Elements of Communication in Classroom

CLASSROOM COMMUNICATION AND ITS ELEMENTS

The difference between teaching and learning in the classroom is communication. Classroom communication consists of verbal and nonverbal transactions between teachers and students and between/among students. To communicate, several elements are necessary.

The Frame of Reference: Communication involves interaction between people. To understand communication, it is essential to comprehend the interactants. The speaker (a message initiator) and listener (a message target) are not isolated beings. They have personal experiences, goals, values, attitudes, knowledge, gender, culture, and beliefs that affect everything they say and interpret. This is called a frame of reference. Due to the difference in frame of reference, the interactants may interpret messages differently.

Messages: Communication consists of both verbal and nonverbal messages. Verbal statements include the words we use in the encounter. Nonverbal messages are how we say our words. In short, oral is what to say, and nonverbal is how to say it. Our goal is to construct the message so that our students understand the intended meaning.

Code: Like computers, human communication is also made of systematic arrangements of symbols used to create meaning in the minds of another person. Words, phrases, and sentences become "symbols" that evoke images, thoughts, and ideas in the sense of others. Verbal codes consist of symbols and grammatical arrangement, and all languages are codes. Nonverbal codes consist of all symbols that are not words, including bodily movements, use of space and time, clothing and other adornments, and sounds different from words.

Channels: We need channels (such as face-to-face, email, text messaging, and telephone) through which messages can be sent and received. Different drains have different implications. Suppose we want a parent about his child is struggling with academic performance. Which channel would make the parent more conducive on this issue?

Encoding and Decoding: If the communication involves the use of codes, the process of communication can be viewed as one of the encoding and decoding processes. Encoding means the process of translating an idea or thought into code, and decoding is the process of assigning meaning to an idea or thought. Suppose the teacher is explaining to his students a poem very well and using the perfect methodology, but students will decode the matter according to their frames of reference. It may be possible that some students do not like the poem, which ultimately affects their understanding of the poem.

Interference: Communication cannot be 100% due to the frame of reference and interference. Interference gets in the way of shared meaning between the teacher and the students. It may be physical (students talking, tapping the pen on the desk, the noise outside the classroom) or psychological (daydreaming, personal problems, ailments, attitudes, conflicts). These all are distractions that cause inaccuracy in communication- preventing the message sent from being the message received. For example, the dislike of English as a subject creates noise in perceiving what the teacher explains regarding Shakespeare and its relevance today. Regardless of the teacher's efforts, the students will find it challenging to receive any message that would enhance their liking for Shakespeare.

Feedback is a vital element of the communication process as it involves both the teacher and the students simultaneously. As the teacher teaches the lesson, the listener responds verbally or nonverbally. As the teacher sends the message, he looks to see whether his students understand him. Our students may ask questions for clarification, nod their heads in agreement, or express confusion in their faces or eyes. This feedback tells us, the teacher, what to say next.

Context:  Communication happens in context. The time of day, location or social situation all provide context to the communication process. Every teacher knows how the time of day affects the student's ability to concentrate on the message. Everything we say and do happens in a climate that makes our notice appropriate or inappropriate, effective or ineffective. In an educational context, this environment is called the classroom climate. The investigators aim to provide a supportive classroom climate through effective communication. A positive classroom climate is important because it promotes the fuller development of a student's positive self-image and enhances self-concept. It is characterized by openness, confidence, acceptance, trust, belonging order and higher expectations rather than defensiveness, fear, rejection, suspicion, alienation, chaos, and low expectations.