The communication evaluations this week helped me to gain a better understanding of not only, how I see myself as an active conversationalist but also, how my family and professional colleagues view me as a communicator. The participants that completed the surveys had similar responses, placing me at the same level in both inventories and in the same Listening Styles Profile, as a people oriented listener. I was surprised to learn that others viewed me as an active and empathetic listener, in the past I was often accused as being too aggressive and non-caring. This can be seen as both a strength and weakness in effective communication because, it can lead me to think more with my feelings rather than anything else, being attentive to the needs of others, and often overlooking personal needs.

I also wasn’t too surprised when my verbal aggressiveness scale placed me at a moderate level on all four results. It is never my intention to attack a person’s character but, I will debate known facts to get my point across. I have not always had the ability to communicate well with others, I was always too shy and my nerves would always make me too sick to speak even on a one-to-one basis. However, as I matured and had children of my own, I had to advocate for them because they were too young to advocate for themselves. Additionally, working in the early education field has helped me practice speaking to larger groups of people and improve my quality of communication.

I am comfortable communicating in most situations and I am confident in anticipation of these encounters however, the difference in scoring in the verbal aggressiveness survey. My director scored me at a higher level than I expected. It concerns me because I can’t see myself lashing out at people for no reason. Her scoring and her comments contradicted one another. She mentioned that I was to “a good communicator but that I was aggressive and that my body language and jargon were rather intimidating (personal communication, 2014). If I am passionate about something, my pitch might become elevated but, I think that being more assertive is different than being too aggressive. I believe that effective communication is the right mixture of care, love, compassion, concern, listening, understanding, and a little assertiveness when necessary.

Two insights that I gained this week that will enhance both my professional and personal communication skills include:

O”Hair and Wiemann (2012) placed emphasis on the fact that “The schema process is a critical part of competent communication (p. 38). As an early childhood profession, having the ability to process information in a timely, effective process is very important.

Interacting effectively encompasses looking for the appropriate level of self-observation for the situation and the people involved (O’Hair and Wiemann, 2012, p. 56). This will build a sense of respect and understanding that will ultimately build a system of trust and respect among parents, children and colleagues.

Rubin, R. B., Palmgreen, P., & Sypher, H. E. (Eds.) (2009). Communication research measures: A

sourcebook. New York: Routledge.

Rubin, R. B., Rubin, A. M., Graham, E. E., Perse, E. M., & Seibold, D. R. (Eds.) (2009). Communication

research measures II: A sourcebook. New York: Routledge.

 

 

Evaluating Communication Skills Week 3

Do you find yourself communicating differently with people from different groups and cultures?

Yes, I find myself communicating with my teenage mom’s in a different manner than the way that I communicate with other parents. Additionally, I communicate with grandparents in a different way too!

If yes, in what ways do you communicate differently?

When I communicate with my teen mom’s, the Language that I use when speaking with them is milder, than the language that I use with older parents. I also have a tendency to offer advice and listen on an as need and I have found myself speaking out of turn. I listen attentively and attempt to offer more advice and I have learned to decipher, acronyms, When I communicate with grandparents, the language that I use is mild and respectable.

Based on what you have learned this week, share at least three strategies you could use to help you communicate more effectively with the people or groups you have identified:

Ways to improve my communication strategies include:

• Evaluating and improving my listening abilities.
• When I approach discussions, connect with families in a style that reflects respect, open-mindedness, honesty, and reliability.
• Always circumvent temptations to deceive people, trick them into doing favors for you, or give you information which is not for your ears.

SOund On Sound Off

This week I was instructed to record an unfamiliar television program and watch it with the sound off and interpret the program. I was then instructed to watch the same program with the sound on to determine if my perception of the program were factual.

This evening, I watched a program with my husband called The Middle, with the television muted. In one scene, there was a young girl standing beside a vehicle, her face was red and her facial expressions were very animated. As the young girl talked to a young man their body language of flailing arms, fast moving mouths and looks of distress indicated that the two teenagers were having a verbal altercation and that the young lady was very upset. Once I turned the volume on and rewound the DVR, the young lady had been stung by a bee while participating in a contest at a car dealership and her face was red due to an allergic reaction. Her boyfriend was trying to convince her to take her hand off of the car because he was more concerned about her health but, she was emphatic that she would not remove her hand because she wanted to win the contest despite her discomfort.

I do not believe that my perception of a familiar television program would have been any different. When we view or observe individual actions without hearing the verbal context we have no definitive way of knowing what the conversation is about or why the actions occur. This assignment clarifies the fact that I cannot be an inactive listener when I communicate with my colleagues because my misconceptions and lack of understanding will lead to false understandings and ineffective communication.

 

Helen Patton My Grandmother the Activist/Child RIghts Advocate

Helen Patton was a Civil Rights Activist in the 1960’s and marched alongside notable activist like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Al Sharpton. In the 1970’s she advocated for the rights of young children with disabilities to have open access to education because she had a child with polio. Mrs. Patton a native of Alabama who migrated to Detroit, MI raised 11 children and taught all of her children the importance of articulation, proper body language and good penmanship. I would like to model my ability to communicate with others after the well-round articulated jargon instilled by my grandmother, she was a role model to her children, grandchildren and countless others who were honored to have made her acquaintance. Her legacy lives on through the community that she served and her likeness is on display in the form of a bronze plaque at a school dedicated in her honor in Detroit, MI. I would like to model my behavior after my grandmother because she possessed a pristine manner of understanding and relating to individuals by having an attentive ear and picking up on context clues that made individuals feel appreciated and understood regardless of their demeanor or ability to communicate effectively.