Introduction to the Course
Communication Studies 20 is an elective course that complements the required Grade 11 course, English Language Arts 20. Communication Studies 20 comprises one compulsory and 15 optional modules from which teachers can choose according to student and community needs. All modules are designed to develop the aim and goals of English language arts and the foundational objectives of Communication Studies 20.
Communication Studies 20 is designed to help students develop and refine their language knowledge and skills for various situations requiring effective oral, written, and visual communication. It emphasizes the understanding of communication as a process, and involves students in a variety of individual and collaborative efforts. The course is based on the premise that confidence and expertise in oral, written, and visual communication are gained through active participation in practical and meaningful communication experiences.
Through practising basic planning techniques, students will learn to construct and deliver a wide range of presentations, and learn to communicate in a clear, concise, and logical manner. In addition, students will extend their abilities to listen, to view, and to read for specific purposes. Many Communication Studies 20 experiences provide for both interactive and interdisciplinary opportunities.
This course is designed to complement listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, and representing experiences across the curriculum. Although all teachers are ultimately responsible for the teaching of communication as it applies to their particular subject areas, this course can help students refine their abilities and become better communicators in all subject areas and beyond the school environment.
Communication Studies 20 teachers should encourage students to practise communication strategies using content from particular subject areas. Teachers might consult and collaborate with other teachers in order to facilitate this. Communication experiences might also involve various community and/or professional groups. These and other individual and co-operative activities in Communication Studies 20 will help students develop proficiency in the use of communication techniques for practical and realistic purposes.
Program Aim and Goals
The aim of the Saskatchewan English language arts program is to graduate a literate person who is competent and confident in using language for both functional and aesthetic purposes. Through the kindergarten to grade 12 program, students develop the ability to adapt language for learning, for expressing their ideas with fluency and clarity, and for communicating effectively with others. They become versatile thinkers and users of language. Communication Studies 20 focuses on the development of students' speaking, listening, writing, reading, viewing, and representing knowledge and skills for the purposes of effectively providing and receiving information.
The objectives of Communication Studies 20 are encompassed in the following goals of the English language arts program, kindergarten to grade 12:
Curriculum Principles
The following principles form a foundation for the teaching of Communication Studies 20:
1. The ability to communicate effectively enhances a person's experiences at home, at work, and in the community.
Communication occurs in many different contexts in a person's life, both personal and professional. The ability to communicate effectively is necessary for success in relating to other people, participating in groups and organizations, and presenting ideas both formally and informally.
2. Communication knowledge and skills are necessary for learning in school and throughout life.
The development of communication knowledge, skills, and attitudes is crucial to all types of learning, whether the learning is undertaken for personal interest, or for academic or vocational reasons. Oral, written, and visual communication abilities provide a base for students who will find themselves in various career and life situations.
Effective communicators, who are proficient in using and interpreting language, possess skills that are transferable to any educational discipline and to any job or life situation. Individuals who possess effective communication skills are able to combine various aspects of their vocational and academic knowledge to become flexible, creative, and independent. It is these individuals who are most likely to become responsible leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs.
3. The natural desire to reason and explore ideas, thoughts, and feelings is facilitated by the acquisition of communication knowledge and skills.
By the age of 15 or 16 years, adolescents begin to show a preference for reasoning and stating abstract hypotheses over recognizing and manipulating relationships between concrete objects. They show a desire in their thinking to proceed in a logical manner from what is real, according to practical experience, to what is possible, according to thoughtful speculation. As a result, they develop theories about life that may be far removed from the world as they see it. This type of development opens up a range of abilities for the student, including abilities to:
At this stage, the school environment needs to offer programs aimed at improving language abilities and addressing communication needs. These programs should be experience-based, allowing students as active language users to explore the complex ideas with which they are experimenting. Meaning becomes clarified as these young people try out new ideas through speaking, listening, reading, writing, viewing, and representing experiences.
4. An effective communicator considers purpose, audience, and context.
This is the foundation for effective communication. Throughout Communication Studies 20, students should develop and refine their abilities to analyze particular communication situations and respond appropriately.
5. Communication is a joint, interdependent process, in which communicator and listener/viewer/reader are equally responsible for the outcome of the message.
The communicator is responsible for providing a clear, relevant message; the receiver of the intended message must be committed to interpreting it. Effective communication depends on how well or how clearly meanings are shared. Communication is effective when the receiver interprets the message as the sender intended it to be interpreted, or is inspired to explore and formulate his or her own opinions, depending on the situation and the speaker's purpose. Throughout the Communication Studies 20 course, teachers should encourage students to develop their abilities as both communicators and interpreters of the communication efforts of others.
