements to everyone. The goal of this activity is to watch
how the message fades out and gets distorted.

Finally, the 7 remaining students who have been watching can explain how, when and who
induced the changes in the movements and a small discussion among the students can be run
to try to understand why the message has changed so much.

It is the moment for these 7 other students to try to perform the same activity and the first 7
can watch. Now a student can propose a different set of movements to start with.

Invariably the message never reaches the end the same as it was in the beginning and this is
the basis for the teacher to explain how important effective communication is. So, if this lack of
communication happens with a very easy message (touch or not touch), it is no wonder that
with more complex messages (classes, conferences, news...) so many people understand
different ideas and disagreements arise.

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To avoid this, it is important to be aware of how we communicate, not only how we send the
message but also how the other may receive it and how we receive any information from
others.

Once the students are focused and interested on the goal of the workshop, we can start the
following activity.

DEVELOPMENT:

Time: 20 min.

Content: Presentation EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION.

SLIDE 2:
Dalai Lama once said: “When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But,
when you listen, you may learn something new.”

SLIDE 3:
Communication is the transmission of an idea or feeling so that the sender and receiver share
the same understanding.
Communication is not a mysterious process. It takes place when the ideas from your mind are
transferred to another’s and arrive intact, complete, and coherent.

SLIDE 4:
Most common ways to communicate are:
- spoken word
- visual images
- written word
- body language

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SLIDE 5:
The communication process can be described as follows:

SLIDE 6:
Why is it important to communicate effectively?
❏ Effective communication helps to understand a person or situation in a better way.
❏ It enables us to solve the differences, build trust and respect in the organization.
❏ Sometimes our message is misunderstood or we misunderstand the received message.
Effective communication helps us to resolve problems from both points of view.
❏ Effective communication helps us to connect well with colleagues, teachers, parents,
etc.
❏ It helps us in decision making.

SLIDE 7:
Before learning to communicate effectively, we should learn which are the barriers of
communication that make communication ineffective:

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SLIDE 8:
Common barriers to effective communication are as follows:
 Emotional barriers and taboos.
 Lack of attention, interest, distractions, or irrelevance to the receiver.
 Physical disabilities such as hearing problems or speech difficulties.
 Physical barriers to non-verbal communication.
 Language differences and the difficulty in understanding unfamiliar accents, use of
jargon.
 Expectations and prejudices which may lead to false assumptions or stereotyping.
 Differences in perception and viewpoint, cultural differences.

SLIDE 9:
The 7c’s of effective communication:
❏ Completeness
❏ Conciseness
❏ Consideration
❏ Clarity
❏ Concreteness
❏ Courtesy
❏ Correctness

SLIDE 10:
COMPLETENESS:
·Message is complete when it contains all facts the reader or listener needs for the reaction you
desire.
·Communication senders need to assess their message through the eyes of the receivers to be
sure they have included all relevant information.
·Provide all necessary information.
·Answer all questions asked.
·Give something extra when desirable.

SLIDE 11:
CONCISENESS:
·Eliminate wordy expressions.
·Include only relevant statements
·Be focused.
·Shorten & avoid long explanations.
·Avoid gushing politeness.
·Avoid unnecessary repetitions.
-Use short forms for the second time.
-Use pronouns.

SLIDE 12:
CONSIDERATION:
Consideration implies "stepping into the shoes of others": know the audience’s viewpoints,
background, mind-set, education level, etc.
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Make an attempt to envisage your audience, their requirements, emotions as well as problems.
Ensure that the self-respect of the audience is maintained and their emotions are not at harm.

SLIDE 13:
CLARITY:
·Emphasize one specific message, goal or idea at a time.
·Avoid vagueness.
·Avoid technical terms which may be hard to understand.
·Avoid the possibility of misinterpretation. As much as possible, your audience shouldn’t have
to "read between the lines".

SLIDE 14:
CONCRETENESS:
· Be precise in presenting facts and figures.
· Use active voice more than the passive.
· Use action verbs to make idea clear.
· Use of image building words where necessary.

SLIDE 15:
COURTESY:
· Courtesy in a message implies that the message should show the sender’s expression as well
as respect the receiver.
· The sender's message should be sincerely polite, judicious, reflective and enthusiastic.

SLIDE 16:
CORRECTNESS:
· At the core of correctness is proper grammar, punctuation and spelling.
· The term correctness, as applied to effective communications also mean three characteristics:
-> Use the right level of language.
-> Check the accuracy of figures, facts and words.
-> Maintain acceptable writing mechanics.

SLIDE 17:
Strategies to apply seven C’s of communication:
Emotions should be managed in a conversation. If you are getting angry, you have to calm
yourself by:
* Speaking to the other person as if you were not angry.
* Avoid the use of the word “you” - this avoids blaming.
* Nod your head to assure the other person that you heard him.
* Maintain eye contact with him.

