Become a better communicator
Understand and be understood
Learn about body language, speech, writing and decision making!
Become a better communicator and live a happier and more effective life.
Poor communication is the cause of many problems in life, if left unchecked it can lead to problems in a person's family life, breakdowns in friendships or difficulties in the workplace.
This course aims to improve your ability to communicate in all situations, whether private or professional.
This 100 hour course covers:
- Behaviour
- Visual Communications
- Language
- Public Speaking
- Conducting Meetings
- Writing Letters and Reports
- Communications Technology and lots more!
COURSE STRUCTURE
This subject has 8 lessons as follows:
1. Introduction
- Problems with Poor Communication
- Barriers to Effective Communication
- Giving Instructions
- Evaluating Instructions or Orders
2. Types of Communication
- What is Appropriate Communication
- Passive, aggressive and assertive Communication
- Listening
- Obstacles to Listening
- Empathic Listening
- Ways to Indicate You are Listening
- Informative Language
- Persuasive Language
- Imaginative Language
- Literal Language
- Figurative Language
- Formal Language
- Colloquial Language
- Communication Channels
3. Language Skills
- Reviewing your Writing
- Evaluating your Writing
- Concise Wording
- Condensing your Writing
- Common Problems contributing to Lack of Conciseness
- Clear Wording
- Making Meanings Clear
- Causes of Confusion; homophones, malapropisms, colloquial meanings, ambiguity
- Simplicity
4. Writing Skills
- Where Writing Skills are Used
- Writing for a Purpose
- Determining the Purpose
- Knowing Your Reader
- Guidelines for Effective Writing
- Language
- Planning What You Write
- Business Letters
- Writing a Business Letter
- Other Types of Business Documents
- Writing Themes
- Types of Themes: analogy, chronological theme
- Common Grammatical Errors to Avoid
- Punctuation
5. Developing Writing Skills
- Writing Fundamentals
- Improving a Piece of Writing
- Newspaper Writing
- Concise Wording
- Magazine Articles
6. Visual Communications
- Hand outs
- Visual Materials; illustration, charts
- Digital Technology
- Digital Applications; Graphics, CAD, Multi media, Internet, etc.
7. Public Speaking
- Audio Aids
- Recorded Presentations
- Speaking in Public
- Principles of Public Speaking
- Selling
8. Committee Meetings
- Functions of a Meeting
- Conducting a Committee Meeting
- Role of Office Bearers
- Taking Minutes in a Meeting
COURSE AIMS
- Explain the communication process
- Explain the types of communication approaches used.
- Demonstrate language skills that are concise and precise.
- Explain the importance of writing as an effective form of communication.
- Demonstrate writing skills as an effective form of communication.
- Describe various forms of visual communication and how they are generally used to impart messages.
- Prepare for effective verbal communication.
- Conduct committee meetings.
Duration: 100 hours
At the end of each lesson, there is an assignment and a set task, which you submit to your tutor for marking. You can also contact your tutor with any queries via phone, email or post. Our tutors are always happy to help with any questions.
LEARN TO BREAK DOWN COMMUNICATION BARRIERS
When understanding is blocked communication becomes ineffective resulting in the kinds of problems listed earlier. There are many barriers to communication including:
-
Using unnecessarily complicated language or words.
-
Using jargon – not everyone will understand jargon that may be industry specific or regional.
-
Language difference - it is important to ensure that the receiver has understood your message.
-
Your meaning - make sure that both you and the receiver of your message both understand what you are trying to convey. Poorly expressed communication can alter the meaning. Also do not assume that the receiver will know the importance of your message.
-
Preconceptions - don’t presume that the receiver of your message automatically knows what you are trying to communicate; or that they will let you know that they do not understand.
- Fear or anxiety - nervous receivers may be concentrating more on how they are feeling then the communicator if they feel anxious.
- Overload - giving too much information at once, making it impossible to absorb.
- Physical barriers - i.e. when using telephones or other such forms of communication poor reception can result in the message not being heard.
- Unrealistic demands - don’t presume that the receiver is more capable then they actually are.
People can Communicate poorly in many different ways, for example
- Fragmented Sentences: This is where a writer incorrectly ends a sentence that is not a complete sentence.
- Run on Sentences: Two clauses or sentences that are not separated. e.g. I ate this morning my friend ate leftovers.
- Comma Splices: This occurs when two independent clauses are joined together by a comma. e.g. The soup cooked for three hours, it was tasteless.
- Dangling Modifiers: A modifier is a word or phrase that modifies (tells more about) another word or phrase. A dangling modifier occurs where the thing being modified is not included. e.g. Typing at my computer, the foot rail broke off.
Confusion can also arise when you say or write one thing but your facial expressions or actions are inconsistent with what you say.
There are many other issues to consider and understand with respect to communication; and this is precisely what this course will do.
WHAT NEXT?
Learn to be an effective communicator in written and verbal communication with this intensive 100 hour distance learning course.
This course is suitable for anyone who wants to improve their communication at work and personally.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with our expert tutors who will be more than happy to help you in choosing the right course to suit you - connect with us using our FREE COURSE COUNSELLING SERVICE.
Stay in touch, follow us on Twitter – Facebook - Google