6. Some standards apply to all communication forms (speaking, writing, and representing). Such standards include clarity, conciseness, concreteness, correctness, and completeness.
Clarity: A speaker or writer is not successful if the listener or reader does not understand the message or the intention clearly. Therefore, deliberate steps need to be taken to ensure that the speaker's or writer's words and thoughts are perfectly clear. Words that are used need to be precise in their meanings. Writers and speakers need to use carefully-worded sentences which clearly express intended meanings. Writing and speaking vocabularies must be adapted to the appropriate needs of the audience. Also, suitable graphics and audiovisual aids should be used if they can help clarify material for readers, viewers, and listeners.
Conciseness: Concise communication is that which includes all of the necessary facts and ideas in the fewest possible words, without sacrificing meaning or artistry. Important ideas are easily recognizable when ambiguous "extra" words are eliminated. Trite or wordy expressions, rambling sentences, and unnecessary repetition must be omitted. Concise communication should include only the ideas and facts that are relevant to its purpose. Devices such as repetition should used carefully and in a controlled manner.
Concreteness: Concrete communication is definite, specific, and vivid rather than general or vague. Whenever possible, exact words and figures should be used rather than general words, as general words may have different meanings for the sender than for the receiver of the communication. Strong verbs in the active voice help make sentences definite. Concrete rather than abstract nouns and well-chosen modifiers can make messages vivid and forceful.
Correctness: Correctness in communication refers to use of the appropriate level of language (formal or informal), the employment of acceptable writing mechanics and usage practices, and the selection of language and expressions that are not discriminatory. Correctness also refers to accuracy. Information which is communicated needs to be as up to date and accurate as possible.
Completeness: A complete message contains all the facts and/or pertinent questions a listener, viewer, or reader needs for a communicator to achieve the desired results. Complete communication should provide all necessary information. When appropriate, the "who, what, where, when, why, and how" questions should be answered by the speaker/writer. A complete message which includes all the essential components is more likely to motivate the receiver than a message that is vague or obscure.
7. All communication, for whatever purpose, can combine clarity with artistry.
Although many of the objectives of this course are practical in nature, teachers and students should remember that efforts at communication are shaped by the individual communicator. Practical writing, speaking, and representing can be imaginative and can be driven by the same attention and commitment that drives all creative endeavours. In the field of communication there are many opportunities for the individual communicator to present information in a unique and imaginative manner, to express love of language, and to incorporate personal voice and vision.
8. A body of exemplary texts is as necessary for teaching and learning in Communication Studies 20 as it is in required English language arts courses.
Students learn by example. Teachers should provide students with exemplary models of speeches, reports, manuals, charts, web sites, etc. The bibliography for this course provides some guidance. Teachers should, over time, build up a bank of examples of professional and student work. Teacher and students should remember that people learn to speak well by listening to effective speakers, and learn to write well by reading challenging and inspiring written material. This is as true in the area of communication as it is in poetry, for example, or drama.
9. The teacher should ensure that the program is balanced by including:
Effective communication in all its forms is essential to adult life. Although student needs and interests will vary, all students should come to see the value of effective communication in achieving success in whatever they undertake after high school (e.g., further education, cultural exchanges, family life, employment, entrepreneurship). Communication Studies 20 should offer students a wide range of experiences so that they come to understand the many facets of communication and their applicability throughout life.
10. The teacher should ensure all modules and activities selected to comprise Communication Studies 20 be presented in a context of relevance to students' lives and futures.
It is essential that communication concepts and experiences be presented within meaningful contexts. These contexts will vary according to student and community needs. Students should be involved whenever possible in decisions about module selection and communication projects. Specific concepts should not be taught in isolation but should, rather, be presented within the context of the students' own communication projects.
Western Canadian Framework
The Common Curriculum Framework for English Language Arts (1998) was developed by the Ministries of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories, and Yukon Territory in co-operation with teachers and other educators from these provinces and territories. This collaborative effort resulted in the identification of common educational goals and student learning outcomes designed to prepare students for present and future language requirements. The Common Curriculum Framework articulates a shared vision and provides a basis for curriculum development in the respective jurisdictions.
The process of developing common goals and outcomes allowed those involved to explore contemporary thought on specific language arts areas and topics. Among these was the area of functional or transactional writing and speaking. As a result, the most recent thinking about such writing and speaking is embodied in the five general outcomes that were derived for English language arts. These are as follows.
Students will listen, speak, read, write, view, and represent to:
| The work of the western collaborators offers some essential ideas for teaching contemporary communication courses: that communication involves critical thought; that communication is a process of managing information and ideas; and that communication involves artistry in its means of disseminating information and/or inspiring thought. |