SLIDE 18:
Stop communicating ineffectively: Gardener misunderstanding
LINK TO VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FK1G1Pho7Ls

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SLIDE 19:
Stop communicating ineffectively: the bear’s list
LINK TO VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixSUBl1WNxk

SLIDE 20:
To achieve effective communication, we must have:
- self-awareness
- self-criticism
- self-empowerment

On the last slide entitled “And what about us...” the importance of reaching the self-
empowerment is highlighted, introducing so the work of self-awareness and self-criticism that
students are now required to do.

Content: Presentation SELF-AWARENESS IN COMMUNICATION.

Before the presentation, the teacher tells the students that they will be asked to develop a grid
to evaluate their classmates in a communication experiment. So they will need to take notes
individually along the presentation and then in groups of 2-3 propose a grid with the items
which have been explained. The presentation talks about what communication is, the
communication process, its elements, the features of a good communication and the barriers
that hinder an effective communication.

SLIDES 2, 3 AND 4:
SELF-AWARENESS:
When you are aware of your own communication and how you come across to people you are
able to practice effective communication. Leaders who do not understand their own behaviour,
and how they are perceived by others, create communication glitches like misunderstandings
or hurt feelings. Here are some examples of the connection between self-awareness and
effective communication:
Self-awareness means that you know how your thoughts, emotions and behaviours
affect others and you’re able to manage yourself so that the other person is an important
part of the conversation.
Self-awareness helps you be more comfortable with yourself so you can relate to others
with genuine confidence and kindness.
Self-awareness allows you to get out of the way and let people tell you what’s
important to them without letting your stuff complicate the interaction.
Self-awareness gives you the ability to shift from always having to talk (the result of ego)
to listening to people instead.
Self-awareness helps you communicate with others on a deeper level because you make
them feel valued and important.
Self-awareness helps you understand how others see you and how you can adapt to
make more meaningful connections and build stronger relationships.
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Self-awareness helps you collaborate with others.

(http://www.selfawarenessworkshops.com/4573/self-awareness-and-effective-communication)

SLIDE 5:
Dimensions of Personal Empowerment
The following ‘dimensions of personal empowerment’ are based on the belief that the greater
the range of coping responses an individual develops, the greater their chance of coping
effectively with diverse life situations. These dimensions are:

Self-Awareness
Self-awareness involves understanding our individual character and how we are likely to
respond to situations. This enables us to build on our positive qualities and be aware of any
negative traits which may reduce our effectiveness. Self-aware people make conscious
decisions to enhance their lives whenever possible, learning from past experiences. That's
really important in the communication process.

Values
Values are opinions or beliefs that are important to us but of which we are not always aware.
They can be any kind of belief or perceived obligation, anything we prefer and for any reason.
The reasons we may prefer one thing over another, or choose one course of action over
another, may not always be obvious or known; there may be no apparent reason for our
values. Nevertheless, our values are important to us as individuals. In order to be self-aware it
is necessary to be aware of our values, to critically examine them and to accept that our values
may be different from those of others.

Skills
An individual's skills are the main resource which enables them to achieve their desired goals.
Skills can be gained through experience, practice, education and training. It is only by
developing such skills that individual values can be translated into action.

Information
Knowledge or information is necessary in the development of self-awareness and skills. It is an
essential skill in itself to know where to find appropriate information. Without information, the
choices open to people are limited, both in their personal and working lives. The Internet has
provided an easy way for everybody to access huge amounts of information very quickly and
easily. The problem is then centred around the quality of the information found, and the skill
set is concerned with finding accurate and reliable information.

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Goals
Setting goals is a means by which an individual can take charge of his/her life. The process of
setting a goal involves people thinking about their values and the direction that they would like
their lives to follow. Choices are made through reflection followed by action. Goals should
always be both specific and realistic. Setting personal goals gives us a sense of direction in life,
this direction is essential to personal empowerment.
A summary of what has been explained can be done by the whole class on the blackboard or in
the computer with the projector. A mind map online tool such as https://bubbl.us/ can be
used.
Once the final mind-map is agreed on, each group of 2 students propose a grid to evaluate
their classmates for the following activity. First, the grid is not shared, so the students will not
know how they are evaluated.

DEVELOPMENT:

Time: 20 min.

Content: "Am I Explaining myself? Do you Understand me?” Self-evaluation of how students
communicate.

Using the grids developed in the previous activity, students will evaluate how a pair of
volunteers communicate and we will give them the opportunity to watch themselves in the
process.

This activity is designed to work on different aspects of communication, such as the difficulties
which can be found in a communication process due to the way we transmit or receive a
message.

First we need one or two pairs of volunteer students. One member of each pair goes out of the
class, so as not to hear the explanation. The other student is then asked to take a sheet of
paper, fold it in two and cut it in half. He/she has to do the same again with each piece of paper
to get four pieces. Then the student must place the four pieces of paper on the floor to shape a
"T", as in the picture.

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Once the volunteer has done that (the "T"), the other volunteer comes back without seeing the
figure (eyes closed or blindfolded). The figure can also be undone. The two students are now
placed back to back, and the student who has formed the "T" gives verbal instructions to
his/her partner to do the same and then the partner has to say what the figure is. The activity
finishes when the student who is doing the "T" says he/she has finished. The expected
outcome is that this student shapes a different figure to the one expected, due to a lack of
information.

Other students group themselves in teams of 4 people and write a report of all the actions that
the pair does. Specially those about lack or poor or inefficient communication.

During the process, we record the communication process between the two:
 Are questions asked?
 Does the person who is trying to imitate the composition get the proper information?
 Are the questions useful to get the proper information?
 Does somebody get angry? What is the reaction of the other one?
 Note if the final figure obtained is the same.

With the report written, each group of 4 people will use the 2 previously designed grids to
grade the volunteers. As the grids were proposed in teams of 2, they will need to decide which
is the best grid of the 2 they have made. Surely they will have to update them and reach an
agreement to propose a new one.

The teacher will make the students to think about:

 How emotions affect communication: courtesy, consideration.
 Clarity in the message.
 Concreteness.
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 Completeness.
 Barriers: distraction, time pressures, information overload, retention...

Again the grids are not shared with the whole group, but now the number of grids is the half of
before.

DEVELOPMENT:
Time: 20 minutes.

Content: Drawing dictation

The goal of this activity is to draw pictures of what our partner will dictate to us verbally. So
effective communication and listening attentively will be required.

The students will work in teams of 2. One member of the pair will be looking at the blackboard,
and the other will face opposite. They will sit back to back. The teacher will draw on the
blackboard an easy picture (see examples below). The member of the pair who looks to the
board will give instructions to his partner who will try to draw the same picture which is on the
blackboard, without looking it. It is
forbidden to ask questions or ask for any
help.

Sample of the drawings:

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Once finished everyone will use their own grids to evaluate themselves. One by one they will
have to explain in front of the class:
 what is the final drawing
 what problems occurred during communication
 how did they feel just listening or just dictating without interacting
 which has been the score using the grid
 opinion about the fairness of the grid they designed

The activity can be done again, now the one who was drawing dictates and words can be used,
asking questions. The position of the students can now be different: they sit facing each other,
but of course the picture on the board cannot be seen by the student who is drawing.

Now the explanation in front of the class could be:

 Compare the drawings with the possibility of speaking. Did you use the same time in
the two processes?
 How did other language influence the process: gaze, facial expression ...?
 What conclusions did you reach?

Eventually a final grid to record the different features of a communication process should be
agreed on with the comments of all the groups.

CONCLUSION:

Time: 20 minutes.

Content:
Students can give their opinion and answer some questions about the activity. Finally, the
students will have 10 minutes to write messages to improve their communication on the on-
line board (http://padlet.com/mtalaver_xtec/vxhrrdklmf0g).

Using this information, and their own experience, students express how they experienced it:
how they felt, what happened, what difficulties they saw in communicating, if they have had a
similar example in real life, how they think we got this result, etc.

The prompt for creating these messages could be: How do you think communication between
people can be improved?

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ATTACHMENTS:

a) Video link for the presentation:

The bear's list:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixSUBl1WNx
k

Gardener misunderstanding:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FK1G1Pho7Ls

b) Padlet link:

http://padlet.com/mtalaver_xtec/vxhrrdklmf0g

c) Image of the figure to be achieved:

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e) Rubric:

“SELF-AWARENESS COMMUNICATION ACTIVITIES”– EVALUATION WORKSHOP

Level – Cycle: .................. – GROUP: …........ Year: …................

EVALUATOR: Date:

The goal of this rubric is to evaluate the activity “Am I explaining myself? Do you understand
me?” The score is 1 (needs to improve) to 4 (excellent).

ELEMENTS NEEDS TO SATISFACTORY GOOD EXCELLENT

IMPROVE 2 3 4
1
ATTITUDE Often has a Usually has a Often has a Always has a
(25%) negative attitude negative attitude positive attitude positive attitude
towards the task. towards the task. towards the task. towards the task.
PARTICIPATION Not engaged. Peripherally engaged Actively engaged Actively engaged
(25%) Needs frequent and usually in pair and group and may take a
reminders to cooperative, work. leadership role.
stick to the task, respectful and Generally Always cooperative,
often not prepared. cooperative, respectful and well
prepared. respectful and prepared.
prepared.
GIVING Student gives Some instructions The instructions The instructions are
INSTRUCTIONS incorrect are confusing. are quite clear. very clear. There is
(25%) instructions. extra clarification.

RESPECTS Verbally Usually sides with a Usually Respects opinions of

CLASSMATES' disparages ideas classmate who has withholds classmates, supports
IDEAS / DECISIONS of classmates, similar ideas to their disparaging group decisions.
(25%) wants things own. remarks about
their way. the ideas of
others; supports
others' ideas.

f) PowerPoint presentation: Effective Communication

g) PowerPoint presentation: Self-awareness in Communication

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